Hi everyone,
Here's my situation that I'm hoping to get a few takes on. I apologize for its length. I am 20 years old and a second year college student. I started to notice some recession in my temple areas in november and december of last year. There are some cases of male pattern baldness in my family, but in each case it did not start until the relative was into their 50's, and in my father's case, he has only slight recession at his temples.
Anyhow, I thought that perhaps my loss could be explained by a diet deficiency, as this is my first year living outside of a dorm or my home, and quite frankly, i had been eating nothing but campbell's beef and chunky and ramen noodles, and relatively little to no fruits or vegetables. I tried to improve my diet by trying to consume a little bit more protein through eggs, fish, milk, etc. and found that I actually started to grow back most of the hair in the temple areas, and even along my hairline which I didn't even realize I had lost, which I was pretty happy about.
However, about a week after getting my latest haircut (three weeks ago) I noticed that my hair seems to have a different texture to it, especially in the front, and that more of my scalp is visible all along the top. I did a little bit of research online and found that there are some cases of Telogen Effluvium that are attributed to an excess of Vitamin A. This seemed to me like a possibility because I had begun taking multivitamins to try and supplement my diet, in addition to taking two fish oil tablets a day at my mom's insistence. Furthermore, in late December I had been prescribed tretinoin for my acne, which I'm fairly certain is a Vitamin A derivative, and which I used through all of January and February.
Other factors that lead me to believe (hope) that I'm not suffering from male pattern baldness yet is that the texture of my hairs seems to be different everywhere on my head (although definitely more pronounced in the front), and that I've lost hair in non male pattern baldness places, like along my sideburns.
Granted, after reading a few posts on this site it's become clearer and clearer to me that I'm probably just an unlucky individual with early male pattern baldness, and I am prepared to seek out a doctor and get on some propecia.
My question though, is if it were by some chance the case where my system had a Vitamin overload/deficiency of some kind, how long should I wait to see if my hair returns to normal? Is one month sufficient time, or should I waste no time and go see the doctor right now? Part of me is a little bit curious that I'll start on Propecia only to have my hair return to normal, and then have no idea whether or not it's the propecia or my readjusted living style that has caused it. I'd rather not take any pills if I don't have to.
Thanks for your time
Here's my situation that I'm hoping to get a few takes on. I apologize for its length. I am 20 years old and a second year college student. I started to notice some recession in my temple areas in november and december of last year. There are some cases of male pattern baldness in my family, but in each case it did not start until the relative was into their 50's, and in my father's case, he has only slight recession at his temples.
Anyhow, I thought that perhaps my loss could be explained by a diet deficiency, as this is my first year living outside of a dorm or my home, and quite frankly, i had been eating nothing but campbell's beef and chunky and ramen noodles, and relatively little to no fruits or vegetables. I tried to improve my diet by trying to consume a little bit more protein through eggs, fish, milk, etc. and found that I actually started to grow back most of the hair in the temple areas, and even along my hairline which I didn't even realize I had lost, which I was pretty happy about.
However, about a week after getting my latest haircut (three weeks ago) I noticed that my hair seems to have a different texture to it, especially in the front, and that more of my scalp is visible all along the top. I did a little bit of research online and found that there are some cases of Telogen Effluvium that are attributed to an excess of Vitamin A. This seemed to me like a possibility because I had begun taking multivitamins to try and supplement my diet, in addition to taking two fish oil tablets a day at my mom's insistence. Furthermore, in late December I had been prescribed tretinoin for my acne, which I'm fairly certain is a Vitamin A derivative, and which I used through all of January and February.
Other factors that lead me to believe (hope) that I'm not suffering from male pattern baldness yet is that the texture of my hairs seems to be different everywhere on my head (although definitely more pronounced in the front), and that I've lost hair in non male pattern baldness places, like along my sideburns.
Granted, after reading a few posts on this site it's become clearer and clearer to me that I'm probably just an unlucky individual with early male pattern baldness, and I am prepared to seek out a doctor and get on some propecia.
My question though, is if it were by some chance the case where my system had a Vitamin overload/deficiency of some kind, how long should I wait to see if my hair returns to normal? Is one month sufficient time, or should I waste no time and go see the doctor right now? Part of me is a little bit curious that I'll start on Propecia only to have my hair return to normal, and then have no idea whether or not it's the propecia or my readjusted living style that has caused it. I'd rather not take any pills if I don't have to.
Thanks for your time
