There are 8 causes of hair loss in men that account for most cases of balding and male pattern baldness.
Below is a graphic showing the 8 causes of hair loss in men that you are likely to experience.
Let’s discuss these 8 causes of hair loss in men in more detail.
Iron Deficiency Anemia
Symptoms of iron deficiency include fatigue, weakness, coldness in your extremities, chest pains, shortness of breath among others. Although there is not 100% agreement on the subject, iron deficiency is widely believed to be a contributing factor to hair loss. A well-known medical study from 2006 stated:
Although this practice is not evidence based per se, we believe that treatment for hair loss is enhanced when iron deficiency, with or without anemia, is treated.
Autoimmune Disorder
Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disorder in both men and women and effects up to 6.8 million people in the US alone. In this case, your immune system attacks its own cells and in the instance of hair loss, contributes to partial hair loss manifested with bald patches all the way up to complete hair loss in some cases.
Injuries
Traumatic alopecia or telogen effluvium refers to temporary hair loss caused by an injury to the scalp, stress, self-inflicted damage or a shock. While hair loss might correct itself within 6 months, it could also last longer in some cases. Improvement to diet and lifestyle can assist in hair regrowth.
Wrong Hair Care
There are a number of hair care mistakes one can make that inhibits hair growth and damage hair.
An excessively oily scalp that is not washed properly can inhibit hair growth. Washing your hair too frequently on the other hand can lead to the thinning of hair.
And the bad news is that men can produce up to 60% more oil than women on their head.
Brushing hair too roughly can contribute to an excessive loss of hair. Over bleaching your hair, smoking, poor diet and even pulling your hair too tight in a ponytail (some men wear them!) can contribute to hair loss or hair damage at a minimum.
Infectious Disease of The Scalp
A scalp infection can lead to hair loss ie. fungal skin infection, bacterial infections like syphilis. Treating the underlying problem and not just the symptoms is key here.
Medication Side Effect
Hair loss through chemotherapy is a well-known side effect of this popular cancer treatment.
Other drugs such as acne medication, antibiotics, antidepressants and mood stabilizers can lead to hair loss as a side effect. Testosterone replacement therapies for men are also known to increase the likelihood of hair loss.
Avitaminosis
Avitaminosis is a vitamin deficiency that is believed to contribute to hair loss. Specifically, vitamin D deficiency is believed to at least contribute somewhat to hair loss and other hair problems. Vitamin D can help contribute to hair growth and hair regrowth.
Additionally, people with alopecia have been shown to have higher deficiencies in vitamin D than those without alopecia.
Hormonal Disorders
The specific hormone responsible for hair loss in men is Dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Your body produces DHT as a byproduct of testosterone.
In addition to hair production, DHT is also associated with giving men our male characteristics. Unfortunately DHT is believed to shrink hair follicles leading to hair loss. Therefore treatments that block DHT are believed to prevent hair loss.
Which Causes of Hair Loss Do You Experience?
For me, the hormonal disorders cause is most likely the major if not the only causes of hair loss that affected me. I have classic male pattern baldness and first noticed it in my early 20s in university.
My guess – and this is just purely an educated guess as I can safely eliminate most other factors – is that heredity caused my hair loss. DHT is in all likelihood the culprit for me. Certainly my dad had the same type of hair loss as does his brother. On my mum’s side of the family one of my grandfathers had this sort of hair loss too.
I’ve often wondered what I could have done differently if anything. I know I can safely eliminate factors like injury and hair care mistakes. I never suffered a scalp injury per se nor did I anything wrong with haircare other than washing my hair properly and regularly.
Stress certainly may have contributed to my hair loss. I worried a lot about school and other things when I was younger. I didn’t learn how to deal with stress until later in life after my hair loss was noticeable.
The “funny” part was what I first did to deal with my hair loss before it became really noticeable caused me more stress and anxiety. I actually wasn’t stressed about hair loss per se. I was just looking for a way to deal with it. Instead I ended up stressing about it more after I tried to deal with it!
You can read more about what I did by clicking here.
Conclusion
- There are 8 major reasons for men to lose their hair.
- The main factors in hair loss are a combination of natural and hereditary factors, medications, injuries, poor diet and poor haircare habits among others.
- DHT is a sex hormone in men that is believed to contribute to hair loss in males. Blocking DHT may stop hair loss.
- Your best bet is to consult with a doctor and get referred to a specialist to deal with hair loss in the first instance to ensure you have no serious underlying health issues.
- While doctors are still trying to determine the underlying causes of hair loss in men and how to prevent it, technology to deal with hair loss appears to be getting closer to a solution.
What causes of hair loss in men did I neglect to mention? Let us know in the comments below!