I know that DHT causes both hair loss and facial hair growth. I’m 17 with no facial hair-does that possibly indicate that I will experience lesser hair loss?
Your lack of facial hair doesn’t have anything to do with future scalp hair loss. Your facial hair will probably just grow in later than your peers. Wait it out (up to 5 years or so). I would expect that you still might also grow chest hair. I wish I went back in time when I had no body or beard hair. Consider yourself lucky.
Hi there lately ive been shedding alot of weird hairs there small and discolored. i have red hair and the hair strands are kinda thin but not really. they’re brown and they have white tips on them and ive had a few where at the bottom of the strand the bulb is completely white and towards the top of the strand its completely black almost. could this be some sort of deficiency? or maybe a auto immune problem?
Write back soon.
White bulbs are what we normally see with rotational shedding from hair cycling. There’s nothing unusual there. If you are female, you need to have a doctor’s examination and opinion, as there are too many possible reasons for hair loss in women. If you are male, then a miniaturization mapping is appropriate, as genetics is the most likely cause. I do not know what to make of the hairs that come out from a different color perspective.
My daughter is nine years old and is of the african american origin. Her hair is not growing and is falling out at the nap and temples. Yes I have gone to a doctor and still nothing works. I relax her hair about every six months with a PCJ just for me kids relaxer. Please help me I am at my wits end! What do I need to do to fix her problem?
It is highly probable that you are doing something (without realizing it) to cause hair loss, unless your daughter has some genetic disease. A good doctor should be able to tell with an examination. Make an appointment with a good dermatologist.
Hi Doctor, I wrote to you and want to thank you for posting my question. I have taken my daughter to two different doctors and I received two different opinions. The first doctor said TE due to stress and the second said AGA due to family history. I did not think AGA could cause such loss on the corner forehead down to the temple. I wanted to know what the odds were that a 17 year old could have AGA. I know it can happen, but how unlucky would we have to be? Also, the area I’m talking about looks bald in photos. This has been going on since March with no regrowth.
One doctor says telogen effluvium (TE) and another says androgenic alopecia (AGA), but without an examination, I really couldn’t and shouldn’t try to help break the tie. So while I cannot comment on your daughter’s diagnosis, the general fact is AGA is more common in men. In fact, AGA (also known as male pattern baldness) is the most common cause of hair loss in men in post puberty years, including teens. I have seen rare instances where genetic hair loss can impact young women as well, but I don’t have actual statistics off hand for you. Luck doesn’t play a part, but based on my experience genetic hair loss in teen girls isn’t a common occurrence.
I have had a severe case of hair loss that has continued over the past ten years. Over the past two years, I have learned that this was because of low testosterone. My urologists has prescribed Androgel, which I thought would help but it only gives marginal improvement.
Erections are almost non-existant with some form of visual stimulant. ED drugs help but take a while to kick in. The last test that I took for testosterone had a level of 35 which was lower than the normal low end range for a 50 year old male.
Please help as I feel helpless to resolve this issue with the doctors that I have been seeing over the past 2 years. I’ve been prescribed for Propecia, which does marginal good and I have been using Minoxidil since it was first on the market. It didn’t stop the hairloss.
Please help!
If you come into my office, I can make an assessment of you, a good history, and an examination. Without that, I can not do much to help you. Or, find a local doctor who should do what I would do and get enough opinions until you find the right doctor.
Hi,
My hair has been thinning and falling for a few years now (I’m probably too late in asking for help), and now I can see that the hairline has receded quite a bit and the scalp is easily visible. The loss/thinning is limited to the top of my head in a horse shoe pattern. If I massage my scalp on the top, hair falls out. If I massage the side of my scalp, nothing falls out.
I also suffer from a very oily scalp/ face….
The question is, can I treat the situation or is this genetic? Is oily scalp a culprit? It does feel like hair falls out faster when my scalp is oilier.
thanks
Oily scalp is not the reason for your loss. Genetics are. It is likely not too late to start on medication like Propecia, which can help to halt the hair loss and possibly regrow some.
If you rub the side of your head and no hair falls out, yet when you massage the top of your head you’ve seen hair loss, this sounds like a classic situation of male pattern baldness (MPB). The sides and back of your head retain your hair permanently (which is why you see so many men with the “horseshoe” of hair) and will not come out like you describe with a massage, and it sounds like when you put any traction on the top of your scalp, even gentle massaging, it’s causing those weak hairs on top to fall out faster.
You indicated in your email form that you were in the San Francisco bay area. I have an office in San Jose and you should consider making an appointment with either Dr. Pak or myself by calling 800-NEW-HAIR for a consultation.
Just a quick question, I am 23 years old and no one in my family is bald, uncles,cousins, grandparents, everyone has a full head of hair, and it is from both sides of the family. I have noticed for the past few years I have been going bald and this past year I have a peak and Im loosing my hair really quickly. I have tried nioxin and svenson products nothing seems to work.
