Baldness is not always
inevitable, and the amount and rate of loss can often be diminished with the
correct treatment. Different treatments work for some people but not for others,
all of which we will be looking at in greater detail in later pages..
First Impressions
That age old saying that we
always hear "You never get a second chance to make a first impression" always
seems to spring to mind when people are worried about hair loss.
While it may
not seem right that people should be judged on their looks, our society still
does not accept people as they are but how they look or rather how we perceive
the way they should look.
If someone is at all self conscious about their hair
before meeting people, then inevitably they will lose confidence and probably
cause embarrassment to themselves by worrying unduly. Unfortunately it is
difficult to persuade people not to worry needlessly about such things, however
much we try.
Baldness and Virility
Hair and its beauty have long
been associated with youth, virility, strength and sensuality and has always
been considered a sexual object by both sexes.
A common, but rather sadly
misleading statement is that bald men are more virile and make better lovers,
thus compensating for the lack of hair. The truth is that hair loss will not
make a man more virile, it is just a myth put about by bald men to try and make
up for their loss of hair.
Hair loss is definitely not a sign of virility
despite the rumours to the contrary. Although for a lot of people it would be
wonderful if it were true.
It is often commented that
bald men can be extremely attractive, but the only person who seems to be named
is actually Sean Connery. This seems pretty contradictory as in most of the
movies that he has ever made he is usually wearing a wig or hair piece of some
description, it is very seldom that he actually ever appears as a bald headed
hunk.
If Sean Connery were not a super star and household name then the chances
are that he could walk down the street unnoticed, and would probably not be
considered a sex symbol.
Apart from Sean Connery, virtually all the other male
sex symbols have fine manes of hair, which would suggest that public opinion is
that, for a man to be sexy, he should appear with a full head of hair, and
unfortunately public opinion is what sets the fashion trends in our society.
Hair and the Body
The whole body is actually
covered with hair except our lips, the soles of the feet and the palms of our
hands. Body hair is called vellous hair and is a fine and downy hair type,
particularly on a female.
Amongst animals hair is a
protector from the cold and rain. Whilst hair is not so physically vital to
survival for humans, the psychological effects of an attractive head of hair are
immense.
We have a head of hair for a
variety of reasons, just as eyelashes keep dirt and grit out of our eyes and
eyebrows also prevent perspiration entering the eyes, so to a head of hair
protects the scalp from the sun, prevents direct knocks on the head and helps to
retain body heat.
About half of our body heat is lost through the scalp and
wearing a hat can help this loss dramatically, particularly in very cold spells.
So a full head of hair on our head is not just for vanity but is extremely
useful to our bodies.
Hair and Fashion
Hair is a fashion statement,
it's colour and adornment can say all sorts of things about a person be it their
mood, attitude or outlook. Hair styles and cuts can also express a great deal
about someone.
Baldness prevents such a statement being emphasised by the
individual concerned. Everyone likes being pampered and the visit to your local
hairdresser can be a moral booster and improve one's self confidence. Most
hairdressers nowadays are sympathetic about hair loss.
If your one is not,
change immediately, they should give encouraging advice and not criticism.
Besides which, a good hairdresser helps you catch up on all the latest gossip.
!!
Hair Loss and Health
The condition of hair is
usually a very good indication of the general state of your health. Some doctors
can tell a great deal about someone just by a quick look at the hair. Hair
analysis has for a long time been big business in America where you can send a
sample of hair to a laboratory to be examined for the lack of minerals and
protein.
You will then be given a detailed report telling you which vitamins you
are deficient in. This service of course makes the companies vast amounts of
money, but in reality your doctor could tell you the same thing by a quick
examination. Now there are a few clinics in this country which have started the
same service. It costs around seventy pounds to have the hair analysed to
ascertain how the body is operating internally, the vitamin and mineral levels,
bowel toxicity and general dietary efficiency.
How much this will tell you about
stopping your hair loss is open to question, and is probably not worth the paper
it is written on.
Hair analysis is very open to debate as often a similar sample
of hair can get totally different results depending on who is carrying out the
tests. These clinics then usually want to sell you the vitamins or minerals that
you are apparently deficient off.
Be very wary of the usefulness of this type of
analysis as it is only going to cost you money and will not really tell you
anything.
Part of he Norwood scale for determining stages of hair
loss
Hair and Style
Most men, when they first
notice hair loss on the crown of the head, try to disguise the fact by sweeping
their hair across their scalp to cover the bald patch, everyone has heard the
expression about having a "Bobby Charlton" style.
This gives them a slight
covering on their crown, but the problem this causes when the wind blows
revealing a bald head underneath can be extremely humiliating. There are much
better ways to have the hair styled.
When men lose their hair they
always retain a band of hair round the back and sides of their head, this is
known as the "monks fringe". This is so called from the days of the early
Christian order of monks when they all had their heads shaved in that style to
make every monk appear less sexual, even in these ancient times, hair was
regarded as a sexual object.
Once there was only one course
of action to disguise baldness, wear a wig and stick it over the bald patch. Now
there are a number of choices, all claiming to give a full head of natural or
natural looking hair. The success of these can be extremely varied from the
spectacular to the downright pathetic.
There are transplants, fibre
implants, hair weaves, hair bonding, hair thickening sprays and rub on lotions
and potions to promote hair growth, some which work well, others not so, and
many not at all.
Hair thickening sprays can be
used, giving very good results but eventually there is not enough hair to hold
it and ultimately the spray is applied directly to the scalp. This effect looks
pitiful but it appears to give some people a touch of reassurance that at least
they are doing something about the problem.
One of the most humiliating
experiences a man can suffer is when his friends or so called friends begin to
make fun of his unfortunate circumstances.
Many men can put up with leg pulling
but eventually the joke wears a bit thin. Someone can only put up with being
called "baldy", "slaphead" or "chrome dome" for so long. Sooner, rather than
later this type of ridicule will get anyone down. Baldness can be funny but only
to other people. Always consider before commenting on hair loss.
If everyone
tried to consider other peoples feelings before they make such comments, society
would be less critical about hair loss in general. Everyone is probably guilty
about commenting on peoples hair. Meeting someone you haven't seen for a while,
the comment is normally "your looking a bit thin on top nowadays" or "I see you
have a touch of grey appearing".
If we could all try to think before coming out
with such remarks we could all help make the world that little bit better.
Most men would love to shop
around and find out what the various treatments could do for them and what they
would cost, unfortunately the vast majority of men are too shy or embarrassed to
do anything about it and most of the Consultants can be very intimidating and
are very well trained in high pressure sales tactics.
There is Hope
There is hope however, and
hair loss can certainly be slowed down and in some cases even halted. There is
no instant cure though. Anyone suffering hair loss must be patient.
The regrowth
period for hair is about two years with a three month resting phase. Hair grows
at the rate of about half an inch a month so it takes about a year for six
inches to grow and that can seem like a very long time if you are waiting for a
head of hair to appear.
However most of us are,
understandably, in too much of a hurry these days and unfortunately anyone with
advancing hair loss is even in more so.
Such people can be the targets for
unscrupulous clinics and hairdressers who make outrageous claims offering all
manner of cures to the problem.
These offers nearly always cost financially and
even more so emotionally, when the advertised claims are not achieved.
Have patience and always look
on the positive side of your dilemma and you will be rewarded.
