Seasonal hair loss is real, it peaks in late summer and early autumn, and in most people it settles on its own. If you are finding more hair in the shower in September than you did in April, that is far more likely to be your hair's own cycle than a disease. Two published studies back this up — and they also show why a shampoo can help the scalp without stopping the shedding itself.
What is seasonal hair loss?
Every follicle on your head runs its own cycle: a long growing phase, a short transition, then a resting phase. A resting hair has already stopped growing but stays anchored in the follicle for a while before it is released — usually when you wash, brush or run your hands through your hair.
Seasonal shedding happens when an unusually large share of follicles enter that resting phase at roughly the same time of year. They do not fall out together on the day they stop growing. They fall out together weeks later, which is why the shedding you notice is always reporting on something that happened earlier.
That lag is the single most useful thing to understand about it. By the time you are worried, the trigger has usually passed.
What do the studies actually say?
| Study | What it measured | What it found |
|---|---|---|
| Kunz, Seifert & Trüeb, Dermatology, 2009 | Trichograms from 823 healthy women over 6 years | The proportion of hairs in the resting phase was highest in summer, with a second smaller rise in spring, and was lowest in late winter |
| Buontempo and colleagues, JEADV, 2023 | US Google searches for "hair loss", 2004–2020 | Search interest peaked in August, followed by September and July. It was lowest in April, then February and December |
Put together, the two fit the lag described above: resting hairs measured in summer, people noticing the shedding and searching for answers in August and September.
Both studies have limits worth knowing. The 2009 one looked at women who had already come to a clinic complaining of hair loss, in one country in the northern hemisphere — not a random sample of everyone. The 2023 one measures how many people searched, not how much hair anyone actually lost. Neither proves a cause. What they do establish is that the timing is a real, repeating pattern rather than something people imagine.
How do you tell seasonal shedding from something else?
The figure usually quoted is 50 to 100 hairs a day, and it is a fair description of the normal range. As a home test it is close to useless — the number varies with how often you wash and how long your hair is, and almost nobody has a baseline count from a normal month to compare against. What matters is the change from your own normal, and these four questions get at that faster than counting:
- Is it diffuse or patchy? Seasonal shedding comes evenly from all over the scalp. Distinct bald patches are not seasonal and need a doctor.
- Is your parting the same width? Hair coming out all over but a parting that has not widened points to shedding rather than thinning.
- Is your hairline where it was? A receding hairline or thinning at the temples is a different process altogether.
- How long has it been going on? A seasonal episode is weeks to a couple of months. Past about three months, get it looked at.
Does living in Cyprus change anything?
Not the cycle itself — that appears to be driven by daylight and season rather than by local conditions. But four local things leave the scalp and the hair you still have in worse shape going into autumn:
- UV is strong most of the year, not for six weeks. The scalp along a parting takes direct sun that the rest of your skin rarely gets.
- The swimming season is long. Months of salt and chlorine — our guide to sun, salt and chlorine damage covers what that does to the lengths.
- Hard water covers most of the island. The mineral film makes cleansing feel incomplete and stops treatments working as well as they should.
- Air conditioning runs for months. It dehydrates scalp skin about as efficiently as a cold winter does.
None of these has been shown to cause seasonal shedding. They make the scalp a worse place for the hair that stays — a different problem, and a fixable one.
Which Davines products are relevant, and what each one is for
Davines splits this across four jobs. Buying from the wrong group is the most common mistake we see.
| If your problem is… | The range | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Shedding linked to stress and season | Energizing | Scalp stimulation; the Seasonal Superactive is the one tested for this specific cause |
| The scalp itself — flaking, itching, oiliness, buildup | Purifying, Calming, Rebalancing, Detoxifying, SOLU | Treats the scalp condition, matched to the symptom |
| Hair that looks thin while it grows back | Replumping, Volu | Cosmetic fullness. Changes appearance, not shedding |
| Gradual, age-related loss of density | Renewing | Everyday anti-age cleansing, not a seasonal fix |
Energizing — for the shedding itself
The Energizing Seasonal Superactive is the product in the whole range built for this exact situation. It is a leave-in scalp serum in twelve single-dose 6ml vials, with Hair Energy Complex, niacinamide and caffeine-rich phytoceuticals. Davines reports a 27% reduction in hair loss due to stress and seasonal factors after 56 days, rising to 34% after 84 days. Those are the brand's own figures, and they are the ones that apply to seasonal shedding.
The Energizing Superactive 100ml looks similar but was tested against something else: Davines reports 25% at 56 days and 27% at 84 days for hair loss associated with androgenetic factors. If your concern is seasonal, the Seasonal vials are the match. If it is a year-round, gradually progressive pattern, this is the one — and the men's hair loss guide covers that case properly.
The Energizing Shampoo is the wash step, with Hair Energy Complex and caffeine phytoceuticals, free from parabens and sulfates. Davines' own recommended course is every other day for the first month, then twice a week for two months, alternating with Renewing Shampoo.
The Energizing Thickening Tonic does something different and immediate: Davines states it increases hair fibre diameter by 10% from the first application. That is a cosmetic effect on the hair you have, not a treatment for shedding — useful while you wait for the rest to work. The Energizing Gel is a leave-in that adds body to fine, stressed hair with a balancing action on the scalp.
