Gadgetine

Just an observation about Androgenetic Alopecia and sports

paleocapa89

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I rarely see premature hair loss among professional sport players. And I see even fewer men with premature Androgenetic Alopecia among professional swimmers and water polo players.

Is it just observation bias, is it because they are young, or maybe there's a link here. I'd assume water sport players especially water polo players have abundant brown adipose tissue.

What is your opinion?
 

paleocapa89

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You can always find exceptions. But I think maybe there are fewer bald/balding men among professional sport players especially among waterpolo players than among the general population. Obviously I don't think exercising in cold water is a cure fore Androgenetic Alopecia.
 

Pavi

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Do you even watch college basketball? There are balding guys all over it. Perry Ellis for Kansas is a perfect example
 

paleocapa89

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Do you even watch college basketball? There are balding guys all over it. Perry Ellis for Kansas is a perfect example

No I don't. I am not from the USA. And my observation was more towards water polo players. But hey it's just thinking out loud, no need to get defensive.
 

Giiizmo

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Athletes are usually younger people.
Younger people usually have less hair loss.
...
Complete the syllogism.
 

garyhary

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Isn't Michael Jordan bald? He was started balding in his late career I believe. Most athletes are in their 20s but you would probably see at least 40% more balding men who are in their 30s. I believe it has to do with that.
 

paleocapa89

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Obviously you can see balding men in every sport and in every age group. My question is: Is the rate of balding men among waterpolo players the same as in the general population.
 

Psuedo

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I kind of agree

I rarely see premature hair loss among professional sport players. And I see even fewer men with premature Androgenetic Alopecia among professional swimmers and water polo players.

Is it just observation bias, is it because they are young, or maybe there's a link here. I'd assume water sport players especially water polo players have abundant brown adipose tissue.

What is your opinion?

I do notice this as well. Almost everyone on here will suggest theres no link and there very well may not be, but as an athlete I have noticed something quite specific. I played hockey my entire life, from age 4 to about 21. I started losing hair around 18 and this wasn't common amongst my peers. However, watching several of my friends, all of my male cousins, and current professionals I am quite familiar with, everyone who was predisposed to genetic hair loss at an early age seemed to show initial signs but they almost uniformly maintain very minimal loss until a year or so after stopping. My cousin for example showed signs of Androgenetic Alopecia at 17 and continue playing high exertion sports until he was 22. His hair loss moved at an extremely glacial pace until he stopped competing at such a high level on such a frequent basis and he then lost all of his hair within 12 months. Furthermore, there are athletes who now play professional that I played with growing up. Some of these same kids showed early signs of Androgenetic Alopecia and have almost all maintained there minimal loss while I have struggled much more.

This is by no means science and could quite possibly be mere coincidence, but normally early loss is the most aggressive. Maybe professional athletes are better equipped financially or medically to treat or maintain hair loss, or maybe 'just maybe' there is a link between the rate of hair loss and sedentary life style.

Im not suggesting you can treadmill your hair back to life. NO. But I am saying hair loss would not be the only medical condition I have that was mediated and kept at bay because of the continuous and extreme levels of exertion that comes with a juvenile sports schedule. Working out and the highest possible level of exercise 6 days a week.

Maybe in some fractional way, the excessive and intense blood flow helps to keep hormones flushing out and not becoming stagnant in there resting places.

I reiterate.. this is merely intuition not based in any scientific data. Please save your time shunning it, idc. Just my two cents.
 

IvanXproject

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I have seen very few bald/ balding soccer players, and even fewer balding professional skateboarders. If you look at sports like boxing, mma, basketball, football, you come across balding athletes way more often. Why is this?
 

garyhary

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I have seen very few bald/ balding soccer players, and even fewer balding professional skateboarders. If you look at sports like boxing, mma, basketball, football, you come across balding athletes way more often. Why is this?

Skateboarding, soccer = more moving, less muscle-power
boxing, mma, basketball, football = less moving, more muscle-power

No idea why this should be like this. Perhaps soccer players and skateboarders like to grow their hair our and get some hair transplant instead of coming to the idea to shave it. Probably there are is an equal distribution of hair loss in all sports.
 

Tracksterderm

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OP is not the only one with these observations. I have often had the same thought.
Also, I think bloodflow is part of this equation. Sports where alot of cardio is involved would suggest better bloodflow. I know minoxidil works in part by increasing bloodflow to the area it is applied, but it does not work for everyone.

Here's about a study that came up in a google search:
http://www.hairloss-research.org/blog/?p=102
 
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What if it is the other way round? Hair loss at young ages impacts your confidence, becoming a professional athlete requires supreme levels of perseverance and confidence - maybe that's why balding guys lose the edge in the competition. The ability to make money in fields that are not directly linked to your profession as athlete (advertising for example) would also suffer a lot in case you are approaching nw4 as a 24 year old guy.
 
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