Is Testosterone Getting You Bald?

1. Theories abound regarding the exact etiology of hair loss among men. But the average Joe appears to admit that there's a relationship between testosterone and male pattern baldness, the condition that affects some 30% of men by age 30 and 50 percent by age 50. The most common misunderstanding, however, is that baldness is due to elevated levels of testosterone, an assumption that's often repackaged to the silver-lined"bald men are more virile." Testosterone is responsible for a variety of things, like maintaining muscle mass, energy levels and, (in)famously, libido... but excessive levels don't really have an impact on baldness or thinning. "We have been studying male hormones because the 1990s and have seen no signs of raised levels of testosterone in relation with male pattern baldness," says Glenn Lyons, Trichologist and Clinical Manager in the Philip Kingsley Trichological Clinic at Mayfair, London. If anything, there's an argument that, on average, testosterone levels are lower now than they were 20 decades back. 1 study estimates that the drop for a dramatic 22 percent. Anonymous Answer Today > The link between balding and testosterone began innocently enough in the 1940s when Yale doctor James B. Hamilton analyzed 21 boys that had experienced castration (worryingly, this was still considered proper therapy for males who were deemed mentally ill). One of those boys had a twin brother who, lore has it, decided to cover the doctor a visit one day. Hamilton noticed the twin was completely bald while his castrated brother, who was no longer generating testosterone, still had a complete head of hair. Today, however, we know better. The most current research doesn't provide us a conclusive answer as to how baldness occurs, but it definitely paints a more detailed image than the https://musclebuildingbuy.com/testo- ultra-mexico/ one we had from the 40s. "Male pattern baldness is down to some genetic predisposition as opposed to raised testosterone levels," says Lyons. "Penis hormones are a catalyst for baldness but just for those who are genetically predisposed to male pattern hair loss. What matters is what the hormone is doing, not the levels." Given that genetic sensitivity is the real issue, it's possible for men with low levels of testosterone to reduce their own hair. To be able to comprehend the role testosterone plays in hair loss, it's important to get familiar with dihydrotestosterone (DHT), one of many testosterone boosters which, during puberty, helps develop male characteristics such as facial hair. It's estimated that around 5% of a man's testosterone is converted to DHT. "DHT is a very powerful male hormone," says Lyons. "It is converted from testosterone through an enzyme called 5- alpha reductase. In case you've got a genetic predisposition to male pattern hair loss, DHT can be a catalyst for baldness" The prevailing concept posits that DHT latches onto receptors in the follicle and causes loss, not by pushing out the hair (as is generally assumed), but cutting off the supply of proteins and nutrients into the area. The follicle shrinks because of the starvation. It is no small irony that the exact same metabolite that causes hair growth in puberty ends up destroying it in adult life. The internet, of course, is rife with bloggers that (rightly) shift the focus from testosterone and on DHT, all the while disregarding how the real clincher is hereditary predisposition. So rather than worry about hormone levels or enzymes, simply look at your father.