new thread
I've heard that MPB comes mostly from the moms' side of the family.
And the last time I saw the 2 men that were born into that side of the family (moms generation or older) they didn't even have bald spots.
But every man Ive met that was born into my dads side of the family (dads generation or older) was either bald or had a noticeable bald spot the day I met them.
So my question is, just how much of a facor is the dads side of the family for getting MPB.
Please Note: I know MPB isnt a really bad thing, Id just like to know what my chances are.
ive read that rogain as a topical agent can be effective in some cases , google it, take care
A good friend of mine has a full head of hair when his dad was bald and he has two younger brothers who are bald! He's about a year younger than me, so about 52, and balding is usually apparent by age 30 or so, which means he's not likely to go bald now. I guess that means that MPB can skip some people while getting others for no apparent reason.
However, I know nothing about his mother's male ancestors. There's an intriguing reason for that, but I'm not sure I should post it.
That's the thing about genetics, it's not just single genes that determine effects, it's generally interactions of genes. And siblings of the same parents don't have precisely identical genetic codes, just very close. So yes, it's entirely possible for members of the same generation to end up with different effects.
Ok, climbing off my science geek soapbox now, lol.
That's what I was going to say - well, not the bit about the soapbox. There are a number of different genes involved in hair growth and colour. You have two copies of each gene, one from each parent and there are many different combinations of interactions.
From my own family: my maternal grandfather went bald at 18. His brothers both kept their hair into later life and his son (my uncle) is now in his 60s and has a full head of hair. My granny's brothers had a mix of baldness and good coverage. My father started to go thin on top about ten years ago, but still has good coverage. His father died in his 80s with a full head of hair. Some of my dad's brothers lost their hair early on and some kept it. As for me, I started to recede slightly a few years ago, but you can only tell if you look closely or check old photos to see the different hairline. My cousins are pretty much in line with my dad's brothers. A couple of them lost their hair in their 20s, some have gone thin on top and stopped and others have kept a full head of hair.
In the end, the only way you'll know for sure what's going to happen to your hair is to wait and see. To paraphrase investment ads, while other family members' hair growth may provide an indication of what could happen, it is no guarantee of an individual's future prospects/fate. (Of course, if every guy on both sides of your family tree was bald as a coot by the time they hit 30, your chances of a full head of hair at 80 may be a bit thin!)
My mother's father had MPB. Neither my father or his father had it. My older brother has it pretty bad. I have it somewhat, but still have enough hair to grow it long. My younger brother doesn't have it at all. (Neither does my sister, but I guess she doesn't count.)
My pattern baldness was definitely from my father's side. I look exactly like he did. Two balding strips paralelling the center line of my scalp. My brother still has a full head of hair (and other enviable physical attributes which shouldn't be mentioned). He must take after the "milkman"...just kidding, don't beat me up.
My fathers side exhibited some manner of MPB but never completely. On my Moms side all the men kept full heads of hair their entire life. Both my brother and I seem to have hair patterns compatible with our maternal side of the family. My moms brother, my Uncle Red had thick red hair (hince his nikname, it was fire engine red) up into his 60s when it turned white very quickly, but it was thick and full until he passed.
not from me.
Jason B.
MPB does not just come from your mother's side. Those genes are just more dominant, but dominance is not a guarantee. You can still end up with your dad's traits. My dad has obvious MPB and my grandfather looked like Patrick Stewart. I have a full head of hair at age 37 with no evidence of MPB, but my brother began losing his in high school and is almost completely bald now. He is four years younger than I am. You can attempt to determine your chances, but there is still a bit of luck involved.
It's a fallacy to assume that the genes for baldness come from the mother's side or that those genes are more dominant. They aren't.
This is oversimplifying things, but you have two copies of each gene, one from your father, one from your mother, and they got one from each of their parents too, and so on. Your mother could be carrying a gene inherited from her mother and grandmother and so on back into history that hasn't shown up in a male in your family for a number of generations. This means that if you want to use your family as an indicator of whether or not you're likely to go bald, you've got to go back quite a few generations, and even then, you can't be sure.
In general among people and animals, hair is dominant over no hair, the same as darker colours are usually dominant over lighter shades, which is why two dark-haired parents can have blonde or red-haired children, and that's why these things sometimes skip generations, but, as with hair colour, it's not quite that straightforward. There are all sorts of other things that can affect what happens to your hair, such as diet, general health, hormone levels, stress and so on, which is why even identical twins don't always end up with the same hair growth levels.
Now, as I understand it, there are a number of different genes involved in hair growth/loss, all of which work with or against each other, and all of which can be affected in different ways by the things I mentioned earlier, so what it boils down to is it's complicated, which is why no-one's been able to come up with a reliable treatment for MPB yet. As you say, most of it is down to luck.
You make some good points, except genes are stronger from your mother for male pattern baldness. The majority of MPB genes are associated with the X chromosome. They're called X-linked traits. Since women have two X chromosomes and men have only one, MPB traits tend to follow the maternal side of your family. That's why people say MPB comes from your mother. For the most part, it does.