Male pattern hair loss is the most common cause of hair loss in men by far.
Male pattern hair loss (also known as androgenetic alopecia), is connected to your genes which dictate your sensitivity to the androgenic hormone DHT. And, since this is a hereditary situation, some men may keep a close eye on their hairline or hair density and feel like their follicles are tiny ticking time bombs.
But, even if you predict from your relatives that male pattern hair loss is likely in store for your future and you don’t like the close shave look, there is no cause for panic. Male pattern hair loss is a slow, progressive situation. This means that you won’t wake up one day with a fully formed bald spot or huge swaths of shedding (unless some other form of hair loss is underway).
With a careful assessment of your hair every now and then, it is likely to start noticing minor changes. And, luckily, there are effective treatment options that can significantly slow the rate of further hair loss.
Below, we will go over the average age that most men with male pattern hair loss start to notice hair changes, as well as the youngest ages that may start seeing the effects of androgenetic alopecia, review if you can stop male pattern hair loss, and go over what the best steps are to help stave off balding.
The most common ages that men with a predisposition to male pattern baldness can start to see visible hair changes are in their mid-to-late twenties. Although, for up to about 25% of men with male pattern balding, the balding process can begin before the age of 21. And, if 21 sounds young to you, a few outliers can even start seeing signs of the balding process as young as early as 15.
Basically, since male pattern hair loss is driven by a sensitivity to a hormone that is derived from Testosterone, the balding process can technically start shortly after puberty. (Even though, this is not the case for most, and somewhere in the 20s is a more likely scenario.)
Again, while this information may be shocking to some, it is important to keep in mind that male pattern hair loss is not an overnight process. The thinning and regressing are incremental, and there are options to help slow that progression if you want to. If you are anxious about the potential signs of hair loss, all you need to do is keep an eye on any changes and ask your doctor about options if you start seeing some.
Male pattern hair loss is a progressive situation. So, while it is unlikely that hair losses and changes while you grow older can be 100% avoided, they can certainly be slowed down. For some men, this can mean that early interventions can help keep their hair thicker and reduce future balding significantly as compared to no treatment at all.
Think of male pattern hair loss treatments as pumping the breaks on the follicle shrinking and damage that are the root cause of hair loss.
It is also important to note that if slowing down the hair loss process is important to you, it is a long-term treatment process. The current hair loss medications help reduce additional loss and encourage growth only as long as they are being used. So, if they are stopped, your hair will likely regress to where it was before treatment and then proceed on its original hair loss course.
The best treatments to help slow male pattern hair loss progression are in two distinct classes.
You have Minoxidil, which is an over-the-counter topical medication. Minoxidil is thought to help with male pattern hair loss by increasing scalp blood flow, and extending the amount of time the follicles are in the growth phase (the anagen phase).
Then, there are also medications that pinpoint the DHT hormone directly, by reducing the amount of DHT produced from testosterone every day. These medications are called 5 alpha-reductase inhibitors, and they include medications like Finasteride and Dutasteride. Finasteride is FDA-approved for male pattern hair loss in tablets form, while Dutasteride is considered off-label use for male pattern hair loss.
Since these two medication classes target different aspects of hair loss, and their mechanisms do not overlap, many doctors and patients opt to use these paired together in some manner to achieve the best possible results.
Aside from using active ingredients, you can also make general healthy lifestyle choices to keep your hair follicles the healthiest they can be.
Following a nutrient-dense diet that covers all your macro and micro-nutrient bases can ensure that your hair follicles have everything they need to produce healthy strands at a normal rate. Regular exercise and avoiding smoking can improve good scalp blood flow. And, moderating your alcohol intake and reducing your stress levels may also have a positive effect on your overall hair health.
Of course, only healthy lifestyle choices alone will unlikely be enough to derail your predisposition to male pattern hair loss. But, they can contribute to the overall health of your scalp and hair follicles, and can be a great addition to any male pattern hair loss treatment plan.
To get the best possible outcome from your male pattern hair loss treatment, it is important to start at the first signs of hair loss.
For some men, they may put off discussing hair loss treatments with a doctor until it has progressed too far, and this may limit your treatment options or how well they can work for you.
At Strut, we help make the hair loss treatment process more simple to help patients take that first step. If you are interested in seeing if you are a good candidate for oral or topical male pattern hair loss treatments using active ingredients like Finasteride, Dutasteride, Minoxidil, Tretinoin, or Biotin, you can have a free online questionnaire and image-based telemedicine consultation with our doctors today. If they find that you are a good fit for treatment, they will work with your current hair and preference to develop a treatment plan for you. Your medication will then be shipped to your front door with our fast and free shipping.
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