Category: Age

I am very impressed by your site, a unique thesaurus of scientific knowledge and experience about hair loss and related subjects.

I want to ask Dr Rassman the following question: By your experience, have you noticed (statistically) that there are periods in a man’s life that he is more likely to be affected by hair loss if he carries the the gene(s)? Or “age factor” is a completely random thing?

it is said that men who grow older than 30, have indeed some hormonal changes. Macroscopically, body hair and facial hair can be more thick, regarding, of course the genetic factor

Is this a myth or something more? Thanx in advance

Genetic balding takes most of it toll on men under 30. The advanced balding patterns often start in the late teens or early 20s and often these patterns are obtained prior to the age of 30. We occasionally see late onset of balding in men past 50, or we see balding appear when severe illness occurs. We know that drugs like Propecia can change the course of balding (slowing it down or stopping it completely), but it is still uncertain if the advanced patterns in the Norwood class 7 patients can stop the process if it is picked up early (age 19-22).

Hi Doctors,

Do you believe that there is a link between suffering from acne in early teenage years and male pattern baldness? Being as acne spots are based around the hair follicles and hormones also have something to do with it, I am curious.

Thanks for looking at my question!

Changes in hormones are what is responsible for teenage acne and androgenic alopecia (AGA). In boys under 16, we rarely see patterned genetic balding being expressed, yet we see a great deal of acne in this age group. There is no direct linkage that I know of.

I am 16 years old and I think I am starting to show signs of male pattern baldness. I noticed a few weeks ago that the hair on the crown area and top of my head was thinning, but I haven’t noticed any major signs of a receding hairline. I started researching and found that hair loss can be genetic. So I asked my grandfather on my mother’s side when he began to lose hair and he informed me that he started noticing hair loss when he was 18.

Another thing I found while researching was that amount of exercise can be linked to hair loss. Which, if true, can be linked to my hair thinning because I was training in MMA fighting for about two months but recently stopped and suddenly didn’t do any exercise at all. As soon as I stopped training is when I began to notice that my hair was thinning.

Also, I am experiencing slight itching and tingling in the crown area of my head. Another thing is that I do shower and wash my hair, on average, two times a day. I was surprised when I noticed my hair was thinning because I grow hair on almost every other part of my body except for my back. I have already set an appointment with my dermatologist, but it won’t be for another few weeks.

I was wondering in the meantime if it would be a good decision to start using a thickening shampoo and take vitamins. So if there are any suggestions that you can provide I would greatly appreciate it.

Genetic hair loss in men can generally start with the onset of puberty. The hair loss seen after your MMA training could’ve been coincidental, and body hair growth is unrelated to scalp hair loss. I’ve read online chatter that exercise / weight training and hair loss are linked, but I’ve not seen that to be the case.

There is no stopping or reversing a genetic predisposition forever. Hair thickening shampoos and vitamins are not cures, but may make your hair feel thicker. If you are worried about hair loss, you may want an objective examination and diagnosis before starting on an expensive journey of investing in shampoos and supplements. At 16 years old, you should also get a parent involved.

I’ll try and make this as short as possible. I am 16 and will be 17 on halloween and for about the past 2.5-3 months i’ve been noticing hair falling out somewhat alot… mainly on the top of my head. The hair falling out is becomes thinner as you get closer to the root and also the root has that white bulb at the end of it, and some of the hairs look as if they are sort of whitish around the root but that may be because it just looks like that since they are getting thinner towards the root.

My father is 52 and is baldish sort of on top but has hair and the same for my mothers side of the family. And i’ve noticed that the top of my head, where the hairs are coming out, is kind of itchy and its not dandruff or lice…also my diet is kind of bad…

PLEASE HELP!!!!

I am not sure how I can help, but if you are male, post-puberty, and experiencing rapid hair loss, the chances are it may be genetic (androgenic alopecia). It may be worthwhile to see your primary care doctor or a hair transplant doctor for a good diagnosis. Without knowing what you have, you cannot treat it.

At 16 years old, I’m not suggesting a hair transplant, but to simply consider meeting with a doctor that specializes in hair loss so that you can get a better idea of what is going on.