BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — If you have noticed some hair loss recently -- a local cosmetic doctor says it may be because of Covid-19.
There is no medical evidence to suggest that the virus directly causes hair to fall out -- but the pandemic has elevated stress levels due to isolation, unemployment, food insecurity and more -- which can cause a temporary hair loss condition called Telogen effluvium, according to Dr. Robert Leonard of Leonard Hair Transplant Associates.
"This unprecedented psychological stress that the virus is beating down on all of us, it's a real thing," Dr. Leonard said. "Stress can do awful things to people."
Some doctors have also suggested that the physical and emotional stress of contracting the virus itself can also catalyze the reversible condition.
Leonard added that in almost every circumstance, his office can assure clients that the hair will grow back -- but it will take some time.
"No treatment is often the right treatment," he said. "People have to wait three to four months for it to stop [shedding] and then three to four months for it to grow back."
WBZ's Chris Fama (@CFamaWBZ) reports.
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Written by Rachel Armany
(Photo: Getty Images)