Does low testosterone lead to hair loss? Are you starting to lose your hair and wondering if your low testosterone may be a culprit behind hair loss? In this video, we look at the role of testosterone on hair follicles and hair growth.
If you want to understand the role of low testosterone leading to hair loss, keep reading.
Yes, actually low testosterone does lead to hair loss, but not the hair on your head. Low testosterone does cause loss of hair on the body. Oftentimes it shows up as decreased hair on the lower legs. When this happens you will start to see finer hairs similar to baby or female body hair. However, low testosterone absolutely does not lead to loss of hair on the head. In fact, the opposite is true. Testosterone does go down with age and people do tend to lose more hair as they age, especially males. This hair loss is not due to the testosterone going down. Rather it is more of the cumulative effect of the testosterone and overall androgens in the body and in the blood over time. It is this cumulative effect that deteriorates the hair follicles on the head.
The testosterone derivative known as DHT or dihydrotestosterone is thought to be the main culprit for damaging the hair follicles on the scalp. The DHT leads hair follicles to be less active, grow less often, and be finer in nature. Eventually the cumulative effect of that causes those hair follicles to die. Over time the more DHT around to affect the hair follicles, the less the hair follicles are going to grow. This is why things like Finasteride and Dutasteride are used for hair loss. These medicines block the production of DHT.
Now, of course, there are other mechanisms, theories, and thoughts on why humans lose their hair. However, there is lots of evidence for the DHT model. Clinically, it seems to be the most relevant and produce good results.
So does low testosterone lead to hair loss on your head? The answer is absolutely not. The opposite is true. In fact, high testosterone and high DHT lead to more facial, arm and back hair. Basically more hair all over your body except on the top of your head. So don't think that raising your testosterone will make the hair on your head grow more. It will likely do the opposite.
That should give you a better understanding of does low testosterone lead to hair loss. If you have questions about the content in this article, please ask it in the comment section below.
If you want a customized plan on low testosterone or hair growth, click in the link below to get started.