Why Is My Hair Falling Out 7 Causes Of Male Hair Loss
Medically reviewed by Kristin Hall, FNP
Its a common situation: after taking a shower or brushing your hair, you notice a bit more of your hair falls out more than normal and collects around the drain or is stuck to your brush. You may even start to wonder how much hair loss is normal.
While everyone sheds a certain amount of hair daily , losing more hair than normal could be a sign that youre beginning to lose your hair as a result of a health condition like male pattern baldness.
Hair loss due to male pattern baldness occurs when DHT, a male androgen hormone, starts to affect the integrity of your hair follicles and disrupts your hair growth cycle.
myths about hair lossIts also possible to lose hair for a variety of other reasons, from stress to nutritional deficiencies.
Procedures Used To Treat Male
Depending on the location and extent of your hair loss, your dermatologist may recommend one of these procedures:
Hair transplant: If youre looking for a permanent solution, you may want to consider a hair transplant. This procedure no longer involves moving plugs of hair from one part of your scalp to another. Today, a hair transplant can give you permanent, natural-looking results.
Platelet-rich plasma : While PRP is not a permanent solution, maintenance treatments can help you maintain results.
PRP can be used alone or given before a hair transplant to improve results.
If your dermatologist recommends PRP for you, heres what you can expect. A small amount of your blood would be drawn and placed into a machine that separates your red blood cells from the plasma.
Your plasma is then injected into your scalp. This takes about 10 minutes.
You will need to return for more injections. For the first three months, you return once a month. Then you return once every three to six months.
Within a few months, PRP can help lessen hair loss. Soon after, some patients see thickening of their hair or regrowth.
How To Make Your Hair Thicker
- Try to identify and eliminate the cause of your hair loss.
- Drink more water and increase your intake of protein, Omega 3, and vitamin C.
- Select a haircut and hairstyle that will make your thin hair appear thicker.
- Use shampoos that are designed for thinning hair.
- Consider hair regrowth treatments and transplants if no other thickening methods work.
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Thinning Crown Or Vertex
Thinning Crown? Click to see how much hair this man regrew and for more information *
Some men will experience thinning at the back or top of the head called the crown or vertex. Again this can coincide with a receding hairline, but sometimes men will only have one of the two. Hair loss at the crown will usually start off with thinning until the scalp becomes visible, after which a bald patch may appear. This bald patch may progress until it meets a receding hairline or causes a prominent area of baldness at the top or back of the head. Again, the extensiveness or pattern is different from person to person, but thinning hair or baldness at the crown is very common. You can find out more about this particular pattern, how it can be treated and photographic examples of those who have experienced regrowth from their hair growth programme.
Find The Hair Loss Treatment That Is Right For You
If youve noticed hair loss and want to stop it, one of the most effective ways is to block the androgen dihydrotestosterone the hormone that causes hair loss using a combination of finasteride, minoxidil and a hair thickening shampoo.
The most effective hair loss treatments, such as 5-reductase inhibitor finasteride, are designed to stop further hair loss. This means that the earlier you start taking them, the more of your hair youll be able to preserve.
In some cases, drugs like finasteride and minoxidil can cause you to regrow some of your lost hair, although theres no guarantee that this will happen.
Our guide to DHT and hair loss explains more about how hair loss treatments like finasteride work, and the potential effects you can expect from starting the treatment.
If you are worried about whether or not you can grow your hair back, a hair transplant may be the option for you.
You can also complete an online consultation with our healthcare providers to learn more about whats causing your hair loss and how you can encourage hair growth.
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Is Thin Hair The Same As Thinning Hair
Its easy to confuse naturally thin hair with thinning hair, especially if youre a man who is especially concerned with losing his hair. Having thin hair does not necessarily mean youre losing it, though. All types and textures of hair can become thinner and having thin hair to begin with doesnt mean youre more prone to hair loss.
How Do I Know If Im Losing My Hair
This is a very good question, and although the answer might seem obvious, many men do not identify their hair loss until it has become fairly advanced, which could be too late to achieve a full recovery. The reasons men do not identify their own hair loss are usually down to simple denial, or because the process is very slow and it is something that they simply might not notice. At the opposite end of the scale, many men worry about hair loss when they have no reason to worry.
The best ways to know if you are losing your hair are:
- noticing the appearance of thinning hair or a receding hairline yourself
- other people informing you that you are losing your hair
- excessive hair on your pillow, the shower bed or in the bath plug, or on your hands when styling your hair in the morning.
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Itchy Scalp And Thinning Hair Tips And Advice That May Help
ByAva Alderman | Submitted On October 02, 2009
The other day, I received similar emails from both a man and a woman who described having an itchy, tingling scalp with hair loss that seemed accelerated and was accompanied by thinning. Both wanted to know what they could do about their scalp In truth, there are several reasons that these two things occur side by side or simultaneously. I will discuss these things in the following article.
The Most Common Cause For An Itching Scalp Accompanied By Shedding Or Thinning Hair: By far, the most common cause for this condition is an over reaction to your scalp to the androgens that are on it. Now, this may be a sudden onset of symptoms because either your hormones are changing, the androgens are increasing, or your sensitivity to the androgens is increasing. All three of these things generally occur with age. And, these things tie into genetic or androgenic hair loss, meaning your standard, run of the mill, patterned baldness or thinning. Sometimes this is patterned or it can be more diffuse
Now, sometimes, the thinning is caused as a result of the shedding, but sometimes miniaturization takes place. What this means is that your hair is growing back thinner and finer as the result of being affected by the androgens that I discussed above. If your regrowth looks fine though, youre typically over the TE hump and can just focus on reducing the inflammation of your scalp.
