Men who experience the frustration of male pattern baldness usually want to know when the process will be complete. That is, they want to know exactly when they’ll be completely bald. Unfortunately, there is no exact timetable.
While many men lose their hair around the same age, few lose it at a similar pace. Some proceed through 5 to 6 consistent years of progressive male pattern baldness. Others experience a few years of hair loss then a pause and later, a resumption of hair loss. It is clear that there is no fixed pattern of time in which a man goes bald. Each individual’s unique timetable will be determined by his genetics, his hormones, environmental factors and more. For some, it could take 5 years or less. For others, it could take decades. Simply put, the length of time that it will take for a man to lose his hair depends on numerous variables.
Yet it has been determined that it usually takes much longer than 5 years for a man who suffers from male pattern baldness to transition from a nearly full head of hair to complete baldness. Still, if a certain combination of distinct variables are present, rapid hair loss can lead to baldness in a short time span. Male pattern baldness is predominantly caused by the hormone DHT. It directly impacts hair follicle growth. The hair follicles of older men eventually become thinner at the shaft and shorter in length until they eventually stop growing altogether. An aging man who combs his hair often, wears hats and applies gels to his scalp will break off a significant number of hair shafts. When these poor habits are combined with a reduction in testosterone/DHT, the rate at which hair disappears significantly speeds up.
Male pattern baldness is gauged according to the Norwood-Hamilton Classification. This scale contains the numbers 1 through 7. Stage 1 indicates the beginning of male pattern baldness while 7 is the final stage before nearly complete baldness. Some men never make it to a 7 on this scale. Many will progress through a few stages and hair loss will cease with merely a receding hairline. So, there is a decent chance that a man will never go bald. Unfortunately, others will experience a receding hair line that will just keep extending over the years until they go totally bald.
Thankfully, men do not lose their hair over night. While we can’t identify exactly how long it will take to go bald, it usually takes a minimum of 5 years and typically much longer. If you start to lose your hair in your 20s, don’t panic. It doesn’t mean that you’ll be bald by your 30s or 40s. Studies have shown that the age in which hair loss first occurs isn’t a strong indicator of the rate at which hair loss will occur.