Like everything about the human body, hair loss is complicated. It gets even more complicated when you talk about hair loss related to aging. Age-related hair loss is impacted by your health, your environment, your genetics, and your diet. To understand just how involved it is, let us start by looking at your diet and move on from there.
Why Does Aging Cause Hair Loss?
As we age, the human body processes protein less efficiently. “New evidence shows that older adults need more dietary protein than do younger adults to support good health, promote recovery from illness, and maintain functionality. Older people need to make up for age-related changes in protein metabolism,” according to ScienceDirect.
That is important because protein is the building block for everything our bodies make. From muscle growth to injury repair, bodies need protein. Protein is especially important to hair growth. Increased protein intake, spread over the course of the day, can help make sure that your diet is not one of the factors in age-related hair loss.
According to this study, one of the issues with identifying the causes of age-related hair loss is that scientists are not studying all the right questions. “The biology of hair aging has focused predominately on various aspects of the hair cycle, follicle size, and the fibre produced, but surprisingly the impact of the aging scalp dermal environment on the hair follicle and fibre has been generally overlooked. Hair loss affects both sexes with incidence increasing with age.”
In short, many studies have looked at how aging impacts the hair cycle, hair follicles, and even hair strands – but they have not looked at the scalp. That is a little like wondering why your garden will not grow and ignoring the quality of the soil.
The National Institute on Aging points out that as we age, our skin gets thinner, paler, and more prone to injury. Our sweat and oil glands are less productive, and the veins closest to the surface of the skin become more fragile. Since your hair needs blood flow to get it, vital nutrients and oils (produced by the sebaceous glands) help protect the hair and moisturize it, the quality of the soil is likely impacting your garden.
Can I Stop Thinning Hair as I Age?
There are definitely things you can do, like good nutrition and proper scalp care that can help prevent thinning hair as you get older. Another factor that you might be able to control to avoid hair loss as you get older is your health.
The National Council on Aging suggests that our health has a huge impact on our hair loss as well. Hair loss triggers can include: “changing hormones, prescription drugs, and medical conditions that are more common as we age.” Thyroid disease, diabetes, and heart conditions can all contribute to hair loss, but so can medications – especially more harsh ones like those used in cancer treatments.
Environmental factors like pollution and smoke can also damage the skin and your hair, leading to hair loss. And, androgenic alopecia so-called “pattern baldness” affects up to 80 percent of men and half of all women during their lifetimes. A combination of genetic markers can make it more likely that you begin losing your hair earlier, but ultimately the biggest predictor of whether you experience hair loss during your lifetime may be how long you live.
Can Hereditary Hair Loss Be Reversed?
According to the American Academy of Dermatology, no… hereditary hair loss cannot be reversed. Several different topical skin treatments, as well as diet, exercise and personal care routines have been shown to slow the progression of androgenic alopecia, but once the hair loss occurs, your body cannot spontaneously start growing hair again.
However, saying it cannot be reverse can be a little disingenuous. Several options for “reversing hair loss” have become available in recent years. Hair replacement surgeries successfully mitigate the issues caused by aging and hair loss.
Hair Restoration of Lehigh Valley Helps Fight Hair Loss From Age
With a variety of hair replacement options available, our team of experts here at Hair Restoration of Lehigh Valley can help you “reverse” what nature is doing to your hair. Call our office today to talk to one of our trained specialists about the hair replacement option that is best for you.
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