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For some men, hair loss can be a real problem. It saps their confidence and makes them feel less desirable. This can lead to some unhappy people, and advertisers pray on them with a host of miracle cures. Of course most don't work. Hair loss is a natural part of aging and most men suffer some hair loss as they get older, but a large minority suffer considerable hair loss from their early 20s. Usually this is in the form of male pattern baldness and is an inherited trait. Men need to come to terms with the fact that if they are balding there is not much they can do to prevent it. Male pattern baldness is usually the result of the action of a form of testosterone, the male hormone, and so you could say it was a sign of virility. Well, that's what I tell myself anyway.

There are some products on the market that will help some men a little in combating hair loss. None are cures and all are limited in their effectiveness.

There are shampoos which contain a substance called minoxidil. This has proven to slow the hair loss process for some men, but for about 25% of men it is completely ineffective. However, where it does work it can have a significant effect and some men find their hair growing back. However, once you stop using the product, all the hair that was gained is quickly lost.

Hormone treatment. It has been found that male to female transsexuals have their hair loss slowed or reversed as a result of the hormone treatment they receive. However the side effects for non transsexuals are not welcome and most men would prefer to lose their hair than grow a bust.

Hair transplant surgery has improved since its early days and can be an effective way of covering a balding scalp. Plugs of hair are taken from the back and sides of the head, where hair tends to continue to grow, and is placed in the scalp where it is needed. This works well and real hair grows to mask the baldness, but even these days the transplanted plugs make it look a little like doll's hair.

Given that there is not much that can be done to prevent baldness, the other option is to disguise it. Some men have very inventive hairstyles that grouped together we might call the comb over. This is not a good look and a bald pate is preferable. Toupees, wigs and hair transplants all provide good ways of disguising baldness, providing it is good quality products that you are paying for.

Another inventive disguise that is sometimes used, particularly on television, is spray on hair. I'm not making this up. The advertisements for the product claim that it instantly covers thinning hair and baldness. What is sprayed on your head are tiny fibres that look like real hair. You just shake and spray. At about $20 a can it probably is affordable enough for those bothered by hair loss to try. However, on men, short hair on a balding head can look masculine and sexy so why bother.

Learn more about this author, Stephen H.
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