I'm young and my hair is thinning

[Perceptron]

I'm 16 years old male, and I noticed last year that my hair was thinning. I do not know if it's because of my dry scalp or because of the shampoo I'm using. Is it normal to have thinning hair at this age?Can I regrow my lost hair? Also, how can I get rid of my dry, itchy scalp?
Thank you.

 

[Chi Meson]

Do you have an uncle on your mother's side? If so, is he bald? If so, get used to it sooner rather than later. This is not always the case, but male pattern baldness is inherited from the mother. How weird is that?

Until then, use a normal over the shelf dandruff shampoo. They are all the same.

 

[Drakkith]

I'm 16 years old male, and I noticed last year that my hair was thinning. I do not know if it's because of my dry scalp or because of the shampoo I'm using. Is it normal to have thinning hair at this age?Can I regrow my lost hair? Also, how can I get rid of my dry, itchy scalp?
Thank you.

My hair has been steadily thinning for as long as I remember. (I'm only 28) For my own dry scalp issues I use Head and Shoulders. Try that or another dandruff shampoo. Remember to let it soak in your hair for a few minutes before you rinse it off, otherwise it won't work.

 

[Antiphon]

Minoxidil works. But ultimately your genes will win out.

My college roommate had a full head of hair at 18 and when he graduated at 22 he was a cue ball. It happens.

Bald is not unsexy if you embrace it. Don't do the combover- just shave it every day and accept it.

Old Hungarian proverb: there's no such thing as baldness; just a forehead reaching clear back to your *ss.

 

[lisab]

Bald is not unsexy if you embrace it. Don't do the combover- just shave it every day and accept it.

+1. It's all in the attitude.

 

[skeptic2]

Castration is a 100% surefire and permanent solution.

 

[FreeMitya]

Do you have an uncle on your mother's side? If so, is he bald? If so, get used to it sooner rather than later. This is not always the case, but male pattern baldness is inherited from the mother. How weird is that?

I thought that was a myth.

Also, to the OP, baldness isn't all bad. Look a Jason Statham; he has AGA, and he's considered to be attractive.

 

[dipole]

Yea it is possible to start balding at a very young age. I see a few kids in my classes around campus who are 20-21 and are balding very noticeably.

It could be caused by some other issue though. Maybe ask your doctor about it.

 

[Drakkith]

+1. It's all in the attitude.

I'm waiting until I can pull off "The Picard" as I call it. You know, the Captain Picard from Star Trek TNG when he has that ring of hair and is bald on top.

 

[Monique]

I'm 16 years old male, and I noticed last year that my hair was thinning. I do not know if it's because of my dry scalp or because of the shampoo I'm using. Is it normal to have thinning hair at this age?Can I regrow my lost hair? Also, how can I get rid of my dry, itchy scalp?
Thank you.

See your doctor, they can give you appropriate advice. Yes: in certain cases it's possible to get treatment, but don't waste your money on products that promise more than they can fulfill (thus get expert advice).

 

[Chi Meson]

I thought that was a myth.

Is it? That was taught when I took bio in high school. I'm personally an exception to that rule, so I knew it wasn't 100%. My mother's brother was a bald red-head. When I was young I had super thick ("Danny Partridge") hair that was a combination of red and brown.

Today, all the red has gone, and my hair is "normal" thickness. I sort of concluded I was born with 2 set of hair, one of which went bald.

I never looked into it, I guess because it never mattered too much.

 

[DragonPetter]

My roommate was already on his way to being bald when we entered college at 18. He ALWAYS wore this baseball cap, no matter what the situation. It was so out of place that it became obvious to anyone that he was hiding his baldness. I don't blame him for being insecure about it, but he didn't make things better by hiding it from everyone.

He has embraced it now and it works for him rather than against him.

 

[Evo]

Is it? That was taught when I took bio in high school. I'm personally an exception to that rule, so I knew it wasn't 100%. My mother's brother was a bald red-head. When I was young I had super thick ("Danny Partridge") hair that was a combination of red and brown.

Today, all the red has gone, and my hair is "normal" thickness. I sort of concluded I was born with 2 set of hair, one of which went bald.

I never looked into it, I guess because it never mattered too much.

You can inherit male baldness from your mother's side, but it's not the only way.

The results reveal that more than one gene is involved in the development of male hair-loss. These results also throw interesting light on the inheritance of baldness in that hitherto the only known risk gene for the androgen receptor lay on the X-chromosome, and was thus inherited from the mother – which accounts for the fact that in the case of hair-loss men often take after their maternal grandfathers. However, the newly discovered gene lies on chromosome 20, and can be inherited from both the mother and the father. "This helps to provide an explanation for the similarity between father and son", declares Professor Nöthen.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/05/050520172151.htm

 

[FreeMitya]

Is it? That was taught when I took bio in high school. I'm personally an exception to that rule, so I knew it wasn't 100%. My mother's brother was a bald red-head. When I was young I had super thick ("Danny Partridge") hair that was a combination of red and brown.

Today, all the red has gone, and my hair is "normal" thickness. I sort of concluded I was born with 2 set of hair, one of which went bald.

