Male Pattern Baldness

Going bald has been a fact of life for millions of men. Hair normally lives for around five years. With male pattern baldness these hairs do not always get replaced and gradually bald areas in the head appear. This process can however take a long time and the age at which you start to lose hair does not necessarily provide any clues as to how long it will be until you define yourself as bald.

There are a number of reasons why men start to go bald, but if you are a man between the ages of about 20 to 45 and you start to lose scalp hair, then the chances are 95 percent certain that you are experiencing male pattern baldness. Hair loss usually starts in different areas but is usually at the temples.

Most men are genetically predisposed to male pattern baldness. It is the effect of hormones on the hair follicle that produces male pattern baldness. Testosterone, a hormone that is present in high levels in males after puberty, is converted to dihydrotestosterone (DHT) by an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase. DHT has an adverse affect on the hair follicles. Acting on a hormone receptor on the hair follicle it slows down hair production and produces weak, shorter hair, sometimes it stops hair growth from the follicle completely. This process gradually depletes the stock of hair.

Hair loss can occur for a number of reasons and can often be treated successfully. When excess DHT is produced it can causes inflammation of the scalp. This is because our body considers the hair follicles foreign objects and starts attacking them. Super Oxide Dismutase treatments (or SOD's) address this issue. When your body decides that your hair follicles are foreign objects it produces Super Oxides. SOD's reduce the levels of Super Oxides.

Another solution is DHT inhibitors. These actually reduce or inhibit the levels of DHT. Anti-Androgens are several steps down the chemical reaction that leads to hair loss and stop the DHT binding to the Androgen receptors, which therefore stops the hair follicle being damaged. As a result of the immune system attacking the hair the scalp can become inflamed, flaky and itchy. These treatments help with these symptoms.