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

About this time last year my son lost forty pounds through diet and exercise. I started noticing some hair loss and we made an appointment. Primary doctor said it’s no big deal and the hair will come right back. Blood work came out fine. The hair loss started accelerating rapidly so we went to a dermatologist who said that the weight loss likely “triggered” male pattern baldness. She believes that he would have likely started losing his hair in five years or so, but the stress on his body kicked it into overdrive. She wanted to put him on finesteride (I said no), but he started minoxidil and some BS pills called Nutrafol. We went back to the derm three months later and hair was no longer shedding, but no regrowth. His hair is very diffused on top and even more so in the crown. I don’t know what to make of all this. I obviously don’t want him to go through this (it’s affecting his social life and anxiety), but putting him on fin seems dangerous. Is it possible to trigger male pattern balding or could this just be telogen effluvium?

Acute weight loss often causes hair loss and it can trigger MPB even in a 15 year old.


2019-02-12 07:04:5515 y/o son lost forty pounds and half his hair. Doctor said his weight loss “triggered” mpb.

17 with early balding, where do I start?

I’m currently only 17 and I noticed recently that my hairline is starting to go. It’s not so noticeable at the moment, but does bother me a bit. I’ll drop some pictures so you can get an idea. I have no idea what to do right now and I want to stop it and regrow to make it thicker in the areas in a bit thin. I currently only take a multivitamin everyday since that’s all I feel safe taking until I get some solid advice. I know about a derma roller, finasteride, and minoxidil but I’m not sure what I need to take. Please let me know!

First I would advise you to find a good caring doctor who will build a Master Plan with you to allow you to maintain your hair for many years. Getting a HAIRCHECK test is a good thing because it will quantify the amount of hair you have lost so far. Things like the Dermaroller with minoxidil works well. So does finasteride but make sure that you really have hair loss and are at the beginning stages of hair loss before you commit to these treatments which have to be maintained.


2019-12-17 08:23:0717 with early balding, where do I start?

16 Year Old With Receding Temples Wants Dreadlocks

Hello, I’m 16 years old and I’ve been planning on getting my hair put into dreadlocks. I noticed my hair line near the temples were receding quite a bit. If I were to get my hair put into them would there be any negative effects?

Also, I had a blood test taken, and my doctor thinks that my baldness is down to my high testosterone levels and not much can be done for me, I told him about my real concern and I was told to take another blood test however focusing on different things. Is there anything that can be done to help regrow or prevent the baldness? I have been tempted to try certain products however I remain skeptical, what can you sugest?

  1. Dreadlocks may put extra tension on your hair and may accelerate hair loss or produce traction alopecia (hair loss from pulling and tension is common with dreadlocks).
  2. At 16 years old, your testosterone level should naturally be high.
  3. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of hair growth products out there. I am also a skeptic like you and I generally tell my patients that it is a “buyer beware” market. If you are concerned, have a good doctor map your hair for miniaturization and determine if you have early genetic hair loss and see if the doctor can predict the pattern of hair loss. I generally can do this in a young man at about the age of 25. Just remember that at your age, you are NOT a good hair transplant candidate and need to get the proper evaluation


2006-06-02 07:16:2916 Year Old With Receding Temples Wants Dreadlocks

17 and losing hair

History: dad went beyond any point of regrow the by the time he was age 22, and my older cousin who is that same age is pretty much bald at this point (he went from all hair to no hair within 2 years) I didn’t even think I was close to being the age where I had to consider hair loss until my 17th birthday (may 2020) when my dad suggested I begin using rogaine preventatively. As soon as he said this I went and analyzed my scalp for the first time, and sure enough I was starting to go bald on my crown. I started the Costco/samsclub rogaine and have been doing that since then. It seemed to start actually working about 2 months ago and I’m pretty sure it has been effective

You need a personalized Master Plan worked through a good hair doctor who cares about his patients. This is far too important to mange by yourself. Read this: https://baldingblog.com/go-why-do-we-need-a-master-plan/


