is this early male pattern baldness

[neonhalls]

I've pulled out some of my hair to analyse it and some have white bulbs and other have black. I've read that the black bulbs signify the anagen stage and the white bulbs represent the telegon stage.

 

I've noticed that the hair with black bulbs tend to be thicker than the hairs with white ones. I'm concerned. Does this mean male pattern baldness?

 

Most of the hairs I pulled out were around the crown areas.

 

I know naturally varies in thickness but I'm still worried.

 

Im 18 and would die if i lost my hair.

[pkipling]

Don't die! Whatever you do, don't die.

 

Hard to say if it's MPB or not based on that alone. A picture would definitely help and I'm not familiar with the differences in the bulbs, so I can't speak to that. However, it's important to note a few things:

 

"Hair fall" is very normal and doesn't necessarily mean hair loss. Most people lose up to 100 hairs a day, but we have so many that they keep themselves in rotation, so to speak. Now that you're noticing the hair falling out, it's possible that you're just highly sensitive to the hair loss and what could be completely normal seems worse than it actually is.

 

I know firsthand how terrifying it is when you first start losing your hair (or just even the possibility that you're losing your hair). It would make me physically ill some days - but that was in large part due to the fact that I didn't know there were solutions. So on the chance that this is something you're gonna have to deal with in the future (and you would be in great company), there are solutions - from prescription medicine, to over the counter treatments, to vitamins, to an actual hair transplant (which is what I've done recently). So try not to stress too much about it. The stress will only contribute even more to any hair loss you could be experiencing.

 

Just curious - Does baldness run in your family? If so and you know it's something you need to keep an eye out for, you're safest bet is to set up an appointment with a physician and see what they have to say. The earlier you can catch it, the better off you'll be.

 

Best of luck!

 

And seriously.... Don't die.

[kamalmalik]

As suggested, look for pictures of your father and grandfather when they were your age. male pattern baldness is typically caused by hereditary reasons.

[Rawkerboi]

Completely agreed with both!

We are lucky that we have two major weapons two fight hair loss ie. Fin and Minox!

The earlier you can catch it, the better off you'll be.

[neonhalls]

Thanks. I did more research, and have concluded the bulbs aren't an accurate way of identifying male pattern baldness. It's been a while since I last logged and my hair still seems fine.

 

I know baldness doesn't typically run on my father's side of the family but I'm unsure of my mother's side because I never knew that side of my family. Is there some kind of medical exam to see if I have the gene? I can't simply ask my mother because I've lost touch with her.

[pkipling]

There's no sure fire way to tell if you're definitely going to go bald or not. The best indicator is to see if it runs in your family (on both sides of your family.... Not just your "mother's father" myth that people tend to throw around). Even then, it ultimately varies from individual to individual and just because you have a history of baldness in your family doesn't necessarily mean you will go bald - it just means that the chances are greater. This is true the other way around as well.

 

You're still very young, so I wouldn't worry about it too much if you're not seeing definite signs. Exercise, eat healthy, keep your stress level down and just ENJOY being 18. And IF you start to see signs of baldness in the future, you can deal with it then. Worrying about it now won't do you (or your hair) any good. So go have fun and enjoy your full head of hair with a smile on your face.