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I have been gradually losing hair for the past 4 years. I don’t think I lose more than the “normal” 100 hairs per day, but the consistent shedding has definitely led to a receding hairline and a significant difference in density on top versus the sides and back. As I continue to shed on a daily basis, I worry and stress about getting to a point where my hair loss becomes very noticeable. It’s like dying a slow and painful death.

Is there any way to tell whether my hair loss will stop/plateau, or is it a foregone conclusion that I will eventually lose it all?

You aren’t the first person to use the analogy comparing hair loss to death. For many men, their hair is part of their identity.

As for being able to tell whether your hair loss will stop, well, this is what I’ve been referring to as miniaturization mapping. You use a microscope to examine your scalp… then do it again in 6-12 months to see how the loss is progressing. A physician should be able to tell from there where your hair loss will end. Taking medication like Propecia could likely help halt your loss at this point (if you are male), but this needs to be prescribed by a physician and with all of this information you should be able to develop a Master Plan with your doctor for your future hair loss possibilities.

I had SEVERE Vitamin D Deficiency (MY LEVELS WHERE 5) I’m a male and my doctor thought this could be contributing to my diffuse thinning. I started therapy in three months ago and got my levels up to 20. If the loss was caused by VitD than how long does it usually take to cycle the hair back to normal growth.

Thanks
Love the site.

I do not have experience with treating a Vitamin D deficiency and the recovery from it. Assuming that you do not have male patterned baldness on top of it, I would imagine that the hair should recover (I used “should” because it is logical that it would) in the normal cycling phase, which may take 3 years as the existing hairs undergo their anagen (about 3 years), catagen (days to weeks) and telogen phases (3 months). To learn more about the hair growth cycles, see here.

I am curious how you became deficient in Vitamin D, but pleased to hear you’re undergoing appropriate treatment.

Dear Dr.
if i got 4 stitches near mustache due to an accident. will hair grow at that area??? as i have a beard. waiting for your reply. if they will not grow then what is the solution???

I have not examined the wound, but assuming that there was no skin with hair loss, it should regrow in 3-6 months. If if does not, a transplant into the mustache area works nicely.

Can pheromone cologne/body products affect hair loss or the viability of medication like propecia?

Doubtful… but if you attract too many women, you might lose more hair with the stress that it induces. Yes, I’m kidding.

Hi Dr. Rassman,

I am a 23 year old male from Birmingham, United Kingdom. I do not actually have any history of MPB in my family and I am not going bald. I was involved in a car accident in October 2006, I received multiple injuries of which I am mostly fully recovered now.

I received a serious head injury and around the centre of my hairline at the top of my forehead some hair was obviously damaged or torn out with the result being a slightly thinned area (about the size of a 2 pence piece - English money). I also was put into a neck brace which again rubbed a small area of hair out of the back of my head (pressure alopecia?)- approximately a 2 centimetre by 2 centimetre area which has not grown back.

None of the above is really noticeable to anybody other than myself as I have grown my hair to hide the problems but I would like to have my hair very short as I used to. Is there anything that can be done? If so could you please recommend a surgeon in the United Kingdom as I do not wish to have anything done unless I get a recommendation from yourself.

You are correct that the best thing to do first is to see a hair transplant surgeon and get an opinion from him. Dr. Bessam Farjo is well known in the UK, with offices in London and Manchester.

The rubbing is causing traction alopecia and any hair loss that you experienced from wounds in your scalp would have healed if the hair was to regrow on its own.

Dear Dr. Rassman,

My hairline has started to mature only just now at 26. I’ve visited a dermatologist and we are both satisfied that there’s nothing beyond the mature hairline area that’s currently at risk.

My question is, all other things being equal, is someone whose hairline matures early (at 18) at a bigger risk for baldness later in life than someone that matured at my age? I know that MPB is an incredibly unpredictable beast but I was wondering if there was a correlation.

Thanks!

Assuming that there is no miniaturization behind the leading frontal edge of your maturing hairline, the answer is that there is no correlation between a maturing hairline and male pattern baldness, regardless of age.

Is going bald even such a big deal. I know that many men could really care less about the way they look, the only reasons we keep our appearances up is for the ladies and for our professions. But there have been bald people throughout history, some of the sexiest men alive were bald. Do you think we are just becoming too vain and obsessed with our image?

Aging is a part of life and should be accepted. Today we here about older people taking anti aging creams, special diets, “get those 6 pack abs”, and so on. I think this is hurting us a lot and we many of us are losing our self esteem which is terrible. We should feel comfortable with ourselves.

Am i right? You Dr.Rassman are 67yrs old and look damn good for your age, there is nothing artificial to your image.

Why are we so self centered these days?

There are many reasons for this. History has shown that when men got sick (tuberculosis over the course of human history) they lost hair and died early, so when selecting a mate, women picked men who had good hair, because in the search for a husband they could not have a man would would die on them (not good for long term futures and babies). This had a great deal to do with prejudice against balding men. Men when they are in their 20s don’t yet have enough confidence in their manhood, so losing hair seems to exacerbate the balding problem. I’m not a psychologist or sociologist, but I am a surgeon that helps men improve their image… so maybe I’m the wrong person to ask a question like that.

Would it be safe to assume that you, the author of the above question, has no hair loss and no sensitivity to balding as a male problem? Do you think that George Clooney would look sexy as a bald man? If so, I have not seen him shave his head as an alternative style. I had someone on my staff do a quick Photoshop of what Mr. Clooney might look like bald and put it side-by-side with a typical look for the actor. Which do you prefer?

(male)
I experienced a lot of stress in 08 and now have a patch of hair missing on top left portion. A dermatologist on two occasions injected cortisone and I went to another who said I did not need another injection and gave samples of luxiq. Small stubbles are growing back but does not appear to be terminal hair like on the right side. Any suggestions or just wait and see?

I am not a fan for the use of steroid injections into the scalp to treat any form of hair loss that is not an autoimmune disease. Stress does not qualify as an indication for such treatment, as these injections often causes more permanent hair loss than it helps. Good luck.

(female)
I usually color my hair and a few weeks ago i did a triple process where i had 3 different colors put in but the process of bleaching. My new roots started growing back so i decided to lighten them. While applying the bleach we noticed a bald spot at the back of my head. It was smooth soft and the same color of my scalp. It has feeling and it does not pain at all. Could the chemical have caused it!? Would it grow back? I am very worried

You should be worried. Bleach can burn the hair root and cause permanent balding. Wait it out for 3-6 months and you will know if it will reverse. Be careful in using too much or too strong bleaches. You can read more about this in my book, Hair Loss and Replacement for Dummies, where this is discussed in considerable detail.

Hi doctor Is it normal for the left side of your hair line to be higher and thinner than the right? Also besides genes what are some physical activities than can cause hair loss?

Hair loss, when it occurs, is often not symmetrical. If you’re seeing the left side of the hairline creep higher than the right, there’s nothing unusual about it.

There are no activities that should cause hair loss. Unless you count pulling on your hair as an activity, but I think you mean something like sports or hobbies. You need a good examination to determine if your hair loss is genetic and then map out the status of your hair loss (see Mapping Your Own Scalp for Miniaturization).