Alcohol and balding
Many of my friends like to out and have a drink or ten, but recently I noticed that those that drank the most seemed to have worse hair loss than people who drank alcohol moderately or none at all. Ok so there appears that their *might* be a pattern of alcohol causing hair loss based on my loose observations, but is this fact or coincidence?
After doing some research I found a very interesting study by Dr. Robert Smart at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, N.C. Now the study wasn’t about balding but about pesticide and skin cancer. To cut a long study short, shaved mice were given treated with an estrogen-blocking compound, and to their surprise (the Science boffins, well the mice might have been surprised too) there was a spurt of hair growth, but more than that inactive hair follicles sprung back to life. The follicles were studied very closely and it was noted, “By two weeks, the visible hair growth on treated mice was about the same as on mice who had never been shaved, while mice that were not treated with ICI 182,780 grew no hair” ( ICI 182,780 is the estrogen blocker). Although this study was done on mice, as a lot of studies are (poor mice!), it does provide potential evidence of the effects of estrogen on your hair. If you’re not convinced then consider after the study a patent was applied for for the use of estrogen blockers for preventing hair loss and stimulating hair growth by NC State.
Also they tried the reverse applying and estrogen based compound to the mice, lo and behold, hair growth was prevented. Getting all scientific now, it was found that there is an estrogen receptor pathway, located in the center of hair follices, that regulates the hair growth cycle.
(NB. An update coming on this article very soon, seems the Smart study has been somewhat debunked!)
That’s great, but how does estrogen relate to alcohol? After studying Biology for some years I learned that drinking alcohol, in particular drinking LOTS of alcohol in one period, increases estrogen levels. Drinking high amounts of alcohol causes a dramatic rise in estrogen levels in the body in men, particularly the day after, you know, when your hung over. Not only that but alcohol can deplete the mineral zinc from your body. Zinc is essential for maintaining healthy hair. Putting it simply: Alcohol = Excess Estrogen = Potential Hair Loss. My advice is if you like to drink then at least try and drink in moderate amounts, especially if you are serious about saving your hair. Not to mention the excessive alcohol is bad for your all round health any way.
You can read about the study right here Estrogen-Blocking Compound Found to Cause Hair Growth
Before I go I must state that I don’t think alcohol is all bad. A small glass of red wine a day has been shown to have good health benefits, some of which may help will hair growth. And of course people who drink lots may tend to be generally unhealthier and therefore more likely to suffer hair loss. In any case the key is moderation.
Responses to This Article
-
said on November 16, 2005
Not buying it.
women have estrogen, they have a full head of hair. testosterone that turns to DHT causes hair loss. not estrogen.
now maybe if it were a test blocker i’d believe.
-
Chris said on November 17, 2005
Hi thintop1, thanks for you comments. Maybe my wording in the article was misleading…yes, conversion of testosterone to DHT appears to be the primary factor behind balding in men (Androgenic Alopecia). This is not quite what I am talking about here, although, there are links between hormones including DHT, Testosterone and Estrogen which can lead to balding. The way these interact and have effects on the body is very complex and not fully understood.
Your observation that women generally have full head’s of hair in the presence of estrogen is correct. Women do have much higher levels of estrogen in the body, but it acts in a much different way in their body’s than it does in the male’s. Typically when estrogen levels are high in men it means other hormones such as testosterone are out of whack too. Here’s a little more tentative evidence…
“There are also two studies that conclusively show that men with MPB (male pattern baldness) have elevated levels of cortisol, estrogen, and androstendione.” (If anyone can find these studies please let me know, thanks)
http://www.hairloss-research.org/estrogen.html
“It has been established that cortisol, the ’stress’ hormone and estrogen are significantly elevated in individuals with androgenetic alopecia, which is immunosuppressive. It is also known that balding is essentially an interplay between hormones (notably DHT, Androstendione, Estrogen) and immunologically mediated inflammation, essentially causing the body to treat hair follicles like organs being rejected.”