Scalp care — match the symptom, not the brand
A shedding scalp that is also flaking, itching or greasy will not respond well until that is dealt with. Pick by what is actually happening:
- Purifying Shampoo — dandruff and flaking, with dandelion phytoceuticals. Davines suggests twice a week for up to three weeks, then once a week for six.
- Calming Shampoo — a sensitive or easily irritated scalp, with blueberry phytoceuticals.
- Rebalancing Shampoo — an oily scalp and roots that go greasy quickly, with lemon phytoceuticals.
- Detoxifying Shampoo Scrub — a gentle exfoliating reset for buildup, used periodically rather than every wash.
- SOLU Shampoo — a clarifying wash that removes product residue and environmental buildup. Worth a place in a hard-water routine.
- The Wake Up Circle — a mask Davines positions as recovery after stress or exposure to extreme weather, restoring scalp tone.
Replumping and Volu — fullness while you wait
These make hair look and feel denser. They do not reduce shedding, and anyone who tells you otherwise is selling something.
Replumping Shampoo and Conditioner are gentle cleansing for fine hair with plum phytoceuticals, and the Replumping Hair Filler Superactive is a hyaluronic acid leave-in that compacts fine hair for a fuller look. Volu Shampoo and Conditioner are the lighter volume option, and the Nourishing Hair Building Pak adds body to weakened hair.
Renewing — a different problem
Renewing Shampoo and Conditioning Treatment target the gradual loss of density that comes with age rather than a seasonal episode. Davines reports softness +37%, shine +29% and body +29%, from a self-assessment by 50 people after 28 days — and that test used the full system including a serum we do not currently stock, so treat the figures as indicative of the range rather than of these two products alone.
A realistic 12-week routine
Built around Davines' own recommended course for the Energizing line.
- Weeks 1–4. Energizing Shampoo every other day. One Seasonal Superactive vial daily on the scalp, not rinsed out. If your scalp is flaking or greasy, swap one wash a week for Purifying or Rebalancing.
- Weeks 5–12. Energizing Shampoo twice a week, alternating with Renewing Shampoo. Continue the scalp treatment. Add the Thickening Tonic if you want the hair to look fuller in the meantime.
- Judge it at week 12, not week 2. Davines' own figures are measured at 56 and 84 days. Hair grows roughly a centimetre a month; nothing visible can happen faster than that.
What none of these products can do
- They are cosmetics, not medicines. They do not treat androgenetic alopecia, alopecia areata, thyroid disease, iron deficiency or postpartum shedding.
- They will not bring back a receded hairline. Nothing in a bottle will.
- They will not work in a fortnight. Any product promising that is making it up.
- Seasonal shedding usually stops by itself. That is worth saying plainly: these products support the scalp and make the hair you keep look better while a self-limiting process runs its course. That is genuinely useful — but it is not the same as stopping the shedding, and some of the improvement you see at week 12 would have come anyway.
When to see a doctor instead
- Shedding that goes past about three months
- Bald patches, a widening parting, or a receding hairline
- Scalp pain, persistent redness or scaling that does not settle
- Shedding alongside fatigue, weight change, or changes to your periods — these point to things a blood test can answer
Frequently asked questions
What is seasonal hair loss?
It is a temporary rise in shedding at a particular time of year, caused by an unusually large share of hair follicles entering their resting phase at once. The hairs are released weeks later, which is why the shedding you notice is always reporting on something that already happened.
Which month does hair fall out the most?
Late summer and early autumn. A 2009 study in Dermatology found the proportion of resting hairs peaked in summer, and a 2023 analysis of US Google searches found hair loss searches peaked in August, followed by September and July.
How long does seasonal hair loss last?
Usually a few weeks to a couple of months, and it settles on its own. If it is still going after about three months, it is worth seeing a doctor rather than waiting it out.
Can a shampoo stop seasonal hair loss?
No. A shampoo can clean and support the scalp, and a leave-in scalp treatment can be used alongside, but no cosmetic stops the hair cycle. Davines reports a 27% reduction in hair loss from stress and seasonal factors after 56 days of Energizing Seasonal Superactive — that is a reduction, from the brand's own testing, not a stop.
Which Davines product is for seasonal hair loss?
The Energizing Seasonal Superactive, a leave-in scalp serum in single-dose vials, is the one Davines tested specifically against hair loss from stress and seasonal factors. The Energizing Shampoo is the matching wash. The 100ml Energizing Superactive is a different product, tested against androgenetic factors instead.
When should I worry about hair loss?
If you have bald patches, a widening parting or a receding hairline, if the shedding lasts more than about three months, if your scalp is painful or persistently red and scaling, or if the shedding comes with fatigue or weight change. Those are doctor's questions, not shampoo questions.
Where to start
If the shedding is the thing worrying you, start with the Energizing Seasonal Superactive and the Energizing Shampoo, and give them twelve weeks. If your scalp is flaking, itching or greasy, fix that first with the matching shampoo above. If you mostly want your hair to look fuller right now, the Replumping Hair Filler does that today without pretending to do anything else.
The full range is in our Davines collection, and everything across brands aimed at this sits in Hair Loss and Fine Hair. If you are not sure which of the four groups above describes you, message us and we will tell you straight — including when the answer is to see a doctor rather than buy anything. Not sure which Davines family suits your hair generally? Our guide to the Davines lines walks through all of them.
This article is general information, not medical advice. Hair loss can have medical causes including thyroid disease, iron deficiency and autoimmune conditions. Speak to a doctor or dermatologist if you are concerned.
