Author: Dr. William Rassman

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14 Year Old Male Losing 30-40 Hairs Per Day

Hi, Im a 14 male and losing hair.

I have been checked by a doctor (just a GP) and have been told that i have a very healthy scalp and that its not a scalp issue. I do not have hereditary hair loss in the family, my father is in his mid 50’s and still has all his hair. I have always had very ‘big’ sort of hair so its becoming increasingly noticeable. Im not losing terrible amounts of hair, only about 30-40 per day , but it is very stressfull. Especially when i have to wash my hair, and also when i wake up in the morning and have 15 + hairs on my pillow.

Is this ‘normal’ so to speak? Could it be stress related? Am i just shedding? Please help me out. Thanx.

The average person loses 100-150 hairs per day. What fall out you are noticing in the shower is probably less than what you lose during the day when you are not washing your hair. It is normal.

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14 Year Old with Bald Spots

I am 14 years of age. I don’t know how many bald spots I have, but when my hair is wet, I notice quite a lot, especially on the spots where I gel my hair. When I gel my hair, I do notice hairs in the comb. You said it should grow back, but I’ve been waiting 6 months to a year, and no signs of regrowth. How long should it take? Is this normal?

Oh, yeah. 1 more thing. My cousin hit me with a baseball bat, and then there was a bump where I got hit. After my mom put some green oil (it’s an Asian thing, not sure what it’s called). Now there’s a bald spot there. Will it grow back?

These bald spots need to be evaluated by a good dermatologist. A fungal infection is the most common cause of such spots and there are other medical conditions that need to be evaluated as well. You don’t want to be your own doctor here.

The traumatic baseball bat type of injury has been know to produce temporary hair loss at the point of impact. It should grow back in under 6 months.


2006-09-13 10:17:0414 Year Old with Bald Spots

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15 Year Old Wants to Grow a Full Beard

Hey, I just have a few questions that everyone gives me different answers about, and I would really like to hear the right answer. First, I am 15 years old and am trying to grow a full beard. However, only some hairs grow and the others don’t. Will it take a few months for them to develop into a beard or should i quit and wait a few years because i hate the somewhat-beard look? Also, I have a little bit more hair than normal above my shaving line on the cheekbones. I have not shaved it off, but can I or will that make the hairs come out thicker and worsen the situation? Or should I just ignore it and it’ll get better over time? Appreciate if you could answer my questions. Thanx

WerewolfThe ability to grow a full beard will depend on your genes. If you are not destined to have a hairy face, then that is your fate. Look at your father, his father, your brother, and your uncles and you will get to see what you probably have in store for you. Beards take time to grow out and in boys of your age, it is not uncommon for the beard to be patchy. Mine did not fill out until I was in my early 20s and now it is much too full for me. There is no way to make your hair come out “thicker” or faster.

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I am 15 years old and am losing hair. Can I take finasteride?

Depending upon your bone maturation, it may not be unreasonable to use the drug finasteride, but first where you are on YOUR growth curve (e.g. bony maturation) plus other factors relating to your hair loss are critical to understand. I belong to a group of 60 doctors who share a common email and the subject of young boys 15 and up and the use of finasteride has come up. With proper doctoring, this can be an option. The HAIRCHECK test is a critical first step in evaluating the degree of hair loss that you have. Many doctors may not want to use this drug on you so it is a careful discussion with you, your parents and your doctors that is critical in making such decision.

William Rassman, M.D.


2017-01-11 14:35:40I am 15 years old and am losing hair. Can I take finasteride?

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15 and think I am balding

So, I’ve actually had really bad hair for a while now, ever since I was 14 (or at least that is when I first noticed).

I went to a very respected clinic and got a minoxidil prescription straight away due to how bad it actually is, given that I’ve had a big problem with my hair for almost 2 years now. I’ve heard a lit of people on here recommend Finasteride as well, but I doubt I can get that prescribed easily where I live (Third World Problems, I guess).

I have seen 15 year old males (rarely) develop a maturing hairline, which is not balding. Send me photos


2019-03-26 18:19:5615 and think I am balding

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15 y/o, should I try oral minoxidil?

My dermatologist recommended that I should give oral minoxidil a try now, but I’m concerned about the generalized effect it will have on hair growth. I am generally quite happy with my low body hair level and would like to avoid getting a unibrow and super hairy arms and legs. Could some people share their experience with hypertrichosis while on oral minoxidil?

If you start on it and develop hair growth side effects that you don’t like, stop the medication, and the hair side effects will go away. Hair growth from minoxidil is heavily dependent upon taking the minoxidil and my stopping the drug, the unwanted hair will disappear.

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15 year old loss ‘all of his hair’ from extreme diet (from Reddit)

Unique story. I would have to see photos and even better examine you. The diagnosis does not seem right to me and that is why I would need to know a lot more about you to help. Assuming that this is acceleration of male patterned balding, one option is Scalp Micropigmentation which will make your head look like a full head of hair that you shaved. This can be done and if the hair loss can be reversed, there is no downside that I know of. Here is a photo of a young man who lost all of his hair from Alopecia Totalis (an autoimmune disease that killed off all of his hair:https://scalpmicropigmentation.com/bold-shaved-look/#!https://scalpmicropigmentation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/scalp_micropigmentation-new_hair_institute-147-bold_shaved_look.jpg (his eyebrows are wigs)

William Rassman, M.D.

15 y/o son lost forty pounds and half his hair. Doctor said his weight loss “triggered” mpb. from tressless


2019-05-13 05:02:0215 year old loss ‘all of his hair’ from extreme diet (from Reddit)

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15 Year Old Female with Hair Loss

Your information on female hair loss was helpful, but the information on teenage female hair loss was not as informative. I’m fifteen, and I feel I need more information. When I was a child, I had thick hair. When I was around seven, I cut it short. It was still thick then. Around seventh grade I decided to grow it back out, but still, it was thick then. When I started my freshman year in high school, though, mid-year, it began to thin. It has shown no sign of stopping, and it does worry me. My ponytail has significantly gone down in size. I can’t wear my hair down without having loose strands cover my back – which is not popular at school. Plus, I lose an extreme amount of hair each time I shower – at least fifty strands. My hair is also lackluster in shine, and crooked and crinkled when it falls out. My mother took me to a doctor, who told me it was not my thyroid level. A week or two ago, my father told me to start taking vitamins and trying to eat better – the latter of which is hard, when you go to high school. Personally, though, I’m not sure that I believe this is a diet issue. If it was, why wouldn’t it affect more teenage girls at my school? I wish to know if there are medical conditions that I might have that give a symptom of hair loss, and possibly also slight depression – I have noticed that my mood seems to be getting worse and worse. I am also on birth control, which I noticed you said might cause problems… but it shouldn’t, because I have been having hair loss much longer than I’ve been on birth control. I just want to know what I could have, and how I can get this to stop.

You need to have a good doctor do a thorough work-up on you. There is no way I can help you without getting a full opportunity to get a good history (including detailed dietary history) and a full examination of your scalp and hair for miniaturization. This will determine the health of your hair and your overall health. There are no shortcuts and no internet site that can get you what you want, because what you need is a good doctor (one who is interested in this field) first. Also, look through the Female Hair Loss category, as there are many posts that discuss the various conditions and tests that are part of what a good doctor will be able to perform on you.

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16 y/o on topical finasteride and topical minoxidil with good results

Do you think that it is safe taking finasteride and minoxidil at my age? My result are excellent.

Speak with your doctor, as I don’t give direct advice over blogs. I suspect that it will be okay. These topicals go systemic, so maybe you would be better off sticking with the oral forms of these medications so that you know exactly what your system is getting.