Do you know that there are over 50 million men and 30 million women suffering from thinning hair and hair loss in the United States alone? Yes, it is true and the number is sadly increasing year after year. Medical specialists have proved that the main cause of this unfortunate phenomenon is genetics or heredity.
There are several forms of hair loss like the alopecia areata which means “hair loss in certain areas”, telogen effluvium that is mainly caused by stress but the most prevalent form of hair loss that can be noticed in both men and women is androgenic alopecia or male and female pattern baldness. As I have mentioned, androgenic alopecia has something to do with genetics and that it can be truly inherited from both parents. The onset of this type of hair loss is usually characterized by thinning hair that will soon progress into bald spots. Thinning of the hair generally begins at the top area of the scalp, predominantly at the temples and crown area.
Hairs located at the front and crown area are genetically susceptible to a hormone called dihydrotestosterone or DHT. This is a chemical by-product of the male hormone testosterone which is being converted with the interaction of the 5 alpha-reductase enzyme. DHT attacks hair follicles, making it more fragile and eventually these follicles die, causing permanent pattern baldness. The hairs on both sides and back of men remain unaffected as the follicles on these areas are typically resistant to going bald. These follicles continue to thrive and create healthy thick hair due to their genetics, which makes them resistant to the damaging effects of DHT.
Treatments for androgenic alopecia may vary. Wealthy people choose to undergo a hair transplant surgery to see fast results, though this certain type of intricate surgery is only for people most especially men who have lost huge amounts of hair that can no longer be restored with topical solutions containing hair regrowth ingredients. This is why early detection and prevention of hair loss is quite imperative in order to avoid expensive hair transplant surgeries. A drug used to cure baldness in men only if finasteride. This works in preventing the hormone testosterone converting into DHT which causes thinning hair. It is believed to efficiently stop further baldness and promote healthy hair regrowth. The effects of finasteride are not evident for at least six months. Majority of men who take finasteride experiences a loss of libido or is having a decreased sex drive and erection difficulty. Topical serums on the other hand are generally used by many men as these are proven to stop the onset of androgenic alopecia and are clinically proven to significantly regrow the lost hair.
Hair care experts advise people with pattern baldness to use products containing natural or herbal ingredients like the saw palmetto extracts. This ingredient works like the finasteride drug does but without any sexual side effects. Saw palmetto obstructs the formation of DHT in the scalp and stimulates hair regrowth at the same time. The extracts of saw palmetto are in fact utilized in well known hair loss products like Leimo as their main and active ingredient in battling androgenic alopecia in both sexes.
