When Hair Loss Is Not Normal: 3 Lab Test to Find Answers

9 Jul 2025

Do you stand in the shower, holding clumps of your hair, thinking to yourself “there’s no way this is normal”?

Many women experience a time in their life where they aren’t sure if they should be worried about the hair accumulating on their bathroom floor, or their pillow, or any surface in their homes really. It’s tough because we are supposed to lose hair everyday – this makes room for new hair to grow – but when do you say “this is too much”?

Signs that your hair loss may be a bit more than your normal daily shed:

You are starting to get bald patches on your head
When you go to put your hair in a ponytail it feels thinner
Your hairline is changing – aka receeding
Your hairdresser notices (been there!)

There are lots of areas in your life you’ll want to assess if your hair is coming out.

For starters, are you eating enough protein?

Our hair literally is protein.

We need to give our body the building blocks it needs to make more. So if our diets are low in good quality protein, our hair might suffer.

Here are some lab tests we always run when a woman feels like they are losing their hair:

There’s no discrimination here – if you feel it’s falling out too quickly, we look into it. It can be an extremely difficult emotional experience to feel like you’re losing your hair, so it’s better to know up front if anything is off.

#1. Thyroid Testing

If your thyroid isn’t functioning well, you’ll start to lose your hair, amongst a slew of other symptoms. We will check:

TSH
Free T3
Free T4
Anti-TPO
Reverse T3

The Thyroid Foundation of Canada estimates 1 in 10 Canadians suffer from thyroid dysfunction and 50% of these people are undiagnosed.

If you’ve had your thyroid checked before and told “everything is normal” but still feel tired, cold, overweight, and oh ya, you’re losing your hair, you need to check it again with a functional medicine practitioner. 4 out of those 5 lab tests are likely not being run and it’s crucial to rule out any thyroid dysfunction to see them all.

#2. Dyhydrotestosterone – DHT

Testosterone is turned into DHT in our bodies, in men more than women. If the enzyme that makes DHT is running a bit rampant, you’ll get symptoms of high DHT like acne, facial hair growth, and head hair loss.

#3. Zinc

Zinc is an interesting one, because it’s actually linked to hypothyroidism and DHT when it comes to hair loss. If you do the testing from #1 and #2, but don’t notice any change once you start treating, it may be because your zinc deficient.

Zinc is important for our hair, skin and nails and we are often deficient because our food is grown in zinc-deficient soil.

You do not need to suffer with hair loss – it’s time we got you some answers.

Would you like to get to the bottom of your hair loss?

Our team at Natural Choice Medical Clinic is here to support you with compassionate, comprehensive care.

Book your appointment online by clicking here.

Or give us a call at 519-265-8035 We’re happy to help you get started.