I am Indian-American and oil massaging the scalp before shampooing was a SOP for hair care growing up. My mom has beautiful hair (all gray but full, shiny, smooth hair) even at 80 yrs of age. She never washed her hair without putting some concoction on it first. Some of it smelled pretty bad like the raw egg yolk mask that had to be put on the scalp and let dry and then washed with cold water first otherwise you would have poached egg on your scalp.

She frequently used to just put home made plain yogurt on her scalp to combat dandruff. Every once in a while she would mix pure henna powder, beet powder, amla powder, fenugreek and god knows what else with oil, cool brewed tea, honey and apply the paste on her scalp and mine and just let it dry and then wash. It made a mess of the bathroom. But our hair was amazing - healthy, bouncy, glossy, silky, with a tinge of red glow.

Of course, if I tell my teen to do all of this they will just say "ewww". .

Anonymous wrote:I have shoulder length, thick, curly hair, and I lose about a ping pong ball-sized hairball of hair every time I shower. Always have.

Are you seeing baldness, or just hair in the shower?

Not baldness, but his hairline has changed, and it looks like a bit more than a “maturing” hairline - his temples definitely seem to have less hair and he has more of a widow’s peak than he used to, *I think*. It’s not noticeable to others because he’s wearing his hair long and floppy, but when you pull his hair back it’s visible. But again, he’s always had such baby-fine hair and a high hairline/bigger forehead, even as a little guy, and beginning hair loss can be very gradual/subtle, so it’s hard to be certain.

With the exception of DS’s maternal great grandfather, nobody is/was bald in my family; the men thin out in middle age but nobody is outright bald. Regardless, it’ll be what it’ll be. As PP said, I’m going to avoid catastrophizing. I did read that baldness is associated with heart disease, but my bald grandfather lived well into his 80s and had a healthy heart.

Hair loss is very traumatic to young people and to women. I think though that it may just be that the longer hair is showing a lot more in the shower. Having shorter hair may help to not pull the hair with its weight.

Dandruff causes hairloss because the scalp is infected. So I am curious why your DS is using daily head and shoulders? Maybe you need to shift to another shampoo that can take care of any yeast or fungus on hair, and can help to grow back the hair.

I would also suggest full blood work including complete TSH, vitamin D, iron, B12 etc... Also, look for inflammation markers in the blood because auto-immune diseases can cause hair loss too. Biotin supplement, iron (if anemic) supplements helps.

I usually do an oil treatment on my hair if I feel that I am losing too much hair. I warm up edible sesame oil and add a paste of soaked fenugreek in it and massage into my scalp. Let it be on your hair for a few hours and then wash with a gentle shampoo. Take care while washing and drying so that there is not too much tangles in it. Air dry.

Wash your hairbrush, comb, pillows, towels pretty frequently to prevent infections.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does he drink a lot of caffeine? Coffee or sports drinks? Taking vitamin D is good but the amount usually recommended as RDA doesn't help if you are significantly low. You can get your doctor to prescribe 50,000 iui once a week and that can be helpful. Also, have his ferritin levels tested. Taking iron can also be helpful but I'd first find out what his levels are. I don't believe that balding is inevitable or genetic. The thing that caused your father to go bald might also cause you to go bald - but whatever that thing is, there is a cause and a solution.

Studies of twins indicate that balding in males, like height, is 80% heritable.

The baldness is not heritable. The CAUSE of the baldness is heritable. Perhaps both twins have a tendency to have low ferritin levels or a lack of vitamin D, for example. Perhaps they both have a malabsorption of certain vitamins or Crohn's disease. These causes are identifiable.
They have a found a correlation between Male Pattern Baldness and heart disease - this means that balding is not purely cosmetic. There is a systemic reason your son is going bald. Just because modern medicine doesn't see it as a problem doesn't mean it isn't one.

If your dog or cat were losing patches of hair, you would investigate the cause, right? OP, get his ferritin tested and vitamin d levels to start with. If they are low, add iron and lysine to his diet and ask for prescription vitamin d. If normal, keep searching for the other cause.

I have shoulder length, thick, curly hair, and I lose about a ping pong ball-sized hairball of hair every time I shower. Always have.

Are you seeing baldness, or just hair in the shower?

Anonymous wrote:It's common belief that baldness is determined by the mother's genes, but there's a lot more to it. The hereditary factor is slightly more determining from the mother's chromosomes, but the father's genetics play into it as well.

That said, see what the dermatologist says and go from there. If it's determined to be male pattern baldness, there are medical treatments (e.g., propecia), but there are side effects. Topical monoxidil is probably the first option.

