Hair Loss In Men

Introduction

There are many kinds of hair loss, including what we call:

alopecia areata (patches of baldness that usually grow back);

All of these types of hair loss can be alarming but, fortunately, they are most often mild and temporary or reversible.

The majority of people who lose their hair, however, do it gradually and all through the scalp, with some emphasis on the frontal part. Doctors refer to this process as " androgenetic alopecia" which implies that a combination of hormones
(andro-) and heredity (genetics) is needed to develop the condition.

Hair Loss in Men

What causes hair loss in men?

Some men never go "bald" but everyone's hair thins out over the years. Despite much research, there's still only a little that men can do to slow down or reverse hair loss. I'm referring to garden-variety "male-pattern baldness." The medical term for that is "androgenetic alopecia," which means hair loss that you get when you have male hormones and a hereditary tendency to lose hair.

Sometimes, acute stress to the system (such as high fever, sudden weight loss, etc.) produces a sudden, rapid shedding of hair, where you find clumps of hair coming out all over the place. Although this syndrome (called telogen effluvium) is alarming, it actually is good news, because the body readjusts itself and most if not all the hair grows back. People whose loss of hair is inherited notice their hair is thinning but don't see very much hair actually coming out.

Once you think you're thinning, it's worth a check to be sure. Even men who never lose much hair develop some receding at both temples during adolescence. Boy's hairlines are straight across; adult men have more of an "M"-shape.

Clearing up the "Myths"

What treatments are there for hair loss in men?

Many conditioners, shampoos, vitamins, and other products claim to help hair grow in some unspecified way. These are harmless but useless. To slow down hair loss, you have two options:

Stopping either Rogaine or Propecia puts you back where you would have been without them, but not worse off (except maybe financially).

What other options do I have for hair loss?

Hairpieces, etc.

You can always choose one of the time-honored ways to add hair temporarily; hairpieces or hair weaving, in which a mesh is attached to your remaining hair and artificial or human hair is woven to blend with your own. Either method can produce quite satisfactory results, but quality varies considerably and depends a great deal on how much you want to spend. Also, hairpieces and weaves stretch, oxidize, and loosen, which requires you to refresh or replace them (or in the case of hairpieces buy 2 or more at a time, to have on reserve.) Also, some stay on more securely than others during swimming and other activity. (How's that for a delicate euphemism?)

Surgery

Surgical approaches include various versions of hair transplantation (taking hair from the back and putting it near the front) or scalp reduction (cutting away bald areas and stitching the rest together.). Check credentials carefully when consulting about these approaches since the skill of surgeons varies widely. If the doctor has limited experience, a poor esthetic sense, or if he or she transplants hairs that are destined to fall out anyway, results can be unnatural and unfortunate.

Finally, there is fatalism. Some bald men console themselves with adages like, "Grass doesn't grow on a busy street." That's fine, if it works for you.