Scientific reasons why people get bald.

You know, one thing I have noticed about men who are bald over here, is that they choose to completely have their hair scrapped off, and they move with the ''molo'' style as we would always call it here. But, for the bald females, my gender looks for ways to ensure the growth of this hair until of course, we get tired.

flickr.com

The cycle of hair growth is in three phases;

• The Anagen Phase: This phase of hair growth is often the longest phase, lasting about 3-5 years of hairs on the head, although some people could have a single hair that will continue to grow for over seven years.

• The Catagen Phase: This phase starts when the anagen phase ends, it lasts for about 10 days. During this process, the hair follicles would shrink, and there would be a shrink in hair growth. The hair gets separated from the bottom of the hair follicle, and still remains during its final days of growing.

• The Telogen Phase: This phase usually lasts for around 3 months. During this phase, hair doesn't grow but they do not fall out either. It is during this phase that new hairs begin to form in follicles that have released hair during the catagen phase.

• The Exogen Phase: This phase is an extension of the stage of hair growth. Losing about 50-100 hairs in a day during this phase is quite normal, usually accompanied by washing and brushing. But new hairs are growing in the follicles as old hairs fall away.

commons.wikimedia.org

Not everyone was however born bald, some people continue to lose their hair until it becomes a case of baldness, and there are various reasons why men and women lose their hair. Ranging from thyroid disease to poor nutrition, genetics, hormonal fluctuations, and age.

While men experience a receding hairline that would leave a receding hairline that would create a horse-like rim around the back and the sides of the head. Women, on the other hand, will retain their frontal hairline and lose the hair that is over the top of the scalp.

The most common type of hair loss is the type that affects several men in the prime of their lives. It is known as androgenetic alopecia commonly referred to as pattern baldness.

James B. Hamilton carried out simple observations and experiments in the middle of the century, and the result proved that male pattern baldness was dependent on the complex interaction of three factors; genetics, androgens, and age.

Androgens are hormones that have a primary role in inducing and maintaining male secondary sex characteristics. Testosterone which is a principal androgen, is produced in the testes as well as the adrenal glands of men, in much smaller quantities, made in the ovaries and the adrenal glands of women.

When it comes to male baldness, testosterone plays a strong role, affecting only the hair follicle cells that are predisposed genetically to the condition. In susceptible men, testosterone comes in contact with an enzyme found in the hair follicles, with this occurrence, the testosterone is converted into dihydrotestosterone (DHT), which is a more potent androgen that can bind to receptors in follicles.

Pattern baldness could be inherited genetically, either from the maternal or the paternal side of the family. According to Strick, when speaking about inheritance, there is a tendency for some hair follicles in the presence of DHT, to progressively become smaller as time goes on. Physically, the growing cycle of the hair follicle continues to shorten, making more hairs to be shed and for the existing hair, it grows thinner and thinner. Some of these hair follicles would eventually die, while others would shrink to a very small size which is incapable of sustaining healthy hair.

Age also contributes greatly to the development of pattern, the susceptibility of baldness increases with age.
The reason why we get to see a case of pattern baldness more in men than we see in women could be mainly attributed to the genetic makeup of hair follicles in different parts of the scalp.

It is necessary for us to understand that it is not all hair loss that is partial blindness. If you find yourself in a situation where instead of the hair thinning out gradually, it falls out all of a sudden, then there could be a need to look into some other possible causes;

• Scalp infections.
• Stress.
• Radiation or chemotherapy treatments.
• Problems with diet (Nutritional deficiencies).
• Keeping hairstyles like cornrows, braids, or ponytails for long years.
• Medications.

---

---

References.

https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna3077388

https://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/hair-loss/male-pattern-baldness

https://www.healthline.com/health/baldness-gene#takeaway

https://www.healthline.com/health/stages-of-hair-growth#shedding-phase

---

---

---

Hi, I am Tobi a writer, speaker, relationship blogger, and lover of good music. I love making friends and learning from people. Want to hear me speak on relationships and general life issues, you can find my YouTube channel where you can listen and watch any episode for free, please If do not forget to subscribe, friends. I sincerely appreciate every love I get from here, Kindly do well to keep them coming.