Getting to Know Alopecia and the Causes of Baldness (M.P.B and F.P.B.)
Baldness, or alopecia, is the condition of partial or complete loss of hair, primarily affecting the scalp. Baldness may spread over the entire head, or it may occur only in spots. Known causes of baldness include hereditary factors, aging, and diseases affecting the entire body, scalp disorders, ionizing radiation, and reaction to drugs.
In hereditary baldness, the hair follicles and oil glands in the scalp deteriorate and the hair gradually becomes thinner until only a few strands of fine, downy hair remain. The most common form of inherited baldness is male pattern baldness (M.P.B.) which spreads evenly, usually beginning with a partial loss of hair on the upper temples and on the crown of the head. This condition appears most frequently in men over 30 years old, although in some cases it may occur prematurely, even as early as the mid-teens. This form of heredity alopecia may be due in part to the hormonal changes that accompany the aging process.
Women become bald less often than men, but they carry the genes that determine pattern baldness and pass them on to their children. When inherited female pattern baldness (F.P.B.) does occur, it normally affects menopausal women