Mature Hairline or Male Pattern Baldness?

[RHLRANJAN]

Just a background: I am 26 year old male. Nobody from my father or mother side are bald. My father though has recession towards the temples but it remained there and didn't recede further till his passing away. My grandfathers from both side turned bald with age naturally like after turning 60. I have checked by crown and there is no bald patch. Also, overall on the head there doesn't appear to be any thinning.

A week ago (10 days to be precise) the barber gave me a really bad haircut - i told him to cut small, and well, he cut my hairs too small. And now my temples are visible and I am now afraid (read: paranoid) that I am going bald.

How much hair I loose everyday: When I shampoo, which is everyday, I loose about 5-10 strands every time. But after wards, throughout the day, I barely see hair strands here and there. Currently, its winter where I am from and so I have got a bit of dandruff, so by the end of the day when I return from office, I start seeing random 2-3 strands of hair here and there. But I am pretty sure, I never loose hair in large chunks/clumps anytime. However, the day when I don't bathe, like during weekends I completely skip the bathing on both days, and then when I shampoo on Monday, I get like 14-15 hair strands. This completely freaks me out. Also, on the weekends, if I don't bathe, random strands are more prominently visible here and there (like 2-3 on pillow, 4-5 on the bed throughout the day and so on). This has been freaking me out like hell. Am I loosing too much hair, or this is normal number of hair fall?

Please find attached the photos. 3 photos are from present day. 1 photo (old.jpg) is from before the hair cut. Last photo is the old one.

Given these photos and information above, here are my two questions:

1. Do I have a Maturing Hairline or Male Pattern Baldness?
2. Is the amount of hair I am loosing normal?
3. If you notice carefully in 1st or 2nd pic, there seems to be large gap between hair strands. Is this normal? Or is this visible right now because my hair is short?

Thank you guys in advance!

Edited December 14, 2019 by RHLRANJAN

[Melvin- Admin]

You have amazing hair, I wouldn't worry about hair loss. Looks like it's slightly maturing - this is normal as you are reaching your late 20's. 

[LaserCap]

Listen to Melvin......

[RHLRANJAN]

Thank you so much @Melvin-Moderator @LaserCap @transplantedphil for replying. Now that you guys think it is maturing hairline, when should I start worrying for balding? Like maturing hairline looks like Stage 2 of Norwood scale right? And one more thing, is it possible to look at the tiny hairs growing in the place of fallen hair? I am trying with the camera flashlight in the mirror on the edges of front scalp but cannot see. Also there seems to be too much gap between the hairs on the front scalp. You can see in the pic 2. Is it normal?

I know, I am just freaking out and being paranoid for no reason 😢

[LaserCap]

You are a young guy and have a long way to go. And as I always say, if you've shown the propensity to lose, you will keep losing.  But, if you've shown the propensity to keep, you'll keep keeping.  At this time there is no signs of anything.  Yes, you are maturing your hairline, but this is a natural process.  Keep an eye on things, take photos every year and notice if there is progression.  If so, consider medical therapy.

You mention falling hair.  That's shedding and it's normal.  Most believe 100 hairs a day is normal.  (The follicle gets tired of producing hair and it takes a vacation.  After a dormant period of about 3-4 months, the hair returns.  So, if you see hair on the floor, sink, pillow cover, etc, don't sweat it).  

You also mentioned thinning hairs.  Hair miniaturizes, dissipates and eventually will disappear.  That's hair loss.  

With regards to the very front of the hairline, realize there are what I call stragglers in that area.  The very front will be very fine and the caliber will augment as you look farther back.  All normal. Consider, if the hair was really thick, it would look more like a wig and unnatural.  

Don't freak or stress.  While this is not the cause of loss, it can prompt hair to go away sooner.  

[RHLRANJAN]

@LaserCap - Yup, you are right and yeah I did come across that stressing leads to more hair shedding and aggravates MPD. I am gonna do what u say,...take photos every 6 months and compare them to further analyse. Once again, thank you so much...much appreciate coming from a fellow person!

[yesplease]

On 12/14/2019 at 9:49 AM, RHLRANJAN said:

Just a background: I am 26 year old male. Nobody from my father or mother side are bald. My father though has recession towards the temples but it remained there and didn't recede further till his passing away. My grandfathers from both side turned bald with age naturally like after turning 60. I have checked by crown and there is no bald patch. Also, overall on the head there doesn't appear to be any thinning.

A week ago (10 days to be precise) the barber gave me a really bad haircut - i told him to cut small, and well, he cut my hairs too small. And now my temples are visible and I am now afraid (read: paranoid) that I am going bald.

How much hair I loose everyday: When I shampoo, which is everyday, I loose about 5-10 strands every time. But after wards, throughout the day, I barely see hair strands here and there. Currently, its winter where I am from and so I have got a bit of dandruff, so by the end of the day when I return from office, I start seeing random 2-3 strands of hair here and there. But I am pretty sure, I never loose hair in large chunks/clumps anytime. However, the day when I don't bathe, like during weekends I completely skip the bathing on both days, and then when I shampoo on Monday, I get like 14-15 hair strands. This completely freaks me out. Also, on the weekends, if I don't bathe, random strands are more prominently visible here and there (like 2-3 on pillow, 4-5 on the bed throughout the day and so on). This has been freaking me out like hell. Am I loosing too much hair, or this is normal number of hair fall?

Please find attached the photos. 3 photos are from present day. 1 photo (old.jpg) is from before the hair cut. Last photo is the old one.

Given these photos and information above, here are my two questions:

1. Do I have a Maturing Hairline or Male Pattern Baldness?
2. Is the amount of hair I am loosing normal?
3. If you notice carefully in 1st or 2nd pic, there seems to be large gap between hair strands. Is this normal? Or is this visible right now because my hair is short?

Thank you guys in advance!

While I agree with most of the comments on here, I would also say that it is too early to tell if the temple recession represents a maturing hairline or early MPB. My hairline and density was even stronger than what you have here in my 20s and I maintained well into my 30s before I started diffusing and receding more severely. I, like you, had a mixed family history of MPB. There’s no way to tell what your final destination will be at this point, unfortunately. All you can do is keep an eye on it. Agree with taking pictures every 6 months or so for comparison. Try to do them in the exact same lighting/setting and with the same camera for a quality comparison, as changes can be subtle over time.