I never looked into it, I guess because it never mattered too much.

My uncle on my mother's side has AGA, and I have three brothers around the age at which he started going bald, and they have no signs of baldness. Instead, they have their dad's thick hair (half brothers). Now, that doesn't mean they won't start losing hair around 50 (something like 50% of men do).

You can inherit male baldness from your mother's side, but it's not the only way.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/05/050520172151.htm

This is exactly what I was thinking. I could have phrased it better, but it's a myth that it's only inherited from the mother's side.

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

When you lose all your hair, you won't feel old, you'll feel like you're 16.

 

[leroyjenkens]

I'm 16 years old male, and I noticed last year that my hair was thinning. I do not know if it's because of my dry scalp or because of the shampoo I'm using. Is it normal to have thinning hair at this age?Can I regrow my lost hair? Also, how can I get rid of my dry, itchy scalp?

There's a shampoo I use called Nizoral that works really well on dandruff, and I've heard from a lot of sources that the active ingredient in it supposedly slows baldness or something along those lines.
I'm not sure about that, but it works for the dandruff. Dandruff shampoos would get rid of the dandruff between showers, but the Nizoral seemed to cure it. I ran out of it and the dandruff never came back.

My roommate was already on his way to being bald when we entered college at 18. He ALWAYS wore this baseball cap, no matter what the situation. It was so out of place that it became obvious to anyone that he was hiding his baldness. I don't blame him for being insecure about it, but he didn't make things better by hiding it from everyone.

A lot of people do that, which is why there's a myth that wearing hats can cause baldness. People are just mistaking cause and effect.

 

[Chi Meson]

Thanks to the myth (as mentioned), I was all prepared to go bald myself. Decided to go skin-head during the mid-80s, but that became problematic, due to all the skin-heads and the fact that it made me look 12 (I was in college). It's an odd effect that "balding" makes you look older, but "shaved head" makes you look younger.

 

[Monique]

A lot of people do that, which is why there's a myth that wearing hats can cause baldness. People are just mistaking cause and effect.

Tight head garments or hairstyles can cause (permanent) hair loss, known as traction alopecia:

"Traction alopecia in two adolescent Sikh brothers – an underrecognized problem unmasked by migration." http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21371118
"Extensive traction alopecia attributable to ponytail hairstyle and its treatment with hair transplantation." http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16044234

 

[Dadface]

I have two hairs left on the top of my head.I groom one of them every day but keep the other one casual.

 

[Jack21222]

Thanks to the myth (as mentioned), I was all prepared to go bald myself. Decided to go skin-head during the mid-80s, but that became problematic, due to all the skin-heads and the fact that it made me look 12 (I was in college). It's an odd effect that "balding" makes you look older, but "shaved head" makes you look younger.

I started going bald when I was about 16. I'm almost 30 now and the typical male-pattern baldness is nearly complete. I just keep my head shaved completely. Up until a few years ago, I just kept it very short (I'd let it grow to about an inch in length before shaving), but now I just Bic it in the shower twice a week. (Note: I don't mean I use the Bic brand of razor, that's just the terminology for taking it down to the skin).

For what it's worth, no male on my mother's side of the family is bald. Not my uncle, not my grandfather, not any of my grandmother's brothers... Nobody on that side of the family is bald. On the other hand, my father went bald before 20, so did every one of his 3 brothers, their father, my cousin... It's clearly from my father's side.

There are benefits to a shaved head. For one, I can leave the house without showering if I had to without everybody being able to notice, because I didn't have to worry about greasy hair or anything. Using a razor twice a week is cheaper than paying for a hair cut, and you never have to worry about your hair getting messed up. Plus, it's marginally safer if you're ever near any heavy machinery. Besides, shaved heads are a fairly popular look these days.

 

[leroyjenkens]

Tight head garments or hairstyles can cause (permanent) hair loss, known as traction alopecia:

"Traction alopecia in two adolescent Sikh brothers – an underrecognized problem unmasked by migration." http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21371118
"Extensive traction alopecia attributable to ponytail hairstyle and its treatment with hair transplantation." http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16044234

I've heard of that. That must be an extreme case though, and the male pattern baldness can't possibly be blamed on hats.

 

[Monique]

I've heard of that. That must be an extreme case though, and the male pattern baldness can't possibly be blamed on hats.

It has an effect on the health of hair. Wearing a hat won't cause male-pattern baldness, but it's not so hard to imagine that extra stress on the hair could accelerate the process of balding if the hair is already weak.

The OP never talked about male-pattern baldness though. The thinning could have several causes, that's why I suggested seeing a doctor for a diagnosis.

 

[leroyjenkens]

It has an effect on the health of hair. Wearing a hat won't cause male-pattern baldness, but it's not so hard to imagine that extra stress on the hair could accelerate the process of balding if the hair is already weak.

Whenever I wear a hat, there isn't any stress on the areas where men normally go bald. If a hat is tight, it's tight around the circumference of the head. It barely touches the top of the head, much less causes stress on the hair.

The thinning he's talking about is probably in the areas where men develop the typical baldness pattern. If it's thinning all over, he needs to see a doctor immediately, because that's not normal.