http://www.hairloss-research.org/apr2001.html
Taking a step back for a moment and looking at the bigger picture also, I firmly believe that keeping your body in the best health will also give hair the best chance possible to survive, by that I mean to exercise regularly and eat and rest properly. This will help with a number of factors, not least improved blood flow to the scalp, all the right nutrients for hair and better balanced hormonal levels, all of which are essential for hair maintenance and growth. My hope, and the idea of this site, is by understanding the many factors that can contribute to hair loss (even if we don’t fully understand how the mechanisms at work) and avoiding those, and understanding mechanisms that lead to hair growth and maintenance and doing more of those, we can avoid any more hair loss and perhaps stimulate new growth, if we are lucky. From a purely health point of view alcohol in excess is bad for the body and so it follows, bad for your hair. For example it also increases the amount of a stress hormone called cortisol. Stress is yet another factor linked to hair loss. Not to mention that over drinking leads to stress of vital organs, huge increase in free radicals in the body and a whole host of other nasties. My point? Hardly a ripe environment for hair growth!
Back to the subject in hand, I am not trying to say by stopping binge drinking you will grow new hair, but rather binge drinking could be one such factor that can contribute to baldness in men, and that by moderating drinking habits you will give your hair an increased chance of staying where you want it to. The studies posted above imply that estrogen could lead to hair loss. Conclusive, no. But interesting nonetheless. By trying to minimize estrogen will I grow new hair? Perhaps not, but I am sure combined with the many measures that can be put in place it will give your hair the best chance of surviving.
-
Chris said on November 23, 2005
Not to keep banging on about this topic, especially as I enjoy the odd drink myself….A news article from the UK press mentions a link with drinking and hair loss:
“As it is a diuretic, alcohol can dehydrate the body, making the hair brittle, dry and liable to split ends. It also depletes the body of nutrients and can cause a deficiency of the mineral zinc, which can lead to hair loss.”
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/dietfitness.html?in_article_id=316935&in_page_id=1798 -
said on November 28, 2005
I DON”T UNDERSTAND ESTROGEN & TESTESTERON BUT IT IS TRUE THAT WHENEVR I DRINK HEAVILY, I SEE MY HAIRS FALLING HEAVILY FOR 2-3 DAYS.
-
said on January 19, 2006
absolutely! i worked at a liquor store for ten years and you mostly notice it in women who drink coffee brandy.
-
said on February 22, 2006
I’m going into my 3rd year of biomedical science at university, so I’ve done a bit of biology, and this topic is one of interest to me so I’ve read quite a bit about it…all that aside though -
I also notice my hair falling out the next morning in the shower FAR FAR FAR more after I drink.
The chemistry behind it is not FULLY understood, but it is fairly well understood that some of the same chemicals that appear to have an affect on hair growth and loss are also known to be changed in serum levels by alcohol…
Obviously that is nothing conclusive but put with my own personal observation it’s fairly convincing to me
Oh by the way, whoever wrote this article, good by you! It’s very well written
-
said on March 27, 2006
What about Body Fat?
****Chris, could you research to see if guys who have higher body fat levels getting balder sooner? (and should I haul ass to the gym immediately, hehe.)
Ex: I know a fat guy who was a financial news reporter & almost totally bald at 26. His older brother who was 38 still had plenty of hair.
Reason I ask about fat is manifold, but 1 reason is: Supposedly fatter guys have higher levels of Estrogen and Cortisol.
Is it possible that the Insulin rebound/overcompensation from all that alcohol carbs coming into your system makes you store fat & creates a sidecar reaction that releases an excess of Cortisol after the initial Serotonin inflow from drinking? Is blood sugar eventually equally lowered after the initial rise, in a vaguely proportionate amount; like a sine wave?
-Just a few thoughts.
-W
-
Chris said on March 28, 2006
Will — There is a strong correllation between body fat levels and baldness. I bet there are many mechanisms where being overweight causes more rapid hair loss. Not least, as you’ve pointed out, insulin resistance may be a big factor. Being overweight must also have a significant knock on effect to many other hormones too. Good idea for an article!
I will be re-writing this article shortly too, with more details of the hormone interactions. Suffice to say it’s bloody complex.
-
said on March 28, 2006
Nicely put, Chris.
I don’t like pointing fingers at different substances and products, but this could possibly be true. Needless to say, a drink here or there can’t really be bad for you. Wouldn’t estrogen levels just return back to normal within a couple days post-drinking?
I’ve noticed you’ve talked about alcohol as a diuretic and that got me thinking. Wouldn’t coffee ALSO cause hairloss then? I googled this and found a couple links, saying that coffee DOES increase estrogen levels in women and could lead to worsening of conditions such as endometriosis and breast pain.
