Do Hair Dryers Cause Hair Loss?

One of the most common hair tools we have is the hair dryer. It is a versatile tool that can help you dry and style your hair. 

Most people have a hair dryer or have used a hair dryer on their hair.

Although they are great, with excess or poor use, they could be a potential cause of hair dryness. 

But apart from that, many still ask: Do hair dryers cause hair loss?

It is possible to have hair loss due to a hair dryer. But it is something that rarely happens, and you’d have to be burning your skin when using the hair dryer for it to happen to any significant amount. 

Let’s talk more about what happens with your hair when you use hair dryers, and some precautions to avoid hair loss while using them. 

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Do Hair Dryers Cause Hair Loss?

When you want to dry your hair quickly, what hair tool do you grab?

Like many people, you’ve probably used a hair dryer before to dry and style your hair. 

Hair dryers are great tools to help you style your hair (particularly ionic ones). They can be used to help you have straighter hair, or give you a graceful curl. 

That is possible because of the hot air that it produces.

Heat affects the hydrogen bonds of the hair so that you can style it in the way that you like. Once the hair cools off, the way the hair is styled should stay put. 

Although heat will style the hair, too much heat could cause hair loss. This is only possible if your scalp is burned due to the hair dryer, or if your scalp is severely irritated with the heat due to the hair dryer.

It’s not a common occurrence. And if you’re losing hair, your dryer is probably not a major factor.

Although heat will style the hair, too much heat could cause hair loss. This is only possible if your scalp is burned due to the hair dryer, or if your scalp is severely irritated with the heat due to the hair dryer.

Using a hair dryer doesn’t mean that you’ll automatically lose hair. Most people use a hair dryer without experiencing hair loss problems.

Even if they use the highest heat setting, most don’t experience any problems, especially if they don’t get the hair dryer too close to the scalp.

Nevertheless, you should still be cautious when using the hair dryer. Make sure your scalp doesn’t have any adverse reaction or irritation to the heat. 

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What Happens When You Use A Hair Dryer?

Even if your hair doesn’t fall off when you use a hair dryer, you should still take precautions when using it.

Hair dryers could damage your hair when you use them, primarily because of the heat they produce.

Hair is naturally composed of keratin. That keratin fits together due to hydrogen bonds. This is responsible for your hair’s natural shape. 

If you want to modify the hair shape, you can use heat.

This will alter the hydrogen bonds in the hair so that you can rearrange it and style it in the manner that you like. Altering bonds between the hydrogen molecules will temporarily alter the hair so it can be styled. 

However, aside from altering the hydrogen bonds, the heat can affect the natural oils and protein of your hair.

It strips them away.

When your hair is constantly stripped of its natural oils, it becomes dry. Additionally, it creates cracks in the protective layer called the cuticle.

That makes it more vulnerable to other damage from sunlight or exposure to chemicals. 

Hair damage due to excessive use of heat stylers could cause hair to be frizzy and more prone to breakage. That could be the reason why your hair develops split ends. 

If you use hair dryers, you should examine your hair and see whether it is getting dry. The first few uses of a hair dryer won’t damage it but multiple uses could lead to dryness and damage. 

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Tips To Lessening Hair Damage Due To Hair Dryers

Using a hair dryer is a normal part of many people’s hair care routine.

However, that doesn’t mean that you should just let it ruin your hair. 

Although you may be able to style your hair and end up with a beautiful one right after using your hair dryer, dry and damaged hair, in the long run, doesn’t look good. 

The best thing to do is to minimize the use of the hair dryer. Don’t use it more than you need to.

Instead, you can towel-dry your hair. Just make sure that you don’t rub the towel vigorously because that could damage the hair, too! 

The best thing to do is to minimize the use of the hair dryer. Don’t use it more than you need to.

Apart from that, here are a few tips on how to lessen hair damage while using your hair dryer. 

