You can never know how bad hair loss could be. It could be permanent if male pattern baldness runs in your family. In some cases, medical conditions, diet, trauma, and stress, as well as hairstyles and treatments, could cause temporary hair loss.
More than 50 percent of men age 50 years and older show signs of hair loss. By age 70, about four out of five men may notice a receding hairline. For some, however, hair loss occurs much earlier than expected.
If your hair isn’t going back, you can undergo scalp micropigmentation. It’s popular from Las Vegas to New York, so it’s a procedure you can get easily.
Blame It on Your Genes
Baldness should not come as a surprise if it commonly occurs in your family. Male pattern baldness, also known as androgenetic alopecia, is something you can blame on genetics. The condition is caused by genes you received from your parents.
This means you are most likely to go bald if most of your relatives are balding. Depending on your family history, your hair may have started to get thinner, finer and shorter as early as when you reached your teen years.
Medical Issues Affecting Your Hair
Not all hair loss is permanent. There are instances when your thinning hair is just temporary.
Temporary hair loss could be a sign of an underlying medical issue such as anemia or thyroid problems. Scalp infections caused by ringworm and a hair-pulling disorder known as trichotillomania are also known to cause temporary hair loss.
Even if your medical issue does not directly cause hair loss, your medications and supplements may do. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, taking too much vitamin A supplements can trigger hair loss.
Hair loss could also be the side effect of using certain drugs, which include those used to treat arthritis, cancer, heart problems, depression, high blood pressure and gout. Check your medicine cabinet and see if there are medications that could be causing your thinning hair.
Radiation treatment or chemotherapy also causes hair loss. Most patients grow their hair back once the treatment ends but there are cases when the hair does not grow back to normal.
Your Diet is Low in Protein and Iron
A diet low in iron and protein can cause thinning hair. Your body may shut down hair growth if you are not getting enough protein from your diet. Make sure to consume protein-rich food such as fish and eggs.
You Suffered From Trauma or Stress
Any form of physical trauma including those caused by car accident, surgery and severe illness can cause a form of temporary hair loss known as telogen effluvium. The hair follows a cycle: the growth phase, rest phase, and the shedding phase, but stressful events can disrupt the hair cycle and push the hair into the shedding phase.
Even sudden or excessive weight loss and severe emotional shock can trigger hair loss.
Check Your Hairstyle and Hair Treatment
Certain hairstyles, such as those that involve pulling the hair straight, can cause hair loss. Hair treatments such as hot oil and dyeing may cause inflammation of the hair follicles that prevents your hair from growing. You may lose your hair permanently if scarring occurs.
Losing yor hair is never nice, and though having less hair could make you look more stately, there’s always an option to bring it back.