That said, as some other PPs have pointed out, often the longer your hair is the more it appears to be a "lot" of hair. And the more hair you have, the more you tend to lose on a regular basis. My kids (a son and a daughter) both have tons of hair and there's also tons of hair all over their sinks and showers. Good luck at your doctor's apponitment!

Thank you!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here; I just learned that my grandfather started to go bald in his early 20s; he was bald very early. Does this make it more likely that my DS is starting to go bald? I’m crushed for him - he’s obsessed with his hair. This is really going to upset him. We have an appt. with a derm tomorrow.

Are there any safe treatments for teens? Anything he can do?

My son lost his hair in elementary grade due to Alopecia. it was very difficult for him and me. The best advice I got from anyone was (1) let him have control over what he can control--if he wants to wear a hat, he wears a hat, if he doesn't, he doesn't (2) don't kill yourself looking for medical solutions when there are none because doing so sends the message that he's not ok without a full head of hair or rather that he's "broken" somehow. I think this advice applies equally to teens like your son. You want to be supportive, confirm there is not medical problem and then DO NOT CATASTROPHIZE this. Hair is just hair.

OP here. This is good advice. Thank you.

Anonymous wrote:OP here; I just learned that my grandfather started to go bald in his early 20s; he was bald very early. Does this make it more likely that my DS is starting to go bald? I’m crushed for him - he’s obsessed with his hair. This is really going to upset him. We have an appt. with a derm tomorrow.

Are there any safe treatments for teens? Anything he can do?

My son lost his hair in elementary grade due to Alopecia. it was very difficult for him and me. The best advice I got from anyone was (1) let him have control over what he can control--if he wants to wear a hat, he wears a hat, if he doesn't, he doesn't (2) don't kill yourself looking for medical solutions when there are none because doing so sends the message that he's not ok without a full head of hair or rather that he's "broken" somehow. I think this advice applies equally to teens like your son. You want to be supportive, confirm there is not medical problem and then DO NOT CATASTROPHIZE this. Hair is just hair.

Anonymous wrote:Does he drink a lot of caffeine? Coffee or sports drinks? Taking vitamin D is good but the amount usually recommended as RDA doesn't help if you are significantly low. You can get your doctor to prescribe 50,000 iui once a week and that can be helpful. Also, have his ferritin levels tested. Taking iron can also be helpful but I'd first find out what his levels are. I don't believe that balding is inevitable or genetic. The thing that caused your father to go bald might also cause you to go bald - but whatever that thing is, there is a cause and a solution.

Studies of twins indicate that balding in males, like height, is 80% heritable.

Anonymous wrote:try a less toxic shampoo? he might be allergic or have a reaction to one of the ingredients in it.

Our family switched from using head and shoulders a long time ago. In addition to the other poster’s suggestions, switch shampoos. I check the ingredients and try to buy something without sulfates.

It's common belief that baldness is determined by the mother's genes, but there's a lot more to it. The hereditary factor is slightly more determining from the mother's chromosomes, but the father's genetics play into it as well.

That said, see what the dermatologist says and go from there. If it's determined to be male pattern baldness, there are medical treatments (e.g., propecia), but there are side effects. Topical monoxidil is probably the first option.

That said, as some other PPs have pointed out, often the longer your hair is the more it appears to be a "lot" of hair. And the more hair you have, the more you tend to lose on a regular basis. My kids (a son and a daughter) both have tons of hair and there's also tons of hair all over their sinks and showers. Good luck at your doctor's apponitment!

OP here; I just learned that my grandfather started to go bald in his early 20s; he was bald very early. Does this make it more likely that my DS is starting to go bald? I’m crushed for him - he’s obsessed with his hair. This is really going to upset him. We have an appt. with a derm tomorrow.

Are there any safe treatments for teens? Anything he can do?

I have noticed that I shed more when my hair is longer. Maybe due to weight of hair or more pulling on it. Maybe get a hair cut.

Does he drink a lot of caffeine? Coffee or sports drinks? Taking vitamin D is good but the amount usually recommended as RDA doesn't help if you are significantly low. You can get your doctor to prescribe 50,000 iui once a week and that can be helpful. Also, have his ferritin levels tested. Taking iron can also be helpful but I'd first find out what his levels are. I don't believe that balding is inevitable or genetic. The thing that caused your father to go bald might also cause you to go bald - but whatever that thing is, there is a cause and a solution.

Anonymous wrote:My son is 21 and I can see it is getting thin on top. He has never brought it up so I do not want to make it a thing. I assume he will end up a young bald guy. Not a family thing on my side.

Are you the mom? I’m OP and there’s no baldness in my family. I always thought it was passed down from the mom’s side.