What connections would this have with men then? I abuse coffee myself and this could be the reason for my hairloss.
Here’s the link:
-
Chris said on March 29, 2006
ChiaPet — I believe estrogen levels would return back to normal within a few days. I know several people who binge drink week in week out, it makes me wonder what the cumulative effects would be like over months and years.
Being dehydrated is not ideal for maintaining healthy hair. I don’t see anything wrong with a cup or two of coffee so long as you drink enough water to make up for it’s diuretic effects. If you feel even the slightest bit thirsty then you are dehydrated. Interesting study, thanks! Shame they didn’t do it on men too.
-
said on May 8, 2006
Hi,
I find the article most interesting. I am an alcoholic woman, I’m 33, and I lost more than 50% of my hair over a period of 12 years. Lucky for me, the hair loss is even, so no bald spot like men but you see more and more of my scalp. But I also have a thyroid disease and was told by my doctor that my Synthroid medecine is causing my hair loss (my hair growing cells are asleep) and that there was nothing to do except accept it or get a wig eventually. But I can’t. My self esteem is getting lower each year, and that doesn’t help my drinking problem. I used to have such thick hair. It is very hard to live that, as for a woman hair is very fashionable.
My mom told me maybe the alcohol wasn’t helping my hair but I didn’t believe it. Now that I read your article, I wish the idea will grow on me and that it will help me get the strenght to get back to a healthier behavior. Maybe it will help my hair.
Thanks
-
Chris said on May 9, 2006
Hi Daisy
Sounds like a vicious circle: your hair falls out, so you feel low, so you drink which in turn could be making your hair loss worse, which makes you feel low…
I’m positive that reducing or cutting alcohol would give your body a much better chance of fighting the thyroid disease. It’s not only the medicine that might be causing the hair loss — the thyroid produces and influences hormones that have a very significant effect on hair health. Ditching the booze would give your immune system a massive boost, which in turn would help your hormones become more balanced.
I found this article which might be of use:
http://www.thyroid-info.com/articles/hairloss.htm
It’s strange, but many people know the health risks of things like alcohol or smoking, but it’s only when their vanity is at stake they take action… maybe you could use this as the opportunity to turn things round?
Good luck, be strong!
Chris -
said on May 11, 2006
Well I’m a young guy, still in college and I drink quite heavily on the weekends. This past week I noticed an my hairline had receded DRAMATICALLY. Luckily I keep my hair quite long, so I can cover it up if I try, but I am certainly spooked. After reading this article, I must admit I’m even more spooked. Now my question is, if I drink in moderation from now on, will my hair grow back and approximately how long will it take? Or will I continue to lose hair? Any answers/advice will be appreciated. Thanks.
-
Chris said on May 11, 2006
Hey AJ
Moderating the quantity of booze would help keep hormone levels more balanced without a doubt. Also being fairly young (I presume) you will more than likely have fairly high levels of testosterone so you might find the effect exaccerbated, I know I definately did when started drinking when I was 18 years old.
On the practical side an anti-estrogen supplement may negate any possible effects. Bodybuilders use them for the very same reason…
And perhaps to make sure DHT levels don’t rise too much 375mg a day of Beta Sitosterol (article coming on Beta Sitosterol tomorrow):
Also I’d be sure you were taking a decent multi-vitamin, and preferabley some extra Vitamin C and E when boozing.
I reckon that lot would battle the effects of alcohol pretty well.
Something else to bear in mind if you are in your teens or perhaps very early twenties then your hormones will be raging at the minute. It fairly common for most males of this age to experience a small amount of receeding during this time.
-
said on May 27, 2006
this is all interesting.. if you drink heavily and notice significant hair loss..with no other diagnosis of ill health.. would it be safe to believe that when the drinking is stopped, the hair will grow back? thank you
-
said on May 27, 2006
i believe that the alcohol interferes with the hormones.. especially in women.. i find that after a night of too much wine i have hot flashes all day… no wine.. am normal.. i think the article is valid
-
said on June 1, 2006
Thanks for your advice Chris. I have another question though. I’ve been drinking for quite a while now so why is the hair-loss a recent thing? Drinking and college make such a wonderful couple…so why, oh why.. Once again, thanks.
-
said on July 7, 2006
Sorry buddy, but your logic is flawed. The mechanisms that trigger male-pattern baldness are testosterone-based; namely DHT.
