What should we know about male hair loss?



Hair loss, or baldness , is a common phenomenon in men. For 90% of men, it even constitutes the first concern, between damage to the ego and fear of losing their sex appeal. State of play of what is also called androgenetic alopecia.

Evolution by stages

Baldness is characterized by a progressive loss of hair, which generally begins on the forehead, “the gulfs” or the top of the head. It is linked to an excess of male hormones, androgens, and develops in stages . This is Hamilton's classification.
Stage 1: Normal hair growth

Stage 2: Appearance of the beginnings of baldness on the frontal part of the scalp.

Stage 3: Digging of gulfs

Stage 4: Progression to the tip of the skull for some, or, for others, the hair leaves in mass and reaches the top of the skull.

Stage 5: Well-established baldness and there is more area without hair than area with hair.

Stage 6: Top of the head completely smooth and only the sides of the head still have hair. Appearance of tonsure.

Stage 7: Baldness has permanently set in and there is almost no hair left except at the lower crowns.

The origins of baldness

The origins of androgenetic alopecia are, as its name suggests, genetic and androgenic (male) hormones. It progresses with age and generally if it appears in early adulthood, it will be even more severe. 25% of 25-year-old men are affected, 40% of 40-year-old men and one in two fifty-year-olds. Baldness also mainly affects men of Caucasian origin.

Disruption of the phases of the growth cycle

In order to better understand what happens in the event of baldness, you should know that the hair growth cycle follows several phases: first there is the anagen phase (growth) which lasts from 2 to 7 years, followed by a catagen phase (regression) of one to two weeks, before being in the telogen phase (rest) for 5 weeks. In the case of androgenetic alopecia, the duration of the anagen phase gradually decreases, while that of the telogen phase increases. The cause is dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a male hormone derived from testosterone, which accelerates the hair growth cycle by acting on hair follicles. Hair grows less long, falls out more quickly, and after approximately 25 cycles of shedding and regrowth, the follicle becomes exhausted. It then produces a fine, down-like hair, or even no hair at all.

The importance of the genetic factor

Not all areas of the skull have the same sensitivity to DHT in humans: the temporal gulfs and the top of the skull have more “receptors” for this hormone, so that they are the ones that are affected first. Ultimately, the entire skull can be affected, with the exception of a crown of hair (where the cells are insensitive to DHT), which persists throughout life.

If all men are not affected in the same way, it is also because sensitivity to DHT is partly genetic . We are still far from knowing all the genes involved in alopecia and as some are transmitted from the mother and others from the father, it is not obligatory for a boy to become bald if his father is!

Can we fight against baldness?

The first precaution at the start of alopecia is to take care of your scalp , using a mild shampoo for example. Also recommended, cranial massages stimulate the scalp. Anti-hair loss shampoos have no effect against baldness, they only contribute to the treatment of psoriasis and seborrhea.

Diet plays an important role in baldness: a diet that is too fatty accelerates its appearance. A balanced diet, however, meets their needs for copper, zinc, iron, silicon and vitamins. Furthermore, a healthy lifestyle is obviously recommended.

Finally, to compensate for the lack of minerals, certain food supplements can strengthen the hair and slow down its loss.

Certain medications can be recommended but for them to be effective it is necessary not to have gone beyond stage 5: hair lotions based on minoxidil or finasteride tablets. Their main property is to slow down hair loss.

Very expensive and time-consuming, the surgery involves implanting stem cells from healthy hair into the scalp.

The question of the interest of this fight against baldness must be asked: is hair loss synonymous with loss of virility or beauty? Is it possible to live well in your skin with less hair on your head? Depending on the answer, you can choose to fight or take it on.