Category: Hair Loss Causes

I have started worrying about losing my hair. Until recently I hadn’t worried about losing my hair since my temples receded slightly as a young man. I had no reason to believe I was losing my hair. Since I have started worrying (triggered off by the fact that I am about to turn 33 and feel that as a hairy bodied man, I must start losing my hair soon) I have started to spot signs of losing hair.

I have looked at the hairs from the top of my head and they seem to be finer than the hairs at the back of my head. However, I have no way of knowing whether this was always the case. The hair seems a little thinner in the temples and doesn’t seem as thick overall as it used to but I am aware that hair naturally thins over your life and this isn’t necessarily MPB.

Basically this has become a problem for me because I can’t stop worrying about it and constantly check my hair, look for information on the internet, and stress out. If you saw me you would think that I was worrying about nothing – I have a full head of hair at 33 and as such am unlikely to go completely bald, if at all. Also, balding in older men is often part of the aging process so I am effectively worrying about getting old. Am I just being neurotic?

If you’re not actually seeing any hair loss, but THINK your hair MIGHT be getting thinner up top, the only thing I’d recommend doing is getting your hair bulk analyzed with the HairCheck instrument. Beyond that, stressing out and worrying about maybe losing your hair might actually cause hair loss due to the stress. I hope I didn’t stress you out more by saying that!

There’s no point in being anxious about possibly losing your hair, especially since you’re in your 30s and aren’t seeing loss by now. Most men that are destined to lose hair due to their genetics will start to see the process starting in their 20s.

I have dramatic hair loss these last three months. Also on sides and behind the head on the neck (not in donor area). Also having too much dandruff and also losing hair on the temple.

Can dupa cause so much dandruff? Can hair loss on sides be caused by aggressive MPB? Can any chemical or toxin cause DUPA by consuming it once? Thanks for answers!

Diffuse unpatterned alopecia (DUPA) is unrelated to dandruff. Male pattern baldness (MPB) does not include hair loss on the sides of the head. I don’t know that you even have DUPA. There is nothing I can tell you other than what you told me. You need to see a good doctor to give us an opportunity to make a diagnosis.

Hello, I’m a 20 year old male. I wear a cap almost everyday. Is it possible for the tight part of the cap (front band) to reduce blood supply to the hair thus speeding up androgenic alopecia? I have a large head so caps fit reasonably snug and sits where my hairline begins. If this is plausible, how tight are we talking? or could the build up of sebum/sweat irritate the scalp causing miniaturization? I’d really appreciate a doctors response as it’s causing a great deal of anxiety with the question un answered and I’m getting mixed views online. Thanks.

Wearing tight caps or having a tight scalp does not speed up or cause male pattern baldness. This is more of an old wives’ tale or urban legend.
The only exception is that if you wear your cap so tight that it causes traction hair loss around where the cap is touching your scalp.

Hi doc. I read in a leading fitness magazine that the sports supplement creatine increases DHT levels by up to 56%! In fact they think this may be why it works so well! Does this mean it will seriously accelerate my hair loss? Pretty much every guy who hits the gym takes this stuff, so we need to know! Thanks.

Creatine is known to increase hair loss in some, possibly by driving up the DHT levels. The last research I recall reading about it noted that in 3 weeks of use among 20 athletes, DHT levels were raised. That study was obviously very tiny and further research should’ve been done. Bodybuilders may also add steroids with the creatine, which is just compounding the problem.

Is it worth taking? Only you know the answer to that question.

Hello,

Firstly I’d like to thank you for this excellent and informative blog – there are so many other sites that confuse or alarm or try to sell useless products.

I’d like to know where male pattern balding usually starts. I have been looking at my scalp for signs of balding – I have no receding at the temples or the front (apart from having an adult hairline), nor do I have any thinning at the back of the crown – the other usual place you see early signs of balding (at least in everyone I have looked at). However, if I part my hair down the middle it looks like the parting is quite wide at the area in front of the point of the skull. Like early stages of thinning directly in the middle of the top of my head. This seems an unusual place to begin – I haven’t seen this on anyone else.

Incidentally this is the exact place where I put a lot of pulling pressure during my yoga practise – there is a ‘bridge posture’ that puts the whole weight of my body pulling on my hair at this point. Could this be some form of traction alopecia?

What do you think? Have you ever seen any balding like this before? There is very little balding in my family (father and his father full heads of hair, same with both brothers). Only my uncle on my father’s side and my mother’s father have any balding, both in different patterns, and both late on in life.

Thank you in advance.

You should see a doctor. Good bulk measurements can identify genetic hair loss early in the process. Traction alopecia caused by a ‘pulling’ of the hair from such activities as you described is also a possible cause for hair loss.

I have seen men start their hair loss process where you report your loss is, so the answer to the question is that a really good examination of your hair and scalp is necessary. There’s simply no way I can tell via the internet if traction or genetics is causing your loss.

Traction alopecia may produce some broken hairs with blunt ends, some new growth with tapered ends, some broken mid-shaft, or some uneven stubble — and a doctor with good optical instruments can see this on an examination of your balding area. There is no substitute for a good doctor’s examination.

Snippet from the article:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning about vitamins sold from a Long Island-based company.

At least 29 people were sickened by Purity First Health Products’ B-50 vitamin supplement because of traces of anabolic steroids, the FDA said. The product is sold in stores and online.

Candice Tripp, the owner of the company which is headquartered in East Northport, told WCBS 880′s Sophia Hall she has been in business for over 20 years and finds it hard to believe the product was dangerous.

Read the rest — FDA Says 29 People Sickened By Vitamin Supplements From L.I.

The article has a local slant to it since it appeared in the CBS New York website, but the product was sold over the web to people all over the US and marketed as a vitamin while containing the steroids methasterone (a controlled substance) and dimethazine.

Apparently the company refused to recall the supplements, even though some people “experienced fatigue, muscle cramping, and muscle pain” according to the FDA. The article continues — “Additionally, women reported unusual hair growth and missed menstruation, and men reported impotence and findings of low testosterone, the FDA said.”

Hi Dr. Rassman,

I have a question about fine vs thin hair. I am 32 and have very VERY wispy fine sandy blonde hair with an intact juvenile hairline. I don’t *think* it’s thinning as I have no shedding issues. But since I got a lousy haircut recently, I notice my scalp looks shiny under bright lights or the sun and it is making me paranoid. Some people say that scalp shine means hair has been lost, while the hairdresser advised me to use a medicated shampoo since it is extremely oily. Does this sound like thinning or does it seem more like a combination of hair cleanliness and natural texture? Thank you.

I believe “tow heads” was what we used to call those boys with fine, blonde, nearly see-through hair. As these boys become men, they may sooner or later recognize the see-through nature of their hair. If you are concerned, come see me or another good doctor and find out what your hair loss problem is, if you have one.

Scalp shine doesn’t necessarily mean your hair is falling out. It could be lighting, oily scalp, a combination of everything. I have no idea without seeing you, though.