The faster you accept that male-pattern baldness is genetically-driven, the more effective your treatment regimen will be.
-
said on August 9, 2006
Hi Chris,
I know this is a late response, I just wanted to add to the input from others, my brother-in-law drinks at least twenty litres of beer a week (full strength home brew ), along with a gallon of coffee, along with heavy fatty meat meals, poor sleep, no exercise, yet he has a full and thick head of hair, with no sign of any loss. I exercise, I eat well, no alcohol, meditation, average sleep, vitamins and minerals, yet I look like a chemo radiation patient. It shits me off bigtime. Your original story about estrogen levels just may be what is causing my hair loss. Thanks for the info, I will be chasing it up ….
-
said on September 6, 2006
Alright so I’ve always had an M-shaped hairline. However the last year I’ve lost a lot of hair all over my head and I feel especially around the hairline. I’ve been drinking steady, every other day or in periods every day… I’ve always been troubled with acne. could this have a connection to the hair loss i.e. some sort of skin disease?
-
said on September 25, 2006
im asking myself the same as sara, if you have a period of rest, say a month, will the hair steadily grow back? (after drinking hard for couple of months)
-
said on March 18, 2008
Please clairfy if the article’s primary reference being to men, including the term Androgenic Alopecia, applies equally to women in terms of the excess drinking causing higher estrogen levels and potential contribution to hair loss.
Also, if a woman is in menopause, is the effect the same since she is already at a point where there is estrogen loss, I would think the drinking–while bad for your other health factors–would in some ways fall into balance.
Is there a difference in how the estrogen levels rise when the execess alcohol comes from one source over the other, i.e.: wine, beer or hard liquor?
In any case, your article was an answer to prayer for me, because I asked God to tell me why I was experiencing my recent hair loss, when I am other wise healthy and have enjoyed thick, strong beautiful hair. Of course I suspected alchohol might be the culprit because of evaluating what I was doing more of than before and the answer was, drinking almost daily. Vanity, admittedly, is a strong motivator and I am going to cut back drinking immediately. Pray for me:-)
Thank you! -
said on April 28, 2009
Hi,
First of all thanks to all for sharing their experiences as good decisions comes out of good discussions. I been on propecia and minoxidle for around 3 years, initially they helped me to fight with my hair loss, but from last one year the conditions are same as they were before 3 years. i changed the drug, changed shampoos, changed water changed everything, but nothing worked out. i used to see my hair coming out in shower, in comb, on my shoulders, on my desk everywhere. Then i again started thinking about my lifestyle, as in my whole family only i have worst hair, all my brothers and father has very beautiful and silky hairs.THEN, i realized that i changed everything except 3,
1. Smoking [around 20 cigs in a day]
2. Alcohol [360 Days in a year]
3. My Eating habbits.
Now to save my hairs and my health i have decided that i will not smoke, will only drink once in a month and will eat properly and on proper time.I know that everybody says that it is because DHT, but i think there are so many other factors are also there to drive this activity. I have gone throug a book called Hair Loss No More [just google it] which explains hair loss in a proper way and written by a very sensible doctor
. It manily emphasise on exercise and diet. And also request you to stop smoking and drinking for retaining and gaining healthy hairs. So guys it is time to do something good for your hairs.. And hairs can be the biggest motivation factor for quiting soming and drinking… also i have lots of other statements too to quit these 2 killers. -
Chris said on April 28, 2009
Hey James
Totally agree. Lifestyle is one of the most underrated factors in hair loss. If people don’t think poor diet and lack of exercise don’t, at least partly, effect hairloss then more fool them. Both of those things regulate hormones, improve blood flow, deliver more nutrients and so on. And worst case scenario? You are healthier than before!
-
said on May 20, 2009
If alcohol lead to hair loss, wouldnt you also lose body hair and not just the hair on your head?
-
said on June 20, 2009
Can hair loss from drinking too much alcohol be temporary ? If you don’t drink and start to have a good diet can that solve the problem?
-
said on July 26, 2009
so what if i dont want to stop drinking…can i take zinc or some other drug to battle the baldness? can these effects be turned around or can you only save what you got?
