What is male pattern hair loss (MPHL)?

The scalp has thousands of individual hairs which sit in follicles under the skin. MPHL changes the way hair grows. Affected hairs become smaller, finer and lighter in colour. Over time some become too thin and light to see.

Three stages of normal hair growth

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The thousands of different hair follicles in the scalp can be at different stages at any one time.

1. Anagen Stage (growth) New hair growth begins deep inside the follicle. It takes a number of years for just one full-grown hair to mature!

2. Catagen Stage (resting) Once a hair’s stopped growing, the hair root shrinks and the base of the follicle where growth started breaks down. The hair doesn’t need growth nutrients anymore and so moves upward in the follicle, away from the root and the blood vessel that had been feeding it.

3. Telogen Stage (regrowth) By now the mature hair is only loosely attached to the hair root. It usually falls out after a few months or is pushed out by the next hair shooting up beneath it.

DHT a real hair growth killer

Like some of us men are prone to getting a bit out of control, a hormone called DHT (or dihydrotestosterone for geeky science purists) can reach high levels in some people. When DHT reaches high levels in men genetically disposed to MPHL, the growth phase of the hair is shortened. Over time, this causes affected hairs to become smaller, finer, lighter and eventually invisible.

So like some men might blame their parents for their mousy build, oversized feet or feminine face, MPHL is one more thing affected men can pin on them. Of course, men today have options to stop the onset of the classic male bald hairline.

What is DHT?

Not to be attempted at home, but if you take a look inside one of your hair follicles, you’d find red blood cells, hormones and an enzyme called 5 alpha-reductase. There are other things too, but that’s all you need to know to understand DHT.

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In pure man-science: just as interacting with an exotic women or car can turn us into another kind of creature altogether, the interaction of 5 alpha-reductase and the male hormone testosterone results in DHT.

What if I ignore MPHL?

If you’re like most men, you’ll have no problem comparing MPHL to a nagging partner during the big game. Once it starts, it isn’t going to stop unless you take firm action. Jokes aside, you can expect something like this if you don’t treat MPHL:

The naked truth

If it hasn’t already, your hair will begin receding at the hairline, leaving a central spur of hair at the front of the head and an increasing bald spot at the crown.
The areas of hair loss at the front and crown will meet, and the top of the head will become increasingly bald.
Eventually, all that you’ll be left with is a ‘Friar Tuck’ border of hair around the side and back of your head.

The sooner you start taking action, the better you can expect your results to be. Ultimately, if you don’t want to go bald, act right away!

Male pattern hair loss