male pattern baldness

Male pattern baldness, the most common form of hair loss, is triggered by increased sensitivity to male hormones (androgens). Specific inherited genetic information can be the cause of male pattern baldness by causing hair follicles to weaken when exposed to the hormone dihydro-testosterone (DHT). An important distinction to make is that male pattern baldness is one form of excessive hair loss. On any given day, approximately 50 to 100 hairs fall from the scalp, as hair follicles continually grow new hair to replace fallen hair. However, in the case of male pattern baldness, hair follicles become weakened by exposure to DHT and no longer produce new hair. The condition usually starts in men aged 20 to 30 and follows a typical pattern.

Male pattern baldness can be broken down into 2 parts. Firstly, male pattern baldness is known to be a genetic trait which men inherit from their maternal genetic pattern. That is, men are likely to inherit the hair pattern of their mothers’ father, so if your Grandfather on your mothers’ side went thin on top, the chances are you‘ll develop male pattern baldness. Genetic traits make hair follicles shrink, resulting in the actual density or thickness of hair grown diminishing. Eventually, they become so small that they cannot replace lost hairs. The follicles are still alive, but are no longer able to perform their task. Secondly, male pattern baldness or androgentic alopecia - which is the modern medical term, consists of androgen, i.e., any of the various hormones that control the appearance and development of masculine characteristics, such as testosterone.

During male pattern baldness, the hair follicles enter their resting phase more frequently and for longer periods of time. When the hair follicles do produce hair again, they are smaller in size and lighter in colour, and as the cycle repeats, the hair become so small and so absent of pigment that it is called lanugo-type hair. As time progresses, the follicle will cease to produce hair entirely and baldness results.