Men hair or Manhood: Choose wisely

Thin Hair,

Hair fall,

Baldness,

Alopecia

All these disorders are almost the same,

Do you know why these happen to men?

And

sometimes to some women also?

Health Decoder can help you understand the relationship between the male sex hormone and male-pattern baldness.

We all have different hormones in our body and one such hormone is Testosterone that is responsible for male and female sex characteristics. It is found in two different forms: testosterone itself and dihydrotestosterone, commonly known as dihydrotestosterone. About 10% of testosterone is converted to dihydrotestosterone which is 5 times more potent, which means 5 times more powerful than Testosterone.

Dihydrotestosterone is the same hormone that is responsible for triggering puberty and hence has its name, male sex hormone. Being an androgen hormone, dihydrotestosterone is also responsible for biological male characteristics like a deeper voice, body hair, increased muscle mass, sperm production, storage of fat around the body and even in the regulation of your moods and emotions. Low levels of dihydrotestosterone during the onset of puberty in males can lead to late or incomplete development of sex organs and irregular fat distribution, such as gynecomastia.

It is again dihydrotestosterone that is responsible for hair loss or male pattern baldness in later stages.

Both testosterone and dihydrotestosterone occur in a balanced proportion. But what happens when this balance gets disturbed?

High levels of free-flowing dihydrotestosterone in the bloodstream shrinks the hair follicles contributing to male pattern hair loss. It used to be common in males above 50 years of age, but as of today, it is getting common in men quite earlier. This occurs in a pattern with hair at the temples and crown beginning to thin and disappear first. With hair follicles getting smaller, the hair shaft starts getting thinner in every growth cycle, reducing them to soft and light hair and eventually complete disappearance.

Head hair grows in the absence of dihydrotestosterone, but armpit hair, pubic hair, and beard hair cannot grow in its absence. Conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone occurs with the help of an enzyme, 5-alpha reductase (5-AR). An increase in its level may increase the conversion and also the hair loss.

Lack of hair may get a man to lose his self-esteem, but is it really so?

What is more important, head hair or manliness? It’s better to know what cost a man has to pay to get back his scalp hair before opting for its treatment.

The treatment for male pattern baldness and androgenic alopecia involves decreasing the dihydrotestosterone levels by stopping the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone; or by blocking the binding of dihydrotestosterone to the 5-alpha reductase receptors just exactly what its approved medicine, Finasteride does. This brings back scalp hair but in the absence of dihydrotestosterone, males have to pay the cost with lost libido and virility, sometimes even erectile dysfunction and decreased ejaculate volume, early or delayed ejaculation also affecting fertility.

Because dihydrotestosterone is responsible for manly characteristics, in its absence these features also start declining. On the other hand, people who are bald due to optimum dihydrotestosterone levels will have more body hair, a high ratio of muscle mass and also high sexual drive.

But that does not mean, dihydrotestosterone should be in high proportions. It should be in balance because very high dihydrotestosterone has loss beyond the scalp hair. When dihydrotestosterone levels rise abnormally high, skin wounds heal slowly, the prostate gland may enlarge and it also has potential cardiovascular risks.

The balance of the two forms is very crucial. Neither high nor low.

So, if you are taking or planning to take any traditional medicine for male pattern baldness, it’s time you make a wise choice. There’s head hair on one side of the balance which too is going to last only a single life cycle (almost 6 years) with treatment and on the other side sits your manly features.

But with some natural remedies, you can maintain a healthy balance between testosterone and dihydrotestosterone. We will come up with these natural remedies in our future posts.