Hair loss affects over 50% of men over the age of 50. Whilst many accept is as part of the normal ageing process there are lots of men who suffer from low self-esteem, depression and anxiety as a result of losing hair.
Unsurprisingly many are looking for preventative treatments to arrest or reverse the process and there are many products and procedures that make ambitious claims about their effectiveness. According to Dr.William Yates of Yates Hair Science however, there are only four ways to slow down or prevent hair loss.
Preventative Measures
- Baldness blocking hormones: Typically these are taken orally and can only be obtained on prescription as Propecia or Finasteride
- Laser Light Treatment (LLT): Lasers are used to reduce inflammation and encourage growth in the follicles
- Platelet Rich Plasma Injections (PRP): Similarly to LLT, PRP is designed to stimulate growth and reduce hair loss but instead of a laser a small sample of the patient’s blood is taken, enriched with platelets and injected into the scalp
- Foam Mousses or liquids: These compounds (normally Rogaine or Minoxidil) are applied directly to the scalp and hair and work by thickening the hair slowing its shedding
Unfortunately, none of these procedures and products are guaranteed to work and all of them are only ever effective as long as their application is continued. Another option is to opt for a hair transplant, which again is not guaranteed to be effective, is costly and can result in scarring and un predictable long term results.
Other Options
An increasingly popular option for many men is Scalp Micro Pigmentation (SMP). This process is non surgical and creates the illusion of closely cropped real hair by a process similar to tattooing. Practitioners will be highly skilled in the process and are NOT tattoo artists though. Patients should ensure they attend a reputable clinic with a proven track record in SMP.
Over the course of three or visits to a clinic the patient can expect to have the convincing illusion of densely layered very effective head of hair (albeit closely cropped) with a hairline of their choosing.
Ultimately there are no magic cures for hair loss. Most applications and procedures are only successful until discontinued and even the expensive surgical option of a transplant does not guarantee results. With this is mind it might be time to stop trying to save or regrow hair but literally shave it all off and start again with a clean, modern, closely-cropped SMP look.
