When Hair Loss Takes Its Course

Among the few features that compose our appearances, one that girls and boys equally worry about is hair. Boys start carefully tousling them as soon as they learn to spell the word ‘gel’ and girls start caring as soon as they comprehend the function of the looking glass.

Though hair loss is a phenomenon typically known to be associated with age, that piece of information doesn’t stop us from losing more hair from worry when we see a tangled mass clogging up the bathroom drain when showering.

The visible part of the hair is called a shaft and beneath the skin lie the hair root and the follicle. There are on average about 100,000 hair follicles in the scalp and we lose anywhere between 50 to 100 hair strands every day. This is because not all the hair is growing at any one point in time. Baldness occurs when hair fall exceeds the number of hair growing.

Teens are generally not afflicted with hair loss (alopecia). The most common form of hair loss that we’ve probably noticed is age-related and is in part hereditary — male-pattern baldness or female-pattern baldness (medically known as androgenic alopecia).

Most men affected are around 30 years of age. However, often boys in their mid-teens are affected. Their hairlines begin to recede at the temples, thinning out at the top of the head. Women generally aren’t affected as severely and not until they are well in their advanced years. Girls, however, may sometimes be affected early with a general thinning of the hair and should consult their physician if so.

There are a few other more temporary forms of hair loss that might be found in teenagers. One of the factors causing transient effects, that a lot of people will be able to provide examples of, is stress. Hair loss often follows at the heels of stress, especially when related to an illness. The key is to work on mechanisms to cope with stress. And when being prescribed medications, don’t be afraid to ask what the side effects are. Certain medicines for depression and acne can sometimes lead to hair loss.

Poor diet — one deficient in protein, vitamins and minerals such as iron, zinc, and the like — in addition to eating disorders, such as anorexia and bulimia, can be another cause. A diet rich in leafy green veggies, egg whites, meat, and vitamin B supplements will help in this situation. Keep an eye on the weighing scale, especially if on the lower side and avoid crash dieting.

Adopt better hair care habits. Stay away from excessive dyeing, chemical treatments, blow-dryers, straighteners, or curling irons. If you are keeping your hair pulled back in buns or braids too often, you need to let them down to prevent permanent damage.

Hair loss, though cosmetic, is an awful thing to happen, and particularly at an age when one is self-conscious as it is. For androgenic alopecia, over-the-counter medications — namely minoxidil sold as a spray or cream has shown to help in a small percentage of people.

However, keep in mind that both hair loss and growth might take a few months to manifest. There are also many hair myths, namely, that brushing the hair 100 strokes before bedtime can improve hair growth; this is just a myth since excessive brushing might even be harmful.

Hair Loss in Men: The Helpful and Harmful Effects of DHT

When it comes to that one culprit that causes male pattern baldness, DHT or dihydrotestosterone always comes to mind. But do you really know this hormone and what it really does to your body? And how come it has issues with your hair? DHT is one of those things that you need to brush up on if you want to understand your hair loss condition better.

DHT is what you may probably consider your sly hormone because it has both good and bad functions in your body. It starts off with the androgen testosterone. When testosterone comes in contact with the enzyme 5-alpha reductase, it is then converted to a more active form which is DHT.

All the changes that you experience during puberty such as the deepening of your voice, facial hairs, development of muscles, and sex drive are also brought about by DHT. It makes men to look and sound more like men, so to speak.

Another benefit that DHT has on your body is its antagonistic effect on oestrogen. You may be shocked at what oestrogen’s got to do with this when we’re talking about male physiology. But what you don’t know is that you actually have some amounts of this female hormone in your system, just as the ladies have some testosterone in them. So what DHT does is that it hinders the effect of oestrogen on tissues by competing on its receptor sites. It also reduces the amounts of gonadotropin that are released; this results to lessened number of materials for oestrogen production. You will appreciate this process more if I tell you that it prevents your body from forming man boobs, or what is medically known as gynecomastia.

Also, by its function to reduce gonadotropin — which in effect also lessens oestrogen levels — it reverts the process of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH). This is a common health problem affecting a high percentage of males.

So when does DHT become the traitor in this story? When these little buggers travel to your scalp and come in contact with your hair follicles, they cause the follicles to shrink and become very fine.

DHT produces a waxy substance and builds it up around the base of your hair which causes your hair to weaken. This will ultimately lead to excessive hair loss that leads to thinning and balding on some portions of your head. This condition is what we all know as male or female (since it also affects women) pattern baldness.

Medications, hairpieces, and hair transplants are some of the ways to help you manage this condition. So you really don’t have to lose hope when DHT gets on your hairs!