June 13, 2019

One of the hardest truths of ageing for a lot of men is hair loss. It can happen to anyone. As we age, our hair inevitably changes - by the time you’ve hit thirty, you’ve probably noticed some things are a bit different. And one of those differences - for many of us - is that our hair starts to thin.

This may be caused by the bad luck of having the bald gene - thanks for nothing, mum and dad - or due to certain lifestyle factors, such as stress.

While the bad news is that there’s no secret tip or magic pill that’ll stop hair loss, there are things that can be done to fight it off and slow it down. So don’t despair - read on to see what you can to do remedy the problem.

Sleep well

Sure, we’d all love to sleep in like we did when we were at uni, but who has the time? Well, make time if you care about keeping your hair. Getting enough rest is a key part of keeping your body healthy.

Seven to eight hours is the magic number when it comes to how much sleep our bodies need. This gives it time to regulate the hormones that help to repair and regenerate hair.

This is where it’s important to keep your stress levels as low as possible - if work or life is getting you stress, this will likely affect your sleep and, in turn, disturb your hair growth.

Watch what you eat

Believe it or not, having the right foods in your diet is one of the most effective ways to fight off hair loss.

While it may not fix the problem entirely, there is strong evidence that a bad diet starves you hair of nutrients and protein, which it need to stay strong and healthy.

So if you’re looking to feed your locks, eat foods that are good sources of B vitamins - these affect the formation of hair cells, and therefore stimulate hair growth. This means you should be chowing down on good fats, such as avocados and foods rich in protein like chicken, fish, spinach and eggs.

Laser treatments

As we said above, there’s no magic solution that will start your hair growing back, but there are some approaches that can help keep your remaining follicles strong and get the blood flowing to your scalp. Laser light therapy is one, which you can do at home or in a clinic.

We’re pleased to report that it doesn’t leave any scarring and can really be affective if you’ve lost at lot of hair and want to save what you’ve got. The only downside is that you need to stick with it regularly, as repetition is key to seeing results.

Medications

There’s a couple of drugs that can help fight hair loss. You’ve probably heard of Finasteride (or Propecia) and Minoxidil (also known as Regaine), the former of which can be purchased over the counter while the latter is prescription only.

You’re best to speak to a medical professional about whether these options are right for you. There are possible side effects with each, and again the key is sticking with treatment on a regular basis, even if you don’t see results right away.

Transplants

Getting a hair transplant sounds extreme, and - in the scheme of treatment options - it is. That said, they can be the most effective.

These work by harvesting an existing strip of hair from the back of your head and using it, through the power of science, to create a hair graft. These are then ‘planted’ into the parts of your scalp that are no longer growing hair.

There’s the option of follicular unit extraction, which will enable haircuts on the shorter side while minimises the risk of scarring. Again, if you’re wondering if either of these might be right for you, chat to a medical professional who can talk you through these options.