-
said on August 24, 2009
Hi,
In answer to some questions posted on this forum, I could only add that once baldness starts nothing can halt it or prevent it. You can control it with Mnoxidel and Finesteride, but changing habits would not make the hair grow back. Sadly the guys who have already started losing their hair have no real hope. If you still have hair, and there is no sign of hair loss, start taking preventative measures now. that may help you retain your hair for as long as possible. For the baldies, there really is no hope. If anything had worked, would baldness not have been eliminated?
-
said on August 31, 2009
I had strep throat a few weeks back and was put on antibiotics for 10 days. During this time I drank no alcohol and noticed that less hair fell out. Now yesterday I went out and drank heavily and today I noticed a ton of hair come loose. There has to be a correlation.
-
said on September 18, 2009
Recently, as in over the last several months, I’ve been drinking heavily pretty much every day. In the last week or so I’ve been noticing my hair is SIGNIFICANTLY thinner than it was even a few months ago. It was my suspicion that the alcohol was to blame that led me to find this thread. This seems to confirm that suspicion. Regardless of how or why, I’d say drinking alcohol definitely causes hair loss.
-
said on September 26, 2009
Thank you so much for writing this article, and thank you so much to everyone who has commented on here.
I am a newly 36 year old female, who has always had a thick head of hair until last January. Within the course of 4 weeks, my hair was coming out in handfulls! When washing my hair, I would end up with handfuls of hair. Through the course of the year, it kept falling out and falling out. I did bloodwork, saw 6 different physicians (2 derms, 1 endo, 1 internal medicine, 1 obygyn, and 1 cardiologist).I stopped my birth control pill as per my endo, and that has helped a little bit. I am extremely healthy, but within the last 2-3 years have been drinking more and started smoking due to a stressful job and relationship.
Needless to say, I am starting to think that this was the culprit. My hair is so thin now, but I am lucky that there are no patches. I am going to try and not drink (or smoke) for 6 months and see if that helps….I am really scared and depressed.
The thing that makes me bummed is that I was doing all of this in college and in my early 20s…everything was fine then! Being 10 years older never helps the situation, but no one has answered the question that several people have posted…
If you stop drinking, will the hair come back?
-
said on September 29, 2009
Yes. Alcohol DOES Cause Hairloss/Thinning. But it is temporary. Quitting Alcohol will help to bring it back.
The reasons are two fold:
1. Alcohol puts heavy load to Liver and Kidneys. Kidneys are the one which determines your hairloss. Stronger kidneys stronger and fuller hair. Chinese ying-yang theory and allopathic kidney dialysis medication has a side effects of strong hair growth..
2. Balding in early stages is Preventable. Provided you wake up and take immediate action. Hairloss shows something is seriously wrong in the overall health..
-
said on October 3, 2009
stop smoking and drinking!!
-
said on October 19, 2009
I found your articles most interesting. I would qualify myself a rather heavy drinker at times and regular moderate drinker other days. I am now on Synthroid and Diovan
and did a lot of research on these two medications. Some seem to think that they
are not compatible and that one should change the Diovan. I am afraid to do so
since I fear having more side effects with other high blood pressure medication.
However, after reading all the comments from your readers I am rather tempted
to simply cut down drinking. I did notice also that when I drank a lot of wine one
evening, my pillow would be covered with much more hair the following morning.
Please forgive my English errors, my mother tongue is French.
With thanks,
Lise -
said on October 28, 2009
Great info! I’ve been drinking just about every day for about a year and a half. I now its a sickness. My hair loss is so bad I had to get extentions. My hair was so long and thick. Strangers use to tell me what beautiful hair I had. People would always ask if it was all real. Its was but not anymore. It only makes sence that drinking a lot would make it fall out. Alcohol strips your body of vitamins. Not to mention all the other harm it causes to your organs. Biggest organ is the skin so it makes since that it would directly effect hair follicles. Been trying to quit drinking. This gives me a lot of motivation! -THANKS!!
-
said on November 14, 2009
Why dont teens have hair loss? There DHT and Testosterone levels are through the roof..
-
said on November 19, 2009
Brewers yeast is very high in Zinc…..interesting.
-
said on December 2, 2009
God this has got me thinking. About a year ago I was taking anti-depressants. After about three weeks I noticed 2 big bald patches on my head & hair loss at the edges of my scalp. I looked at the side effects of the medication and it stated that it could result in hair loss that ‘could’ be reversable. I immediately binned them. However, a year on I am still much thinner. I am a heavy drinker and so now wonder if the hair loss could be due to my drinking – I drank much more when i was depressed. Just wish it could stop hair ring on my chin & lip!!!
