Hormone and Hair Loss
A man’s scalp is covered by about 100,000 hair follicles, which pass through continual cycles of growth, rest and occasional
death. Normally the scalp loses roughly 100 hairs a day and sprouts 100 new ones. But the sex hormone testosterone can upset
this break even dynamic. Testosterone in the form of DHT, or dihydrotestosterone stimulates hair growth on the face and the
body. But in men who carry a certain common gene, the same hormone gradually defoliates the scalp, causing their aging heads
to grow shiny even as their ears, noses and shoulders sprout more hair.
The hormone problem usually begins between the ages of 12-40 years of age. It is usually milder in women. This is attributed to differences in the level of 5 alpha-reductase and cytochrome P-450 aromatase, the enzymes responsible for the conversion of the hormone testosterone to dihydrotestosterone and the number of testosterone receptors in the individual hair follicles of the scalp.