On many occasions, your genes are one of the main causes of your hair loss. From my own personal experience, hair loss is a severe issue on both sides of my family. All men on both sides suffer from various degrees of hair loss. The fact that I started to lose my hair in my early 20’s is not really a surprise at all. We have had many clients come to us in the past and state the following – “I started losing my hair when I was very young. All of the men on my Mum’s side have either thinning hair or are completely bald. “Does my genetics cause hair loss?”
Although baldness is considered a male issue, hair loss can affect anyone, regardless of their gender. Genetics play a major role in determining how much hair loss you will experience as you age. Unfortunately, genetic hair loss can not be reversed.
When hair loss is caused by your genetics, it occurs in a predictable pattern often referred to as male pattern baldness or female pattern baldness. 95% of hair loss in men is caused by androgenetic alopecia. This is the medical terminology for male pattern baldness. Male Pattern baldness is essentially a hereditary sensitivity to dihydrotestosterone. This is a by-product of testosterone. Hair follicles that are sensitive to dihydrotestosterone shrink over time. This has a knock on effect of shortening each hairs lifespan and they eventually stop growing altogether. This is why so many men have receding hairlines and get the classic horseshoe thinning. Male pattern Baldness is extremely brutal. Approximately 25% of men who have inherited it start losing their hair before they turn 21. By 35, approximately 66% of men will have at least started to lose their hair.
Women often experience hair loss after menopause in the Ludwig pattern. This is a gradual recession along the part of your hair. Approximately half of the worlds population of women will experience female pattern hair by the time they are 80.
What’s the science behind male pattern baldness? People have twenty three pairs of chromosomes that contain their genetic information. From your eye colour to the length of your little toe is coded for by these chromosomes. One of these pairs of chromosomes, called the “X” and “Y” chromosomes determine your biological sex. Women have two “X” chromosomes while men have one “X” and one “Y” chromosome. Men inherit their “X” chromosome from their mother and “Y” from their father. Baldness is strongly associate with the “X” chromosome. Research has found that more than 80 percent of people experiencing noticeable balding had a father who also lost their hair.
What’s the science behind female pattern baldness? The genetic component of female pattern baldness is still unknown but as with Male Pattern Baldness, it is thought to involve many different genes. Genes are coded for the production of an enzyme called aromatase. This converts testosterone to estradiol and it may play a role in female pattern baldness. This explains why so many women lose their hair after menopause.
