Research Links Smoking and Hair Loss

What’s the link between smoking and hair loss?

It’s been 50 years since the U.S. Surgeon General warned about the health risks of smoking, cutting smoking rates in half.  As some smokers still light up, do they realize the impact of smoking on hair, hair loss and baldness?

Male pattern baldness or Androgenetic Alopecia has its “roots” in the male sex hormone Dihydrotestosterone which triggers progressive miniaturization of the hair follicles based on age and hereditary risk factors. Social factors such as nutrition, diet, lifestyle, stress, medications all are believed to have an impact on the progression of male and female hair loss. However, researchers have recently shown that the more a man or woman smokes, the worse his/her baldness is likely to be–so add that to your list of reasons to quit!

Research Links Smoking & Hair Loss, Baldness:

A study of more than 700 Taiwanese men who were aged forty and above suggests that while the risk of hair loss increased with advancing age, those that smoked more than 20 cigarettes per day were more than twice as likely to have moderate or severe hair loss than those who did not smoke. In another study in BMJ a link between grey hair, hair loss and other signs of premature aging in smokers was observed.

Researchers suggest that smoking may impact the delicate blood supply to hair follicles and/or damage their genetic material, accelerating the natural progression of hereditary hair loss and prematurely weakening hair quality and coverage of the scalp. This means that the visible signs of hair loss like a receding hairline and thinning in the crown may appear earlier or be more difficult to treat with traditional preventative therapies like Formula 82M Compounded Minoxidil, Low Level Laser Therapy and Finasteride. More and more research is coming to light regarding the links between lifestyle factors such as smoking and hair loss.

Smoking & Hair Transplant Surgery

Detrimental effects of smoking may increase the overall amount of transplantation a patient may need using minimally-invasive SmartGraft FUE procedures to restore coverage to the balding areas and also slow down the healing process after their hair transplant procedures. In addition, smokers generally have slower healing ability due to poor circulation to the skin and other factors like toxin-exposure, putting them at risk for poor healing, poor graft growth quality and other complications.

At Bauman Medical Group, hair loss and hair transplant patients are encouraged to quit smoking as part of a holistic approach to help protect their hair and to recover more quickly from their SmartGraft FUE hair transplant procedures. Dr. Bauman may also prescribe hyperbaric oxygen treatments and extra doses of low level laser therapy to help improve circulation and healing after hair transplantation in those who are at risk for poor healing. For more information on smoking and hair loss, ask Dr. Bauman to provide this information during your consultation.

For more information on advanced ways to prevent or reverse hair loss, ask Dr. Alan Bauman a question at https://www.baumanmedical.com/ask-a-question

If you or someone you know has hair loss, hair thinning, baldness, or eyebrow / eyelash concerns, click to start either a long-distance virtual consultation OR an in-person, in-office consultation with Dr. Bauman. You can also Ask Dr. Bauman a Question or simply call Bauman Medical Group  at +1-561-394-0024.