Are you worried about your Male Pattern Baldness?
There isn’t one definitive cause of male pattern baldness, there can be a few contributing factors including:
- Genetics – if you have a family history of hair loss (also known as androgenic alopecia, which can affect men or women) you are more likely to experience pattern baldness.
- Side effect of medication – hair loss can be a side effect of taking certain medications such as those used for arthritis, depression, cancer, and heart problems. This type of hair loss can be temporary or permanent.
- Hormone changes and other conditions – there are several conditions that can cause hair loss including alopecia areata, an immune system related condition that causes patchy hair loss amongst other symptoms.
- Stress – emotional distress and trauma can result in hair loss, but this is likely temporary and will recover over time.
Hair loss doesn’t always need treatment, but if it is affecting your confidence and you want restore hair growth, there are options available. To help with hair loss at home you should massage the scalp regularly, without creating traction to your hair. This encourages better blood circulation in the area and improves the quality of the hair.
To massage your scalp, use your fingertips, not your fingernails. Move your way across your scalp in small circles, applying light to medium pressure. There’s no specific amount of time to massage. However, in the study above, each scalp massage was given daily for 4 minutes over 24 weeks.
Use Aloe vera or Coconut oil other light oils will improve the quality of the skin in your scalp, soothing the area and unblocking hair follicles. Some oils, like coconut oil, can even reduce protein loss from hair.
Some common examples of treatments for male pattern baldness are finasteride and minoxidil. These treatments are currently not supplied by the NHS so you will likely need to consult with a private GP.
Another potential option for helping male pattern baldness is using wigs. There are many synthetic and real-hair wig options that offer a realistic look and are comfortable to wear. If neither of these are right for you, other treatments include:
- Steroid injections and creams
- Immunotherapy
- Light treatment
- Hair transplant
Here at VIDA we have expert clinicians on hand to help diagnose and treat your condition. To find out more about these services, we recommend visiting the following pages:
- Emotional trauma/long term stress
- Family history/genetics
- Hormone changes and medical conditions
- Side effect of certain medication