What would be the reason, they said i do have MPB but I dont know where it could come from. And I do know my Father is my Father, LOL.
Cheers thanks
Sometimes, the gene is carried by many generations and not expressed. In your case, it is being expressed.
I’ve not seen hair regrowth from Nioxin, and I don’t even know what Svenson products you’re talking about. It’s not surprising those haven’t worked to regrow your hair, though. There are only 2 FDA approved products to treat hair loss — minoxidil and finasteride. At 23 years old, you should see a doctor and ask him/her about a prescription for finasteride (Propecia). I’ve seen that medication work wonders in men your age (and in older men… though the earlier the hair loss, the better it tends to work).
I’m an all around hairy guy, and I was just wondering is there any connection what so ever between loosing head hair and getting loads of chest,arm pit,upper leg and for arm hair. i mean I started getting a receding hair line around the same time i started getting loads of body hair! so is my body hair starving my head hair of nutrients???
…..and on that note, if I used lazer hair removal on my body would that help my head hair stay intact whats so ever??? Thanks
It is common to get more hair on the back of your body as you lose hair on the head… if you are so genetically inclined. Body hair develops as you age, and in some men the DHT effect causes you to lose your scalp hair around that same time. However, even if you used laser hair removal on your hairy back, you will still continue to lose your head hair. Your back hair (or any other hairy part of your body) isn’t killing off your head hair.
I searched for a bit to try and find if there was already an answer to this. I believe my hair is thnning, my parents deny my claim. I am an actor/mdoel so my looks are very important. Just recently I started to use Rogaine Foam.
- If I don’t have thinning hair will it harm me?
- I use it on damp hair and rub it all over the my scalp the blow dry 15mins later, is this proper?
- I have only been using it once a day, should I do two? (Should I shower twice a day?)
- Is there anything else I can do for faster and better result to thicker set of hair?
You should see a doctor to determine if you’re thinning. For example, I would be able to map out your hair for miniaturization and give you an idea of what is happening. Then I’d follow the measurements of any miniaturization and use drugs that are appropriate. If you are a model and your looks and livelihood are linked, why not approach your hair correctly by an expert?
To answer your questions:
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How much should I trust my dermatologist!?
I am a 24 year old male and over the past year I have noticed some subtle signs of hair loss (my hair began to feel slightly thinner when I ran my hands through it, initially just in the front, but then around the back/crown as well… although i’ve noticed that it still feels thicker around the sides and the nape of my neck). Additionally I noticed some very slight recession on the right side of my front hairline.
All these changes were only noticeable to me, and I have asked many friends and family to examine my hair closely and they all think I am paranoid and have a thick head of hair. However, I finally went to the dermatologist two weeks ago and he looked at my head for about 30 seconds with a magnifying glass and said that he did see some slight thinning at either side of the periphery of the crown (so not in the center of the crown area). Interestingly, this is not where I “felt” my hair thinning. He prescribed propecia, and I have started taking it. However, I asked him several questions about what extent of hair loss I should expect should I choose not to take the drug and all I got from him was that I could expect “further thinning” over the “next 20 years”… he did not mention miniaturization mapping as an option and when I asked about heredity he said that it wouldn’t really tell me all that much to look at other males in my family. Anyway, I was wondering if there was any way I could clarify this further… how much hair loss should I expect given the subtle thinning at my age and my family history??
There is little balding in my family as both of my grandfathers died with full heads of hair… my mom has five brothers, only one of whom has any significant hair loss and he is over 60 and the hair loss occurred later in life; my father’s hair has receded a bit and thinned over time, but he is now in his mid 50s and I would say he is a class II/III with some slight thinning on top and (very slight) around the crown, but still with a good head of hair and no one would consider him bald… in addition, he has a brother is in his 60s and has a full head of hair.
Anyway, I was just wondering if from this information there was any way to make a guess at my future hair loss pattern/rate? I will continue to take the propecia, but is it worth getting a second opinion?
Sadly, not many physicians seem to know of miniaturization studies, as I often write about here. Or if they do know of them, they don’t provide it as a service to their patients. One of the reasons I created a guide to mapping your own scalp is so that you will be empowered to evaluate your own miniaturization. And while a doctor may not call it a “miniaturization study”, if they look at your hair under a microscope it is essentially what they are doing. The key is to have this study done annually (or every 6 months or so) and compare the results so you can see where your hair loss is going or if any treatments are working.
You were obviously concerned enough to seek the advice of your family member and a doctor. If both you and your doctor believe there is some early thinning (miniaturization), Propecia may be a good starting point. I can’t tell you who to trust and not to trust. You need to make that decision on your own and if you still cannot decide (maybe from your paranoia), seek a second opinion from another doctor who may give you a better and more believable opinion.