-
said on December 2, 2009
God this has got me thinking. About a year ago I was taking anti-depressants. After about three weeks I noticed two big bald patches on my head. Also hair loss at the edges of my scalp. I looked at the side effects of my medication and it stated that one could be hair loss and that is might not be reversable. I immediately binned them. A year on, my hair is still much thinner than it used to be. Some of the hair has grown back but its still much thinner. I am a heavy drinker also and wonder if the hair loss is more likely to be due to alcohol than the anti-depressants – I was drinking much more when I was depressed and have continued to do so. Surely the hair woudl have grown back now if I hadn’t taken anti-depressants for over a year
Just wish that I could prevent the hair growth on my lip and chin!!!
-
said on December 7, 2009
OK, I have been trying to find out the cause of my hair loss & many other complaints at the moment and after seeing 14 doctors, 12 blood tests, ENT appointments, dermatology appointments everything came back fine nothing wrong. Now my hair is thinning fast, hair growth on face and other areas, very oily skin, bone growth on my finger knuckles, hair growth on fingers, fingers thicker than what they were and a few other things I was tested for everything and decided to do my own research which I found was very scary stuff. It seems that alcohol abuse in a woman creates too much testosterone and in a male can cause estrogen levels to soar, 12 years of raising testosterone levels has seemingly created all these symptoms, it has something to do with the amount of cortisil the lobes in the front of your brain create and I have noticed most people who have left comments on here drink moderately to heavily. I dont expect all the symptoms to go away since I have stopped but if my body is fighting all the changes then maybe it knows whats supposed to be there or not so 6 months and fingers crossed some of the symptoms will go and my hair will grow back, and to be honest alcohol really isn’t worth losing, your hair, confidence and self esteem, not to mention the effect on your wallet saddest thing is sounds like we have all done it to ourselves and thats the toughest thing to live with (those who drink I meant) god bless and good luck
-
said on December 7, 2009
It would also be interesting to know whether anyone here has had a burning sensation on their face with all the pores opening up and a severely increased appetite with no weight gain, also does anyone get tingling feelings across the scalp where the hair loss is more prominent, mine is on the front left side and the crown, I read somewhere it’s the follicles closing but am not an expert
thanks -
said on December 10, 2009
well, actually, i think you all got this all wrong. estrogen is not causing alopecia, it’s actually the reverse. increased estrogen actually reverses androgenic alopecia as you see in transgender males that have started estrogen therapy. androgenic alopecia also starts to show up in postmenopausal women due to a significant drop in estrogen. the only connection i see with alcoholism and hairloss is stress. the thing about alcohol is that it stresses the liver and yes, it can boost aromatase activity too, but it can also boost cytP450 enzymes which degrade a number of steroids including androgens, estradiols, cortisol, etc… so, when cytP450 is activated, turn over of the steroids (testosterone, estrogen, cortisol, ….) is a lot faster and the body compensates for this by increasing the production of the steroids. get me? this will result in increased androgen (testosterone, DHT), as well as, estrogen, but the increase in androgens is much higher since this is one of the first ones produce (estrogen is produced from androgens so androgens show up first at a higher quantity than estrogen).
what does this mean?
the high level of androgens (testosterone, DHT) can exacerbate your androgenic alopecia and even though some of the androgens are converted to estrogens, which are protective against alopecia, they (estrogens) show up too late and at lesser amount to elicit a protective benefit. in people with chronic alcoholism, it takes a while for the body to lower production of the androgens since the increase in cellular machinery used to accomodate the need to increase in androgens persist overtime and will take a while to take apart. cortisol, a stress hormone, is produced in the same pathway as the androgens and estradiols and other steroid products (aldosterone, vit d,….). high cortisol means high stress, which cause the body to be in survival mode resulting in reduction in synthesis of “luxury” products such as hair.
estrogen is good for you hair, the problem is the androgen that’s why it’s called androgenic alopecia. this is the reason why finasteride (propecia) and dutasteride work to stop hair loss because they reduce the amount of potent androgens (DHT) which destroy the hair and increase the amount of androgens that can be converted to estrogen, which increase scalp hair.
