3 Main Types of Hair Loss

When we see thin hair and baldness in the mirror, we get very upset. For many men, hair loss is like losing one's own potency. Even Hercules lost his superhuman strength when his hair was cut. In this article, the first blogger will tell you how to stop hair loss and how to deal with baldness.

How much hair does a healthy person lose per day?

Half of the men over the age of 20 lose their hair. Shedding up to 100 hairs a day is not a cause for panic and is completely normal. When this amount is significantly exceeded for a long period, the medicine speaks of pathological hair loss. The first blogger has collected for you the best methods and remedies for hair loss for men.

What are the types of hair loss?

There are three particularly common forms of hair loss in men: genetic hair loss, circular hair loss, and diffuse hair loss. How to determine what type of baldness you are suffering from and what helps against it, we will describe below.

1. Genetic hair loss in men (androgenic alopecia) 

Doctors call this androgenetic alopecia, usually a receding hairline and a circular bald spot on the back of the head, which slowly but surely move towards each other. Permanent hair loss is caused by the male sex hormone testosterone or its breakdown product, dihydrotestosterone (DHT): testosterone is broken down in the scalp into dihydrotestosterone. This shortens the growth phase of the hair until the follicles (the root from which the hair grows) die off. Result: the hair disappears.

With a 95% probability, DHT is the most common cause of hair loss in men. Genetically determined hair loss usually begins between the ages of 20 and 30. The hair on the forehead or back of the head becomes less common, depending on personal inheritance. A full bald spot rarely develops, often a hair ring remains on the back of the head.

Do you want to know how you will look in old age? Then look at your ancestors: hair loss often resembles a situation with a father and grandfather. Three factors determine the course of baldness: hereditary factors, age, and sensitivity of the follicles to male hormones. According to statistics, 60 percent of all Indians have thin hair or bald heads.

Incidentally, the degree of hair loss is not related to the natural level of the male hormone testosterone: bald men are no stronger or more resilient than full-haired men. However, bald men generally tend to have more body hair.

2. Circular hair loss in men

Extensive and rapid hair loss results from so-called alopecia areata, circular hair loss. Symptoms appear in coin-sized circular gaps in hair. Such baldness occurs in 1-2% of patients with alopecia and may even be in children. Especially insidious is that sometimes not only the head is affected, but other body hairs such as beards, eyebrows, or genitals are sometimes affected. Anyone who is unlucky suddenly becomes completely hairless.

The good news: with circular hair loss, follicles do not die, but only their growth rests. Hair can grow back at any time and without therapy. Impaired immune function is thought to play a role in circular hair loss. The defense cells are not working properly and are directed against the hair components. As a result, the hair roots are paralyzed.

Genes also play a role here: in families where the problem of this type of baldness has already occurred, it is often circular hair loss that occurs, often together with atopic dermatitis, hay fever, white spot disease or a thyroid disorder.

3. Diffuse hair loss in men

Regardless of age and hormone levels, diffuse hair loss can occur. Typical for it is a quick start without much localization. There are no round bald patches, the hair is thinning all over the head.

The reasons that lead hair from growth to a resting phase are not 100 percent scientifically clear. Possible causes include fever (over 39 degrees Celsius), flu, or chronic inflammation, which usually precede hair loss by several months. In addition to health, a lack of protein or micronutrients in the long term can lead to a lack of nutrients - especially iron or zinc. In addition, drug incompatibility can be the cause of diffuse baldness. Psychic causes also cause diffuse hair loss. Many patients report that it is the stress that has led to hair loss.

Typically, scalp hair loss begins only a few months after the adverse event. Therefore, whoever wants to know what his sudden hair loss is, he must remember what happened in the recent past.

Other causes of hair loss in men:

Not only androgens, male hormones, can cause hair loss. Even with anabolic steroids to improve performance or increase muscle, you can lose hair.

Fungal infections on the scalp interfere with hair growth.

Are you suffering from stress? Rest more than. Because stress can lead to (mostly temporary) hair loss

A diet low in vitamins affects the hair roots. Especially important for hair growth: iron, zinc, biotin, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins A, C, and E, as well as B3, B6, and B12. In practice: lots of vegetables, nuts, more often fish, and don't forget about fruits.

About the Author:

Dr. Salman Hashmi is a health and fitness enthusiast. He likes to write on Haircare, skincare, and more. He wrote an article on hair transplant clinic in Mumbai and hair transplant clinic in Delhi.