According to the hair loss learning center, hair loss affects about 35 million men and 21 million women in the United States alone; and 40% of men have noticeable hair loss by age 35 and 65% by age 60.

So, you are not alone! It is an issue that has been around since the beginning of time. As with any problem you may encounter in your life it is important to find the cause of a problem and solve it. For some, hair loss is a symptom of other health problems. For others, hair loss is the problem. It is important to distinguish the difference.

Interesting highlights in the history of hair loss:

1. Recently a 5,000 year old frozen cave man was discovered with a trimmed beard and short haircut.
2. The Egyptians have tried several cures for hair loss in the last 4,000 years, one which included rubbing animal fat on the scalp.
3. In the Old Testament of the Bible there is a passage in which two youths jeered at Elisha, “go on on up, you baldhead!”

We know a lot more about the science of hair loss. What causes hair loss and how can hair loss be treated effectively?

Causes of hair loss:

The medical term for hair loss is alopecia (very general term). As you can see some of the conditions that cause hair loss have alopecia in their title.

The single most common cause of hair loss, in both men and women, is androgenetic alopecia.

Another common cause of hair loss is Telogen Effluvium (TE). TE basically means that the number of follicles on your scalp that produce hair has decreased. This is mostly brought on by stress or diet. A lot of times this type of hair loss is temporary (like women who lose their hair after giving birth). If it is not temporary, you can try to reduce stress and eat healthier. Otherwise, there are not many treatment options.

If you are completely bald or have well defined bald spots, then you may have Alopecia areata (AA), which is an auto-immune condition that only effects the hair follicles. The good news is that the hair is capable of re-growing once it is lost. There are various treatment options for this type of hair loss.

In addition to these common types of hair loss conditions, there are hundreds of diseases and illnesses for which hair loss is the primary symptom. As you can see, it is very important to find out exactly why you are suffering from hair loss in order to attack the problem effectively.

Hair Loss Treatments:

95% of hair loss in men is due to male pattern baldness (androgenetic alopecia). The common characteristics of this is receding hairlines and a bald spot on the crown of the head. The state of the medical field right now says that the only way to treat male pattern baldness is to lower DHT levels. DHT is a hormone in your body that shrinks the hair follicle. There are many prescription and non prescription remedies that claim they can do this.>

1. Finasteride, Proscar/Propecia. This is a drug thatreduces the enzyme that converts testosterone into DHT. This will be your first line of defense against hair loss.

2. Laser therapy. The hair max laser comb has published a study that shows improvement on male patter

2. Hair transplant. This is actual surgery where you graft in and replace hair follicles that do not grow with ones that do.

Obviously there are a ton of hair loss treatment options out there. After doing some research on products and reviews, it would seem that most of these products are snake oil. Obviously, hair loss is a major concern for the people who suffer from it or the market for treatments would not be so huge.

It is advisable to learn more about the science of hair loss. Find out exactly why this is happening. Then you can learn about the science of hair loss treatments.