What Causes Hair Loss in Men?

For as long as we can remember, baldness has been a part of the aging process that many men fear the most.  Before current technology, hair transplants, hair systems, and other treatments, men tired to cope in various ways from “magic” ointments to the way they styled their hair.  Napoleon grew his hair long in the back and combed it all forward. Many men use the same techniques now to try to hide the obvious.

Yet, we constantly try to ignore the fact that this has been an age old condition and can’t imagine or accept the fact that there is no cure.

You are not alone.  One large scale study in Marlborough, Victoria, Australia showed the prevalence of mid-frontal baldness increases with age and affects 73.5 percent of men.  More than 95% of hair loss in men is male pattern baldness. It is characterized by hair receding from the lateral sides of the forehead (known as a “receding hairline”) and/or a thinning crown (balding to the area known as the vertex.  Both become more pronounced until they eventually meet, leaving a horseshoe-shaped ring of hair around the back of the head.

The incidence of pattern baldness, or androgenetic alopecia, varies from population to population and is based on genetic background. Neither environmental nor emotional factors do not seem to affect this type of baldness greatly.  A rough rule of thumb is that the incidence of baldness in males corresponds roughly to chronological age.  For example, according to Medem Medical Library’s website, Male Pattern Baldness affects roughly 40 million men in the United States.  Approximately 25 percent of men begin balding by age 30; two-thirds begin balding by age 60.

We won’t get into the scientific or medical terminologies and diagnosis in this discussion.  The important thing to remember is that the genetics of hair loss are not yet fully understood. Most likely there are multiple genes that contribute towards it.

What is working for you in terms of research is that large pharmaceutical firms now know that a cure for hair loss could mean a fortune in revenue for their companies and stockholders. This is fuel enough and the race HAS begun.  Although we may not see a cure in our lifetime, it is possible.  Science is closer to understanding hair loss due to many recent advancements.  To say the cure is around the corner would only be speculation but hope certainly is alive.

UNTIL THEN… while the condition cannot be reversed, it can be corrected.  The most common treatments for men’s hair loss is medical hair transplant and non-surgical hair systems.  While we believe there are benefits to some men going the permanent hair transplant route, we focus on the least invasive procedure, non-surgical hair systems.  As you will see throughout this website, the technology for undetectable hair systems has become so advanced that most men consider it the best option for many reasons.

Just a Note…since there are other causes of hair loss, you may wish to consult with a dermatologist who is competent and experienced with diagnosing hair loss. Confirming the type of hair loss you have will make it possible for you to know which treatment options may be best for you. But, Androgenetic alopecia (Male Pattern Baldness) represents close to 95% of all hair loss in men.