Male Pattern Baldness: Causes, Identification, and Prevention

Healthy thick hair adds to one’s physical appearance. Loss of hair, hair thinning, bald spots not only affect the way one looks but can also lead to psychosocial concerns. Pattern baldness in men is predominant. According to the American hair loss association, male pattern baldness is seen in almost 40% of the men’s population by the time they reach the age of 35.

Hereditary hair loss is one of the most common causes of Baldness. Approximately 80% of male pattern baldness is due to the inheritance of genes causing hair fall. In a few, receding hairlines, excessive hair fall can start at an early age of 18 as well.

For Men, baldness can affect every aspect of life, be it professional or personal. It is believed that pattern baldness has no treatments. But, treatment for hair loss ranges from hormonal or topical options to surgical hair grafting procedures. Not to rule out lifestyle changes and early prognosis that can help prevent baldness.

Things to consider while choosing a hair transplant surgeon

1. What really is male pattern baldness?
2. Testosterone and Male pattern baldness
3. Other Causes of male pattern baldness
4. What are the signs of early age balding?
5. Who’s at more risk?
6. When to see a doctor Treatment of Male Pattern Baldness
7. How to prevent Male Pattern Baldness

1. What really is male pattern baldness?

Male pattern baldness[MPB] known as Androgenic alopecia is more common than female pattern baldness. As the word suggests, hair is lost in a patterned manner. In men, it is observed that hair loss starts from the temples and as a result of excessive hair fall, a characteristic “M” pattern baldness becomes visible. The hair in the crown region also thins subsequently leading to partial or complete baldness.

Inner morphology of hair shows that each hair strand grows from the skin pores called the follicle. Usually, baldness occurs when the hair follicles shrink causing shorter, finer hair and sequentially stops the growth of hair.

MPB or hair loss is due to hereditary factors and male sex hormones like androgens. Androgens tend to hamper the quality of hair follicles restricting hair growth.

2. Testosterone and Male pattern baldness

One of the well-known androgens is testosterone. Testosterone is responsible for secondary sex characteristics like broad muscles, heavy voice, masculine hair growth, etc.

The testosterone produced by the adrenal glands and testes gets converted to Dihydrotestosterone (DHT); an androgen byproduct of testosterone. The enzyme 5 alpha-reductase stimulates this conversion. Just like testosterone, DHT is also responsible for secondary sex characteristics during puberty.

Here, it’s important for the hormones to be balanced. Generally, only 10% of the testosterone gets converted to DHT. However, excess of the enzyme 5 alpha-reductase not only stimulates excessive production of DHT but also leads to hormonal imbalance as the testosterone levels consequently dip down.

This imbalance causes problems as the biochemical makeup of DHT is similar to that of testosterone. DHT can attach to the same receptors as that of testosterone and so, DHT can replace testosterone by attaching to certain receptors of the hair follicle. It’s important to note that DHT is necessary for hair growth over your body but hampers the hair growth on the scalp. The hair follicles in the scalp regions more sensitive to DHT start to shrink. Excess of DHT shortens the hair growth period and lengthens the resting phase of the hair cycle. This inhibits the formation of new hair strands and the existing hair also eventually fades off.

3. Other Causes of male pattern baldness

Apart from an imbalance of DHT and testosterone hormone, Other causes of male pattern baldness can be listed as follows.

• Genetics: If a hereditary pattern of baldness is seen in the family, this can be one of the reasons for MPB.

• Medical conditions and hormone issues: Certain hormonal induced medical problems such as thyroid, other health issues such as prostate cancer, heart diseases, etc can be related to loss of hair in men. Certain health conditions such as rashes, redness, patchy peeling of the scalp, etc, too can cause an unusual pattern of hair loss.
• Medications: Hair loss can be due to the side effects of medications used for cancer, heart diseases, arthritis, etc. The use of anabolic steroids is also known to cause hair fall.
• Environmental factors and stress: Environmental pollution and stress can contribute to the loss of hair in men. Physical and emotional shock can add up to the causes of MPB.
• Excessive use of chemicals: Harmful chemicals in hair products can cause hair fall and hair thinning. Hairstyles and hair treatment procedures can cause problems relating to scarring and hair loss in many.
• Lifestyle and nutrition factors:Smoking, erratic diet habits, nutritional deficiencies such as iron deficiency, low water intake, lack of proper sleep patterns, etc can trigger hair loss and cause MPB.