Why you lose your hair when you get older

A wide variety of factors can cause baldness in men and women. Scientific studies show that chromosomes from both father and mother can lead to hair loss. Environmental factors also play a role. The following is a transcript of the video.

Why you lose your hair when you get older. It's a problem that's really hard to ignore. Nearly half of men and a quarter of women will be affected by hair loss by the time they're 50. So, what causes so many of us to lose our hairdos?

Illnesses, medications, and primping habits can spur hair loss. But the most common cause? Androgenic alopecia (aka male and female pattern baldness). This leads to defective hair-producing follicles on the scalp.

Over time, they lose their ability to function. The begin producing thin hair for women and for men, eventually no hair at all. Most can thank their parents for that hair loss.

Pattern baldness in largely genetic. The primary baldness gene is found on the X chromosome. This comes from the mother, but don't blame it all on her! Other factors can come into play as well.

Studies found that men with bald fathers are more likely to go bald. Hats, hair products, and washing your hair a lot won't cause balding. But you should be careful with teasing combs and hair irons. Using these could speed up the balding process.

So, hair loss may be inevitable for many of us. Make sure to enjoy those lovely locks while you can.