Hair Loss

For a man, it can signal a premature end to youth. In women, it can make even the most secure feel less than feminine. “It” is hair loss, a problem that affects tens of millions of Americans and sends just as many to medical professionals, infomercials, and the Internet looking for solutions. Unfortunately, the cause of hair loss can be simple—a propensity for hair loss inherited from dear old mom and dad, for example—or very complex. Whether genetic, environmental, or hormonal—or none of the above—hair loss can lead to loss of self esteem and a change in self-image.

Still, hair loss is extremely common in the United States. According to recent statistics, more than half of all American men and women have some level of hair loss by the time they are 50. In fact, within the scientific community, hair loss is common enough to rank not as any disorder but as a simple difference present in the population.

Its ubiquity does not mean that Americans are taking hair loss lying down, however. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration estimates that the industry surrounding hair loss prevention and hair growth—from legitimate, approved treatments all the way through the shady snake oil salesmen who send Rogaine spam into your email box—collects more than $1 billion annually.

That figure illuminates just how far some people will go to combat hair loss. Few men are willing to embrace the look of the freshly shaved head of Patrick Stewart or Michael Jordan, and even fewer women willingly choose the Sinead O’Connor route, Britney Spears’ pre-rehab shearing aside.

Common hair loss causes beyond genetics include Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, thyroid disorders, nutritional deficiencies, autoimmune disorders, stress, and prescription side effects. Other hair loss reasons are more obvious: chemotherapy is well known as a cause of temporary hair loss, as is the increased loss of hair following pregnancy. In some cases, a medical professional can help slow hair loss or increase hair growth, but not every condition is curable.

Some hair loss treatment drugs that were once available only by prescription can now be purchased over the counter, while the search goes on in laboratories around the world for the next great advance in staunching the flow of hair down the drain. After all, a $1 billion-plus prize awaits anyone who can solve the age-old dilemma of how to keep the hair you have and how to grow the hair you want.