2021-01-23 09:05:3217 and losing hair

I am 17 and losing hair. I can see through the hair to the scalp which was never that way before

Your biggest enemy is the progressive thinning leading to a balding pattern that is not evident at this point in time. The degree of thinning that you are experiencing would suggest that you should see a doctor who most likely will get Bulk Measurements of your hair to determine the degree of the thinning that you are presently having. If the diagnosis is early genetic hair loss (the most common cause of hair loss in young men), then the best treatment would be the drug finasteride which is highly effective in men of your age and may not only stop the hair loss but possibly reverse it. If you are developing a more advanced balding pattern the best test to get will determine the Bulk Measurements of your hair and this will show, over a one-year time frame, how effective the treatment will be. Once you know this information, then you and your doctor need to develop a MASTER PLAN which will define what you need to do over the years to come.

16 years old with great response to topical minoxidil (photo)

When you started on minoxidil for a year at 15, your hair loss reversal was remarkable. At your age (now 16), early genetic hair loss will reverse with either minoxidil or finasteride. You must accept that you will be using one of these drugs for most of your life to keep your hair if you have inherited significant balding in your family line.
[If you have any questions, you can reach me at williamrassman33@gmail.com]

17 month on finasteride (photo)

Finasteride alone is not known to reverse hair loss generally speaking, but in this man we see reversal over a 17 month period of time


2020-08-16 09:02:3017 month on finasteride (photo)

16 Year Old Losing Hair, Prescribed Betamethasone

Well I just turned 16 today but a few weeks earlier i started to notice my hair thinning on the left side of my head. When i was in school last year i had a bald patch show up by itself like completely bald. My mom took me to the doctor and they gave me this betamuthisone lotion stuff. i used it but i don think thats what made it grow back. Now im noticing this thinning on the left side and im scared im going bald. could it be maturing of my hairline? My hair is not thinning in the crown. Im going to have my mom take me to the doctor soon.

knowing that many others are having the same problem does no calm me down whatsoever. i wanted to know if i should use rogaine or take oral pills which id like very much because i know its good to do something about it this early. So im glad i noticed but maybe it because i stopped working out vigorously? I was on the wrestling team thi year and its extreme conditioning and my hair was growing really thick and fast when i was in it. now that im not in wrestling and lay on my bed im wondering should i start up again myself? My pubic hair growth has slowed as well. please tell me if i should take propecia or any of that.

please dont tell me not to worry because i will even if you say not to. im just curious as to what i should REALLY do about it.

Betamethasone is a steroid cream that on occasion is used to treat itching. It is not good to use it regularly. Your doctor may have given you the medication to treat other conditions, but it will not grow your hair back.

Genetic loss can start early, even around the age of 16 (although it is not extremely common). I can’t tell you if your hairline is maturing without seeing what you’re talking about, and I doubt your lack of rigorous exercise is the cause for this. As for pills, Propecia (finasteride 1mg) is a prescription medication and you must meet with a doctor. The drug was only studied for age 18+, so that is the only data available. I’m not your doctor, and I can’t just tell you what you need to do without examining the problem. I would definitely see a doctor in-person to know what is going on.

Good luck and happy belated birthday.

17 Year Old with Hair Loss

My 17 year old son has premature balding. He already has a very predominant receding hairline. He is very self-conscious of it. My dad and my dad’s half-brother both had hair loss at an early age but I’m not sure that it was as young as my son. We ran some bloodwork to rule out any physical problems and all were negative. Is there anything that we can do to slow down or improve his hair loss? I was told that he is too young for Rogaine but are there any other options?

Sometimes, hair loss occurs in very young people. As a male, he can take the drug Propecia which hopefully will stop the hair loss. First, get him examined by a competent doctor who will quantify the rate of miniaturization in his balding area. This is important, because when he starts on the drug Propecia we will want a starting point to determine if it is working and by how much. I would hold off on Rogaine until a good baseline is in hand and the rate of hair loss is documented. Please see my similar postings on age-related topics here: BaldingBlog – Age.