When Do Men Start Balding?
There are a lot of mysteries that surround male pattern baldness, and scientists have spent countless hours trying to drill down into the underlying causes.
While we haven’t yet reached a definitive cure, there is consensus in the community about when men tend to go bald, and at what stage of life they are most at risk for hair loss.
Today we’re getting into the impact of age on male balding, and offer some thoughts on how to detect the early signs for maximum effective treatment.
No matter what age you are, there is likely a treatment that can help you out!
The Earliest Age for Hair Loss
Hair loss is commonly associated with older gentlemen, and while there is definitely a correlation with advanced age, men can start going bald fairly early in life.
Men can start to lose their hair as early as their late teenage years, and the number of guys with hair loss in their early twenties is more than you may think. In fact, nearly 20 percent of men around this age experience some degree of balding.
Since androgenetic hair loss is commonly thought to be associated with DHT, a male sex hormone derivative of testosterone, it makes sense that men can begin to lose their hair around the time they complete the final stages of puberty.
Of course, other causes unrelated to hereditary balding can cause patchiness, thinning, and other problems for young men, although these are less common.
For instance, alopecia areata is an example of an autoimmune disorder that can impact people of any age or gender and has no link to testosterone levels or DHT. This condition results in severe inflammation and unpredictable hair loss in various areas of the body, including the scalp.
Besides that, young men can also lose their hair as a result of other hormonal issues, injuries, or treatments like chemotherapy.
For men who do experience androgenetic balding early on, there is some good news.
Scientists agree that medications like Minoxidil (topical) and Finasteride (oral) have a much quicker and complete effect for young men with the condition, and the earlier they address the problem, the more ground they can regain.
While it is definitely not an ideal situation, there is some recourse for the young guys out there.
When Most Men Go Bald
For a while now, doctors have used a simple rule of thumb to determine hair loss likeliness by age group. The percentage of the balding male population matches up with each increase in decade, so 30% of men lose hair in their 30s, 40% in their 40s, so on and so forth.
While this is not an exact measurement of male balding probability, it can help men to prepare for the day when they first notice the trend.
Some experts claim that those stats underestimate how common balding really is in the male population. According to their stats, nearly two-thirds of American men have experienced hair loss by the age of 35, and 85% of men in their 50s have gone bald to some degree.
Although these sources may have different parameters for what constitutes hair loss, the overall message is clear that this is a very common occurrence for men.
Men of older age may not see the results they want from medical treatments like Minoxidil and Finasteride, which is why they seek out more transformative solutions.
Luckily for men in this scenario, procedures such as Follicular Unit Excision can be extremely effective in restoring hair to the top of the head from donor areas along the back and side.
Most men tend to lose their hair on top of the head, which leaves strong roots in the back near the neck. When harvested from these stronger areas and grafted correctly to the donor area, men can experience massively transformed hairlines in just a few month’s time.
These methods have come a long way in recent years, and client satisfaction is off the charts given the newest technologies and more affordable prices.
Another increasingly popular method for scalp coverage is called Scalp MicroPigmentation, which is essentially a series of tiny tattoos that camouflage the head to appear totally natural.
If you have the time and ability to reach out to a hair restoration specialist, there are a surprising number of solutions that will help you on your journey.
Early Detection is Key
Like we mentioned earlier, young men have a better chance of seeing results from prescription hair loss medications. While nothing is guaranteed, it’s always better to address hair loss at the earliest possible stage, since the most effective drugs aim to slow the loss before reversal.
It’s important that men of all ages keep an honest and open eye for their hairlines and determine if they need to get help. Snapping photos every few months is a good way to stay on top of it, and we should not shy away from asking the barber if they think we’re going a bit thin.
For many men, it’s a matter of checking the ego at the door and knowing that eventually, they’re going to have to face the facts about hair loss.
In the meantime, there are some tweaks we can make to our routines that ensure we don’t accelerate the hair loss we may be prone to seeing.
Lifestyle changes can help reduce the likelihood that a man will experience male pattern baldness, or at least diminish the rate of loss. Doctors recommend cleaning up unhealthy diets and replacing the burgers and fries for lean proteins and veggies. Exercise is also linked to improved blood flow in the scalp and stronger hair, although heavy weight lifting may lead to increases in DHT. It may be smarter to stick to jogging and calisthenics while skipping the squat rack and the bench press if you want to maintain that healthy hairline.
Another commonly overlooked factor that contributes to hair loss is stress.
Science has shown repeatedly that stress, especially the chronic, low-level anxiety that many people live with today, is terrible for the health of the human body. While a little bit of flight or flight can boost adrenaline and motivate us, too much long-term stress has the opposite effect on our hairlines.
We recommend that leading a more natural lifestyle, in general, is the way to go. Getting outside, and interacting with friends and family while keeping stress to a minimum is ideal.
Conclusion
The lesson here is that balding does not really discriminate by age. A big chunk of the male population starts losing hair just as they begin their adult lives.
While most of these cases are genetic and somewhat unavoidable, it’s vitally important that men of any age know what signs to look for and tackle the issue ASAP.
Whether it’s zinc-rich shampoo, supplementation, prescription meds, or a more serious hair transplant procedure, men have more options than ever before to combat hair loss.
With the rate of research and discovery in the industry, it’s likely that we will see a lot more promising solutions come to the forefront in the near future.
If you’re interested in getting email updates about the latest trends in hair restoration, be sure to sign up for our newsletter. Tune in to our Daily Journal of Hair Loss Information, where we post tons of insights and ideas about hair loss!
Sources:
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/68077#causes
https://www.gq.com/story/how-to-know-if-you-will-go-bald
https://www.getroman.com/health-guide/8-ways-to-know-if-youre-balding/