Hormonal changes, autoimmune diseases, thyroid disorders, and stress are among the known causes of hair loss in young men and women. However, diet can also strongly influence hair health. The growing popularity of vegetarian and vegan diets could be contributing to millennial hair loss.
Premature hair loss in men is becoming increasingly common. Recent research has shown that Chinese youngsters in their 20s are going bald sooner than any previous generations. And a rising number of millennials in the USA say they're also experiencing hair loss.
Even though they grew up with the Internet and find it nearly impossible to separate from their connected devices, millennials are just as likely to experience hair loss – both from hereditary factors such as male pattern baldness, and from environmental factors such as stress and poor diet.
New self-reported data out of China has led researchers to claim millennials may be losing their hair faster than older generations. However, the research is only anecdotal. There is currently no evidence in Western medical literature about any changes in the rates of hair loss.
Certain races have higher rates of hair loss compared to others. Caucasians have the highest rates out of all the ethnic groups. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Native American Indians, Inuits, and Chinese have the lowest rates.
Male-pattern baldness is an inherited sensitivity to dihydrotestosterone (DHT, a by-product of testosterone), which leads to finer hair, a receding hairline, and finally a deserted scalp. That's why scientists—who may be thinning up top themselves—have put balding in their crosshairs.
Generally, people begin noticing signs of hair loss in their 30s and 40s. More significant hair loss often happens when people reach their 60s and beyond.
After the age of 30-35, shedding starts slowing down, as the levels of androgens in the blood start reducing. In older men with androgenetic alopecia, the hair loss slows down even more. Hair loss stabilizes together with the gradual decline of androgen levels in the blood.
Skipping a Generation: Myth or Fact
There is no scientific basis for the idea that baldness skip generations, regardless of any old wives tales you may have heard from the grapevine.
About 70% of men will lose hair as they get older. And 25% of bald men see first signs of hair loss before age 21. “Recent advances offer a lot of hope in both treating and preventing different types of baldness,” says dermatologist Amy Kassouf, MD.
There is no cure for hair loss. Some hair loss is temporary and the hair will grow back. For those experiencing male pattern baldness, treatments like Finasteride and Propecia can help halt hair loss and in some cases stimulate regrowth.
According to Mayo Clinic, the majority of baldness is caused by genetics, usually known as male-pattern baldness and female-pattern baldness, and cannot be prevented.
The X or female chromosome carries the primary baldness gene, and men inherit this X chromosome from their mothers. This makes the hereditary factor around baldness most dominant on your mother's side.
One popular myth is that hair loss in men is passed down from the mother's side of the family while hair loss in women is passed down from the father's side; however, the truth is that the genes for hair loss and hair loss itself are actually passed down from both sides of the family.
Men inherit the baldness gene from the X chromosome that they get from their mother. Female baldness is genetically inherited from either the mother's or father's side of the family. Baldness may be influenced by a number of other factors as well, including age, health, diet, hormones, seasonal changes and climate.
Hair Loss in Your 30s and Beyond
By the time you turn 30, you have a 25% chance of displaying some balding. By age 50, 50% of men have at least some noticeable hair loss. By age 60, about two-thirds are either bald or have a balding pattern.
One-fifth of men will experience significant hair loss by age of 20(!), and that percentage grows proportional to age. Bauman says that significant loss increases steadily with age: 30 percent will experience it in their 30s, 40 percent in 40s, and so on. “This math proves true for men into their 90s,” he says.
On average it takes 15-25 years for men to go completely bald. This process can begin at any age. About two thirds of men are either bald or have a balding pattern by the age of 60. In a nutshell, there is no particular age when you can expect to see hair loss.
The hairline is only about one to 1.5 inches above your highest wrinkle. This is typically as far as a mature hairline will recede. If your hairline is about the width of your finger above the top wrinkle, you probably have a mature hairline. If it's receding onto your scalp, it may mean balding.
Self-esteem: Men who experience hair loss generally feel less confident about themselves. A 2019 study from the International Journal of Trichology found that hair loss lowered the quality of life for many men, with particular effects in the areas of self-perception and interpersonal relations.
Based on identical twin studies, he and other researchers have calculated that somewhere between 79 and 81 percent of baldness is determined by genes.
Sometimes men go against family traits and lose hair even if their male relatives don't. This may be due to the baldness gene skipping a generation or lifestyle choices switching the gene on. Male pattern baldness is due to hair follicles being sensitive to DHT which is a derivative of testosterone.
The genetics of height
If they are tall or short, then your own height is said to end up somewhere based on the average heights between your two parents. Genes aren't the sole predictor of a person's height. In some instances, a child might be much taller than their parents and other relatives.