-4th year medical student
-
Chris said on December 10, 2009
Excellent post Guy!
-
said on December 16, 2009
I completely agree with your article. Alcohol does indeed cause hair loss and will increase shedding. I have been fighting hair loss for ten years now, and have been drinking on the weekends for eight of those ten years. Shedding always increased after drinking heavily on the weekends, without fail! I have lost over 60% of my density over the past four years.
So, my advice to anyone out there is to STOP drinking, start exercising daily, reduce stress, supplement with herbs that support your endocrine system and stay away from hair loss drugs.
-
said on December 24, 2009
I noticed that the day after I consume more than one drink, I experience a major increase in shedding the next day in the shower. So for me, alcohol definite DOES increase hair shedding – as suspected – but great to see it here in print! Also, I have noticed a correlation between caffeine consumption and hair shedding in my own body, so this could be another habit to get rid of if you want healthy thick hair! I know some people drink alcohol and drink a ton of coffee and have great, thick, hair (like my husband, no fair!
but you can’t compare yourself with others – we all have various genetic strengths and weaknesses and must do what works for us. -
said on January 11, 2010
I am 25 years old, i have been drinking very heavily for the last couple of years. but for the lasty 8 months my hair is been falling and very thinning out
. i used to have long thick beautiful hair. I dont know what to do. -
said on January 16, 2010
I am 38 years old and used to have long thick hair. In the past year, it’s fallen out by at least 50%. It’s so thin that you can see my scalp and I’m so self-conscious of it now. I went to the doctor and we did all these tests. I’m perfectly healthy except I am dehydrated with poor blood circulation. She said to stop drinking caffeine and drink more water. I did for a while and I cut down on caffeine (can’t cut it out completely!) and my hair started to look OK to the point that I forgot about it. But in the past month or so, it’s suddenly become much worse and now I’m panicking. I think it’s due to the fact that I got lazy and stopped drinking as much water and went back to a lot of coffee. I also drink a lot of wine so I’ve now decided that I will cut out wine and caffeine and consume more water. This is not easy for me and I pray it works. I’m going to a dermatologist this week to see if it could be anything else as I do have really sensitive skin. I’m glad I found this site and there are other women out there like me who are scared so I don’t feel so terribly alone now. My friends and family just don’t get it or understand. Hang in there everyone!
-
said on January 17, 2010
hi all i am 40 years old and if i am honest have been drinking at least 2 large glasses of wine a night for the past 10 years , i used to have very thick hair , now my hair is thinned at the sides , although because i have a bob it still looks thick but i know its not right, i have to go to my doctor next week to get a medical certificate as i am a manager of a big care home and need to register (which is normal). i am so scared about this as i believe my liver may be affected but i have never let my alcohol consumption affect my work performance, i am sooo scared right now , as its not fair if the doctor doesnt sign my report off as i dont drink ever in the day and do make sure that i dont drink so that it will effect my job, i would really appreciate some support and feedback now .
-
said on January 23, 2010
I’ve also suspected a link between alcohol and hair loss. I just turned 40 and have always been a pretty heavy drinker, at times. I like to party! I exercise regularly and keep in good shape, and eat right.
In just the last 9 months, however, I have experienced unprecedented levels of stress: my father died, I was forced to close down my company and find a new job (which I eventually did), and I went through a separation/divorce. My drinking went from a few cocktails a week, to 2-4 bottles of wine and champagne every night!
In the last few months, as my alcohol consumption has increased (2-4 bottles of wine every night, which scares me), I have noticed a definite thinning of my hair. It feels and looks brittle and dry. My hair has always been fairly thick, but there is definite thinning now. I don’t mind it too much, as I prefer short clipped hair, but it looks very unhealthy.
I need to stop drinking, obviously, but I’m not sure what to do about the stress.
-
said on January 24, 2010
I think hair loss can certainly be exacerbated by heavy drinking but it all comes down to your genetic predisposition because I’ve known heavy drinkers with thick hair.
This doesn’t necessarily mean there’s a baldness gene though, it’s a combination of many factors that is particular to your body that will cause you to lose hair. This is why doctors can’t find a cure because it happens so benignly at a young age and once the ball gets rolling you’re pretty much doomed.
Say Something About This Article, Go On
This article was written on October 4, 2005 was posted in these categories Hair Loss Causes .