1. Opt For The Cool Setting

If you are only using the hair dryer to dry your hair and you don’t plan on straightening or curling it, you don’t need the added heat. Simply blowing your hair with cool air is enough to dry it quickly than just air drying it. 

That is another great way to lessen the hair’s exposure to high heat. Many hair dryers have various heat settings, some even allow you to turn off the heat and use the hair dryer just like a fan. 

That would be the best setting. But if yours doesn’t have that, then you should just select the lowest temperature setting while using it. 

Of course, if you have a high-end Dyson hair dryer, this is less of an issue.

2. Don’t Point It Directly At The Hair Roots

When using the blow dryer, it is a common mistake to point the nozzle directly toward the scalp. Instead of doing that, you should point the blow dryer towards the tips of the hair. 

In that way, you are lessening the heat exposure of your hair roots and scalp. That helps prevent the natural oils from being dried up.

The natural oils produced by your scalp help keep your hair moisturized.

3. Constantly Move Your Hair Dryer

One way to prevent the hair dryer from removing moisture from your hair and scalp is by constantly moving the hair dryer. Don’t use it on one spot for too long or else you’d dry the scalp and hair in that area. 

You have to give your hair and scalp time to cool down, too. Prolonged use in one spot may even cause burns on your scalp that could leave permanent damage. 

The best way to use the hair dryer is to do multiple passes on the different areas of your hair. Constantly move it around so it doesn’t concentrate on a single spot for far too long. 

4. Use Hair Protectants

Today, there are several heat protectants  that you can apply to your hair before you use a hair dryer or other heat stylers. These are specifically formulated for use with your hair dryers, curler, or irons. 

They may come in various forms like sprays and creams.

Although these could help protect your hair from most of the heat damage, they still can’t prevent 100% of the damage that your hair can get. 

To use the hair protectants, you simply need to spray them on your hair or spread the product evenly before you use any of your heat-styling tools. 

They can make your hair greasy, though. There are always tradeoffs.

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Other Causes Of Hair Loss

It is easy to blame hair loss due to the use of your hair dryer. However, if you’ve stopped using your hair dryer and still experience hair loss, consider finding the other reasons why you could be having that problem. 

Here are a few common causes of hair loss:

1. Genetics

One common cause of hair loss is genetic. Whether you are experiencing male pattern baldness or female pattern baldness, genetics is commonly to blame. 

Males who experience this typically lose their hair in the crown and temple areas of their heads. For females, usually, the hair thins out all over the head. 

This usually happens as we age but it could start early on after puberty. It is quite common for females to experience this after they menopause. This could signify that hormones play a part in the loss of hair. 

2. Nutritional Deficiencies

Another reason for hair loss could be due to nutritional deficiencies. Check what you eat and make sure that you are giving your body the nutrients that it needs. 

Sometimes, when we undergo extreme diets, the body doesn’t receive enough protein, iron, or other vitamins. That could cause the hair to fall out. 

One way to check if you have any nutritional deficiencies is to go to your doctor and go for a blood test. Nutrient deficiencies do not only cause your hair to fall out but could lead to other problems in your body. 

3. Medical Conditions

Some medical conditions could lead to hair loss. Problems involving the thyroid, hormonal imbalance, or the presence of ringworm on the scalp could cause your hair to fall out. 

Being pregnant can also cause your hair to fall out because of the changes in the hormones. Sometimes, the medications that you use for certain medical conditions could lead to hair loss. 

4. The Wrong Hair Products

Many hair care products are black boxes when it comes to ingredients. they have a million chemical-sounding names and none of the ingredients mean anything. This can be difficult to deal with. Many people report hair loss issues with various shampoos like Native Shampoo, Monday Shampoo, etc. But the reports are anecdotal, and there isn’t any clear evidence for these issues.

However, some shampoos contain DMDM Hydantoin, which has some real evidence pointing to hair loss.

You should be aware of what you’re putting in your hair.