Last updated on August 29, 2020
Question:
Hi sir,
I am 15 years old. I have a problem which I would like to share with you. From age 12, I have started noticing that I am losing hair. I know it’s kind of crazy, but it’s true. Now I am losing more. I guess it is alopecia. I have lost hair from my crown and the corners of my forehead. It’s really embarrassing for a teenager who would be styling his hair at this age. I have consulted many doctors but in vain. I am pretty sure I have inherited this from my mother. She has a problem too, but it appeared when she was 25. In my case, it started really quickly. I love my hair and I got to do something before it’s too late. Oh! I have grey hairs too. It’s very embarrassing.
Therefore, please tell me what do I do.
Answer:
While your problem is rare, it is not unknown. Since you’ve seen several doctors, I think we can rule out things like a fungal infection or your thyroid gland being out of whack. A researcher at Google did a good job of hunting down possible causes in Grey Hair in Children. Looking through the list, the most likely cause is what you’ve already noted, an inherited trait.
The problem of not knowing a specific reason is that you can’t aim for a specific treatment. Anything you try would be a shot in the dark and it would make you vulnerable to all sorts of scams as hucksters tell you exactly what you want to hear so as to pocket your money. If you wanted to try a legitimate product, such as Rogaine to see if it might make a difference, I would say it is worth a try. Some medical products are expensive and you always need to consider carefully the side-effects. For example, one legitimate hair loss product that I was reading about does work, but in its side-effects, you would lose your desire for sex and the ability to have sex. I would think baldness would be preferable to that.
Another choice is to simply embrace what you have. Clearly people are going to treat you as someone older than his years. That can be an advantage in the business world. I know some who, instead of living with sparse hair, decided to regularly shave their head and go with a bald look.