Male pattern baldness affects 6.5 million men in the UK. Men who are bald are common sights that we accept as ‘normal’. In fact many men choose to shave their heads at a very early stage of hair loss. A balding woman, however, is not a common sight and women will go to extreme lengths to hide thinning hair and the stigma attached to it with elaborate hairstyles and copious amounts of products.
There are an estimated 8 million women in the UK with some hair loss, many of whom lose self confidence and self esteem and some even become reclusive for fear of their baldness being discovered.
We are born with our quota of hair follicles, brunettes with around 80,000 follicles and blondes with around 150,000 follicles producing finer hairs. The hair grows cell by cell and an average 6 inches of hair ( roughly a single year’s growth) will contain 100,000-150,000 dead hair cells.
These keratinised cells have trace elements of everything ingested over this period, hence why hairs are often used to perform drug tests. Everyone’s hair growth span varies from 2 – 7 years and on average 20-50 hairs are lost per day. After stressful times in our lives, such as childbirth we often lose a considerable amount of hair but in the vast majority of cases the hair regrows just as thickly.
What happens when hair is thinning?
The first stages of balding hair are when there is no actual reduction in the number of hairs, just a reduction in the thickness of the individual strands. There are 3 phases of the life cycle of a hair, Anagen, the growth phase, Catagen when the hair stops growing and then Telogen when the hair eventually falls out.
In balding the follicles themselves undergo miniaturisation and the hair is in the growth phase for a shorter period than normal. Eventually the follicle stops producing even very thin hair and the follicle becomes scarred and non productive.
DHT (Full name: 5-Dihydrotestosterone, abbreviating to 5-DHT;) is a biologically active metabolite of the hormone testosterone and is responsible for balding. DHT blockers, the drug based treatment for baldness will slow the loss but only 25% of women will see a regrowth.
One such drug is Finasteride but does have a potential side effect of loss of sex drive and erectile dysfunction.Minoxidil is a lotion applied to the scalp but has side effects of dryness and itching and takes several months to get results. No treatment is available on the NHS.
Common Myths
- Blow drying, daily hair washing and colouring hair do not lead to hair loss.
- Cutting hair does not make the hair thicker.
- Wearing hats does not cause hair loss.
Hair transplant or Halo Elite laser restoration
Hair transplant is the most invasive treatment and Wayne Rooney is probably the most famous person to have undergone transplants at huge expense.
There can be no hiding from undergoing transplant yet most people are totally unaware of Halo Laser Hair Loss Treatment that gives a gradual restoration without drugs or surgery. Halo Elite laser restoration is FDA approved, requires no surgery, drugs or downtime. It is suitable for both men and women and at worst will stop hair loss but with most people it will cause recovery of dormant hair follicles.
Halo laser hair restoration directs energy to the fading follicles and enables them to produce strong, thick, healthy hair again. An initial assessment is required which involves visualising the hair under a microscope to see that there are both normal and miniaturised hairs.
Halo Laser Hair Loss Treatment involves 2 x 13.5 minute treatments per week for 6 months then 1 per week for 6 months. Thereafter just 1 treatment every 6 weeks is needed for maintenance. A special shampoo should be used to clear the scalp of oil and debris before treatments and supplements to make sure the body has the required building blocks.
The cost for the 76 treatments over the year is £2,000, thereafter £25 every 6 weeks. If treatments are missed due to holidays they are added on to the end of the year.