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Will I Suffer Any Psychological Problems As A Result Of Going/being Bald
Some men have a genuine fear of going bald and it can cause high stress levels, low self-esteem, reduced sex drive and even depression. But if you understand the causes and accept them you are much more likely to conquer these fears. Most men feel a momentary loss of confidence when they realise they are losing hair but this is often overcome quickly. The only way to ensure you wont suffer psychological problems is to face up to the realities of baldness and either accept it or seek treatment that works for you.
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Whats Next For Thinning Hair
Now that you know the signs and a few reasons for thinning hair, itâs time to take action. you have options for treating hair loss at every stage of the process. So whether youâve just started or have a noticeable bald spot now, there are hair loss solutions available to you. Consult with an expert like Dr. Feinberg at the hair restoration center of New Jersey & New York to learn more about your hair loss and what you can do to restore your hair.
What Is Fine Hair
With fine hair, the size of the actual strands of hair is smaller than other types. Its missing the inner structure called the medulla, says trichologist Bridgette Hall, which makes the physical diameter of each strand smaller. It also contains less protein, which can make fine hair seem floppy and a little fluffy, she says. Its usually smooth, without a lot of natural volume, and is usually seen in lighter hair colors like blonds. Its important to note that since fine hair refers to the actual size of the hair itself, it does not have anything to do with density, which is how much hair you have. You can have fine hair and have a full head of hair, says Hall.
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Medications To Treat Hair Loss
Treatment depends on the underlying cause, says Dr. Scott. Sometimes simply addressing a medical condition prompting hair loss will be enough for the hair to regrow. In other instances, a woman might consider a medication like minoxidil , which helps with certain types of hair loss, or another treatment to replace or regrow lost hair.
A newer option being used to treat hair loss is platelet-rich plasma injections. For this treatment, the doctor draws your blood, divides it into its separate components, recombines the blood fluid with a high concentration of platelets , and introduces the resulting preparation back into the scalp.
The science on this isnt totally worked out. We still dont completely understand the mechanism behind PRP, but growth factors contained in platelets can stimulate regeneration of hair follicles and other tissues as well, says Dr. Scott.
In addition, low-level LED laser lights have been found to be helpful in regrowing hair in some cases. Its likely that even more treatments will be developed in the near future.
Facts & Figures On Hair Loss
You may feel alone if you are experiencing hair loss, but after looking at statistics, we hope youll see that almost everyone is affected by some type of hair loss in their lifetime.
For women, thinning hair and hair loss affects roughly one in four women, and 95% of those affected suffer from androgenetic alopecia. On average, women dealing with hair loss are between 25 and 35 years old.
This is a big contrast from the perception that thinning hair and hair loss is only related to older men and women.
Furthermore, 24% of women equate losing hair to losing a limb. This is how deeply emotional thinning hair and hair loss can be, especially for women.
By the age of 35, 66% of American men will experience some type of hair loss, and by the age of 50, about 85% of men will have significantly thinning hair.
For men with male pattern baldness, 25% will begin to see thinning hair or hair loss before they reach the age of 21.
These numbers prove that hair loss is not just an issue for older men and women, but in fact affects many men and women in their early twenties and thirties as well.
There may be a silver lining to thinning hair and hair loss at a younger age though your body may be more receptive to hair growth products and hair loss cures because hair follicles may still be capable of regrowth at this earlier age.
Next well take a look at the different causes for hair loss, and why they might be happening at a younger age
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Dont Forget Conditioners And Volumizers
Applying conditioner after shampooing your hair is essential to maintaining healthy locks. Conditioner is a vital hair-care step that adds moisture to help replenish hairs sheen and natural oils lost during shampooing. And volumizers work like a splint to strengthen each strand of hair, plumping it to provide more volume per strand.
Does It Run In The Family
Look into your family’s history with hair loss. Male Pattern Baldness is typically a genetic condition, so your first step in determining if you are balding is finding out if you are genetically prone to baldness.
In the event you have a family history of male pattern baldness, then there is a good chance your hair loss is not the result of stress or another factor. It may come down to genetics, and there is not much you can do about that.
At this point, you should speak with a dermatologist to go over your hair restoration options. There is a lot of information you can find online, but the internet is also filled with half-truths and myths. The only way to get good information you can trust is to go directly to a medical professional who can review your hair loss.
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Does Stress Cause Hair Loss
In short, it can. stress affects everyone differently, but the presence of stress does not guarantee you are going to lose your hair. According to the mayo clinic, âmany people experience a general thinning of hair several months after a physical or emotional shock.â It also states that sudden hair loss from stress is temporary. We should also note that prolonged stress can increase your chances of hair loss.
Are There Any Complications From Male Pattern Baldness
Understandably most men can feel less good about their appearance when they lose hair. This can sometimes affect their mood and well-being. Some counselling can help men come to terms with this natural process of ageing.
There is more risk of sunburn and sun-related skin damage when the skin is not protected by hair. This can be avoided by the use of suntan lotions and hats.
Women with male pattern baldness should be checked for causes of raised male hormone levels. For example, conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome – a condition in which cysts develop in the ovaries.
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