Learn more about how getting older can slow your hair growth, including steps you can take against it.
Like most things, hair changes with age. With time hair can lose pigment, begin to gray, and become thinner. Is that because hair growth slows down with age?
Or is it because the hair strands are becoming finer? The answer is -- both. With age, hair does grow slower and can become finer and brittle.
With age, most people will experience hair loss to some degree.
Some may experience just a general decrease in hair volume, while others might deal with male patterns or female pattern balding. No matter how you slice it, age does play a big role in hair health.
In this article, we’ll answer the question, “Does hair grow slower as you age?”
Yes, hair growth can become sluggish with age. Age is yet another factor, along with hormonal fluctuations like menopause and genetics, that can contribute to slow hair growth.
If you’ve noticed that your hair is thinner than it used to be, know that this is extremely common.
By age 50, around 85% of men have significantly thinner hair. By the age of 50, around 40% of women deal with some level of noticeable hair loss.
This concept is similar to slower wound healing and decreased ability to fight off infection with age. The body, and its many functions, simply slow down with time.
This isn’t to say your hair is destined to just stop growing at some point, it just means that time often causes changes to hair texture, density, and volume.
This often results in thinner and coarser hair.
To understand why hair thins as you age, we need to first take a look at hair growth cycles.
There are four phases: growth, transition, rest, and shedding phase. Each individual hair follicle seamlessly cycles between growing, resting, and shedding.
But as you get older your hair follicles get a bit stuck in these phases and hair isn’t replaced as quickly. Hair tends to shed at a higher rate, plus the growth phase takes longer to start up. So, with age, hair may begin to shed at a faster rate than it’s being replaced.
Depending on your hair density to begin with, this might not be a noticeable shift. But, if you already have fine hair, this can feel like it’s quite noticeable.
Because age can disrupt the hair growth cycle, using minoxidil is a great way to kick follicles into high gear.
Minoxidil works as a topical medication that increases blood circulation on the scalp, which encourages hair follicles to grow new hair. Higher blood circulation also means higher nutrient delivery which is needed for healthy hair growth.
This FDA-approved hair growth treatment may stimulate sleepy follicles and might help with regrowth.
Learn more: Does Minoxidil Work for Women & How Long Does It Take to Work?
But, it’s important to consider that hair loss may not just be about a sluggish growth cycle.
Your hair loss might also be related to menopause or genetic conditions like female pattern hair loss or male pattern hair loss. These types of hair loss, often seen as we grow older, can be treated in different ways. In any case, minoxidil might be a good place to start.
At Strut Health, we offer prescription hair loss treatments completely online.
To see if our hair loss topical solutions might help with hair regrowth, simply complete a questionnaire-based online doctor's consultation to see if our treatments are right for you.
If our doctors find this is a good fit for you, we’ll ship your prescription to your doorstep with free shipping.
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