Hair loss is more common among men than women. But that does not mean man hair loss is an accepted thing, and men do not care about it. On the contrary, hair loss is a matter of concern for most men who are ready to do anything to prevent it. Hair loss can affect their personal as well as professional lives.
Some people lose their self esteem that makes it difficult for them to interact with others.
Hair loss forces some men to even change the course of their careers. Things have perhaps begun to change now – clean-shaven heads are gradually becoming a fashion. Man hair loss mostly takes place as male pattern baldness or androgenic alopecia.
Our hair normally grows at the rate of ½ inch every month, and the growth continues for 2-6 years before it falls out. But a new hair replaces the old one as soon as the latter disappears. At any given moment, about 85% of the hair is in the process of growing while the remaining 15% has settled down. Man hair loss occurs when a hair falls out, but no new one emerges to take its place.
Man hair loss is caused by a number of factors. If some parts of your scalp are extra sensitive to androgens or male hormones, you may lose hair. This trend continues through generations. Your hair follicles, the originating points of your hair, shrink under the influence of these hormones known as dihydrotestosterone (DHT).
Finally, the hair follicles shrink to such a level that they lose the capacity of replacing lost hairs.
Apart from hormone problems, stress arising out of some illness or major surgery may also result in loss of hair. However, loss of this type is mostly sudden and temporary. Some medicines such as anticoagulants or blood thinners, antidepressants, drugs used in chemotherapy, and Vitamin A if consumed in excessive amounts, can lead to hair loss.
There are some infections that may cause hair loss. Children sometimes lose hair due to fungal infection. However, it can be treated easily by using anti-fungal medicines. In addition, diseases like diabetes or lupus may be responsible for loss of hair in men. Age and genetic tendency too influence loss of hair.
You risk losing your hair if you do not take proper care of your hair. If someone wears pigtails, hair loss is likely because of the pull. This type of hair loss is known as traction alopecia. So, you should stop the pulling just when there are indications of scarring of your scalp. In this way, you can help your hair grow back normally. Treatments with hot oils or the use of perms may also cause man hair loss.
There are several types of treatment available for male hair loss. Apart from treatment with medication, one can also try surgical methods such as hair transplantation and scalp reduction, or non-surgical procedures like laser hair loss treatment.
There are a whole host of herbal medicines that have been found to be an effective medicine. There are varied ayurvedic lotions that can treat the problem of hair loss. Over 50% of people having hair loss have found herbal medication quite useful.
Ayurvedic oils stop hair loss and help hair re-growth by partly neutralizing the influence of the male hormones. About 60% percent of hair loss victims have benefited by using ayurvedic medicine for 3-6 months.
However, one must continue this treatment to sustain the improvement in the condition.
In hair transplant, the surgeon removes non-sensitive hairs from the back of your head to the top. Hair transplant is most suitable for those who have lost hair only in the front of their scalps. Surgeons, however, take into account a number of factors including age, color of one’s hair, and the nature of hair loss, before going for hair transplant.
Hair transplant is an expensive method of treatment, but its results are satisfactory as well as permanent. In scalp reduction, surgeons insert devices beneath the skin to stretch areas of scalp that still have hair, and then remove the redundant hairless areas. This technique best suits men who have a small, but rather sharply defined bald spot on the top of the head.
If you suffer hair loss over a tiny area, you can opt for flap surgery. This procedure expands the part of the scalp that has not lost hair.
Among natural remedies (for male hair loss) are oil massage, aromatherapy, and use of saw palmetto and nettle root extracts, jojoba oil, aloe vera, and henna.
However, you should always talk to a hair loss specialist when you start losing your hair. A specialist will identify the causes of your problems and suggest the right methods of treatment.
