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2009-12-16 03:37:04
What is the normal cycle of hair growth and loss?
The normal cycle of hair growth lasts for 2 to 3 years. Each hair grows approximately 1 centimeter per month during this phase. About 90 percent of the hair on your scalp is growing at any one time. About 10 percent of the hair on your scalp, at any one time, is in a resting phase. After 3 to 4 months, the resting hair falls out and new hair starts to grow in its place.
It is normal to shed some hair each day as part of this cycle. However, some people may experience excessive (more than normal) hair loss. Hair loss of this type can affect men, women and children.
What is common baldness?
"Common baldness" usually means male-pattern baldness, or permanent-pattern baldness. It is also called androgenetic alopecia. Male-pattern baldness is the most common cause of hair loss in men. Men who have this type of hair loss usually have inherited the trait. Men who start losing their hair at an early age tend to develop more extensive baldness. In male-pattern baldness, hair loss typically results in a receding hair line and baldness on the top of the head.
Women may develop female-pattern baldness. In this form of hair loss, the hair can become thin over the entire scalp.
What Causes Baldness and Hair Loss?
The genetics causes of baldness and hair loss
It isn't so much that most of us have a gene that causes baldness and hair loss, but that our hormones change with age, and this then causes the hair loss and baldness to happen. This hormone change may be genetically caused, but you don't have a gene that says," right, time to cause baldness, lets get rid of this hair".
However, premature hair loss does tend to be genetically caused.
Research undertaken by Prof. Nothen and Dr Kruse, 2005, showed that premature hair loss in men followed the pattern of their maternal grandfather, as the gene that caused this hair loss was carried on the x chromosome.
In 2008, these two scientists further reported that chromosome 20, which can be inherited from either the mother or father, also contains a gene that can cause premature baldness. With the chromosome 20 gene, the son's premature baldness may resemble the pattern of the father's baldness.
Of course, there are many other causes of hair loss and many other causes of baldness, and these are covered further down, but hair loss and baldness caused by hormones is the norm for both sexes.
The cause of baldness or hair loss needs to be identified to determine the treatment that is most likely to succeed in regrowing hair.
The things that cause baldness, alopecia, hairloss
(and How TREATABLE each type of baldness is)
Baldness, which is medically known as alopecia, affects both sexes, male and female, and can be caused by any of the following:
1.
Age can cause baldness and hair loss, by it's effects on hormones and the weakening immune system. This type of baldness and hairloss is often reversible, using hair loss treatments targeting the hormone problem. However, age also affects our hair loss in a more permanent way - some of our hair follicles die, and this hair loss cannot be reversed. For those of you interested in stats, 40% of men have significant hair loss or some baldness BEFORE they turn 40 years old.
2.
Genetics - can certainly be a cause of baldness in a small number of individuals. Baldness that is genetically determined is rare, and often irreversible.
3.
Lifestyle can cause baldness in some individuals - such as tight braiding, poor diet, and so on. Often the baldness and or hair loss is reversible, but it does depend on what actually caused it. For example, tight braiding can sometimes scar the scalp, destroy the hair follicles, making normal hair regrowth essentially impossible.
4.
Environmental factors can cause baldness, such as exposure to caustic gases, xrays and pollutants. Whether the baldness is reversible, again depends on what causes it. As a general rule of thumb, if the hair follicles are not destroyed, hair regrowth is possible.
5.
Hair products can also sometimes cause hair loss and baldness - the more chemicalized, the more the potential for trouble. My brother in law went bald prematurely as a result of using such a product, my wife came close as well to becoming bald. As long as the hair follicles are left alive and well, hair regrowth is possible and likely.