Hair transplants are not recommended for women and I began to dislike myself terribly."I am never comfortable sitting while others are standing. I even tried a course of dog pills that promised glossy coats.When I moved to London after school my hair became worse, thinning out towards the front I could see right along the scalp. However, at the moment there are no statistics as to whether stress is the trigger for this kind of hair loss.Emma Green, 35, temporary secretary: "At 15 and at high school in South Africa, I was asked if I pulled out my hair I felt devastated, and it wasn't that bad then. I believe my condition was triggered as a teenager by the strain of moving country twice in the space of 18 months."I would pray for an advice line and scour magazines for information I tried everything - blood tests, the pill, a crew cut. Women requiring such treatment often regrow up to 40 per cent more hair.Androgens (a group of hormones) that cause hair loss are released in the body as a reaction to stress.

Effective medical treatment usually involves oral anti-androgen and oestrogen therapy, sometimes in the form of a contraceptive pill. In extreme cases thinning from just behind the frontal hairline to the crown occurs shortly after puberty For most, changes become evident during the mid- 20s. (These figures do not include scarring alopecia, which is impossible to treat.)GENETIC HAIR LOSSUp to 30 per cent of Western women are affected by genetic hair loss - and 72 per cent of these also have a nutritional imbalance. Nevertheless, it can still be several months or even years before an individual will seek help.Rushton's team, which includes an endocrinologist and a dermatologist, are adamant that practically every case of female hair loss can be treated. Hair loss can have a serious adverse effect on quality of life but more women are now seeking treatment because word is out that something can be done. The lime blossom is merely an extract, but what's good enough for Uma is good enough for most women..

Men have always had to put up with hair loss but now more women are having to face the same fate. No one said that life for women in a post-feminist world was going to be easy, and the increasing incidence of female hair loss is showing how tough the going is. Dr Hugh Rushton is a pioneer in the treatment of hair loss. In the past, 40 per cent of his patients were women - a figure which has risen to 60 per cent today. "The majority of scalp hair problems are non life-threatening, and as a consequence the progress of hair research has been relatively slow over the past 50 years", say Rushton. UMA THURMAN keeps her complexion flawless with Janet Fildermans Lime Blossom Cleansing Milk, pounds 11.25.