I'm 19, am I losing my hair?! I'm confused!

[AssemblerX86]

Hi

I am 19 years old. 2 years ago, after a stressful high-school examination year, I have lost some of my hair, and that made my scalp have some spaces in between my hair which can be seen clearly if exposed to light or I brush my hair the "spikey" look. But to be honest, I have always had a slight thinning in my hair after puberty.

The weird thing is that, I don't shed hair, not when I brush, not on my pillow, not anywhere, but still, my hair looks thin. Also, from the center and back of my scalp, the hair is good there, but the problem is in the front of the scalp and the sides of the front of the scalp, the hair is thin there. I have a receding hairline, but its not that big.

None of my mother's side relatives have experienced hairloss, yet my father, uncles, grandfather and grandmother have all experienced it, but when I use "Hairloss Calculators" or ask dermatologists, they predict that I should not lose hair now, but when I become in my 50s or older.

I have tried Minoxidil 5% for almost 4 months, but it didn't change anything, my hair still has spaces in between. So can someone explain to me what is going to happen to my hair and what I should do?

I also want to ask something which is not related: Does wearing caps or hats make hair stronger? I mean most people I know whom where hats and caps have strong hair, is it a coincidence?

Thank you!!

 

[worrywart]

Dude mine started thinning at 20. I went to a dermatologist totally freaked out and she prescribed me propecia which i refused to take. If I would have, I probably wouldn't have lost more hair. But, on the flip side, my sex life might have suffered. It's really hard to accept that you could be going bald at a young age. I was devastated. Anti-androgens work, but the potential side effects are scary. If you don't take propecia get some saw palmetto and Nizoral, it might help

 

[AssemblerX86]

But isn't it weird that my relatives from mother's side all have strong and thick hair??

 

[Roox]

Do you find this happened more when you are stressed? That can be a main factor for you losing your hair.

 

[AssemblerX86]

It worsened when I got stressed, but can I reverse that? Or is it permanent?

 

[garyhary]

If you have no cases of male pattern baldness in your family it is very unlikely that you have male pattern baldness as well. It must be something connected to something else. Perhaps you had some more shredding in the stress phase (combined with some nutrient deficit in your blood?) from which you did not discover so far because the nutrient levels in your blood are still low now. Just a theory. Perhaps checking your blood would help to find the reason of this. As far as you described the hair should grow back after some time.

 

[AssemblerX86]

If you have no cases of male pattern baldness in your family it is very unlikely that you have male pattern baldness as well. It must be something connected to something else. Perhaps you had some more shredding in the stress phase (combined with some nutrient deficit in your blood?) from which you did not discover so far because the nutrient levels in your blood are still low now. Just a theory. Perhaps checking your blood would help to find the reason of this. As far as you described the hair should grow back after some time.

I have, but on my father's side, though they all started losing their hair after the age of 35, not before. As for my mother's side, they all have strong thick hair.

What nutrient deficiencies can cause such hair thinning?

 

[garyhary]

You can have deficits in zinc or iron for instance that can cause some temporary shredding. I do not have others in my head.

Besides these you can also just take biotin and zinc like that to improve hair growth. I take biotin and have a bit thicker now (at least I think so) compared to previously. Not that it was growing my hair back... I have male pattern baldness

 

[AssemblerX86]

You can have deficits in zinc or iron for instance that can cause some temporary shredding. I do not have others in my head.

Besides these you can also just take biotin and zinc like that to improve hair growth. I take biotin and have a bit thicker now (at least I think so) compared to previously. Not that it was growing my hair back... I have male pattern baldness

I have read about Biotin and it is said that its really rare to have a Biotin Deficiency since this nutrient is available in many foods we daily eat. I might have a slight Zinc deficiency due to some white spots on my nails. Can Zinc deficiency cause such hair thinning?

 

[I.D WALKER]

My experience tells me no.
Since June of this year, I've been taking biotin (10,000 mcgs.@ 3x/day) and have yet to see any discernible improvement. The same goes for zinc (50 mgs.1x/day).

Sorry to say, but it looks like state of hair has even worsened. I'm not implying that aforesaid supplements are responsible for this, but rather that they (biotin/zinc) have not

afforded me any hair maintenance either.

I have to say my nails grow faster.

If trying it will make you feel better, then give it a shot. Stay with it for a year and you should probably be able to establish stronger confirmation. :sun:

I have read about Biotin and it is said that its really rare to have a Biotin Deficiency since this nutrient is available in many foods we daily eat. I might have a slight Zinc deficiency due to some white spots on my nails. Can Zinc deficiency cause such hair thinning?

 

[garyhary]

I have read about Biotin and it is said that its really rare to have a Biotin Deficiency since this nutrient is available in many foods we daily eat. I might have a slight Zinc deficiency due to some white spots on my nails. Can Zinc deficiency cause such hair thinning?

Biotin deficiency is rare. Iron and zinc deficiencies are more common issues and can really cause hair loss as one of the syndromes of this deficiency.