Is Gym Causing You to Lose Your Hair?

We all want to look and feel good and hitting the gym is one way to do that. While a new exercise regime can help you gain muscle, it can also have a few drawbacks. Is your weight lifting routine actually causing you to lose your hair?

Unfortunately, men who are adamant about staying fit and building muscle mass could, in fact, be accelerating their hair loss.

This article will cover how DHT and weight lifting could be having an impact on your hair.

Does Weight Lifting Increase DHT?
Depending on the types of exercise you're choosing to do at the gym, you could be positively and negatively affecting your testosterone levels. Cardio routines are known to decrease testosterone levels while weight lifting is known to increase it. DHT (Dihydrotestosterone) is a type of testosterone that is naturally produced by the body but has an effect on hair growth.

When DHT attaches itself to the receptor cells of the hair follicles, the hair is unable to absorb essential nutrients, which is when male pattern baldness occurs. Once DHT has attached itself to the hair follicles, they shrink and your hair will gradually get thinner until it stops growing altogether.

When weight lifting is an integral part of your exercise routine, you increase the chances of your hair follicles being exposed to DHT. Gym goers who already have a high risk of genetic hair loss could experience early-onset baldness at a much younger age.

A Look at Your Solutions
If hair loss due to weight lifting is already a reality for you, here are some of the solutions that you can look into.

Consider a Hair Transplant. By scheduling a consultation with a specialist such as a hair replacement clinic, you can slow down hair loss and permanently add more volume to your hair. There are two types of hair transplant methods that can be used. The first is a follicular unit transplant (FUT), which involves removing a strip of skin from the side or back of the head. Once the hair follicles have been harvested from this strip of skin, they are transplanted to the balding areas. The second is follicular unit extraction, which involves removing individual hair follicles for transplantation. FUE tends to be the preferred option purely because it doesn't result in lengthy recovery times and scarring - both methods are effective though.

Change Your Workout. By striking a good balance between cardio and weight lifting, you can decrease your testosterone levels as well as the DHT that may already be in your system. It's also best to avoid any supplements that contain DHEA and Creatine as these ingredients can also increase your testosterone levels.

Ask Your Doctor about Medication. There is also the option of taking oral medication to prevent further hair loss. Unfortunately, medication also comes with a risk of side effects so this may not be the best option for everyone. Plus, to maintain your results, you would need to take the medication on an ongoing basis, which also isn't ideal.

Article provided by martinickhair.com.au - hair replacement clinic in Sydney