white buildup covering the hair root

[dw99]

i know this has been brought up and addressed many times, but i have yet to see a decent/plausible explanation for it. so anyway, i'm 22 and have been noticing hair loss for about 4 or 5 months now. i am diffusely thinning only on the front right part of my head but my hairline is still in tact (it has not moved back at all) despite it being thinner at the front right.

so like many of us on this board, i have become completely obsessed with my hair loss to the point that i very carefully examine each hair that falls out these days. the most striking thing that i've noticed is that ALL of the hairs that fall from my thinning area have a white buildup/sheath that covers the root of the hair. if i gently grasp the hair with two fingers and run them over the end of the hair the white stuff slides right off exposing the root of the hair. other hair that falls off from the other parts of my head have NONE of this buildup over the root.

other than the white buildup, all the hairs that i am losing in my thin spot look just like the hairs that fall out of my non-thinning spots (just as healthy, thick, and pigmented).

what could be an explanation for this? could these be sebum deposits that have "suffocated" the hair root? are they dead cells that have been killed by DHT? any feedback on this would be very much appreciated. thanks!

 

[hairschmair]

The white bulb (if that is what you are referring to) at the end of the hair means that the hair fell out from the root. All this means is that it did not BREAK. Most of the hairs you shed, in both male pattern baldness areas and non-male pattern baldness areas should have that white stuff. Hairs don't break very easily, as far as I know.

 

[dw99]

yeah, i know that the white bulb at the end of the hair is the root, but that's not really what i'm getting at on this post. it's the white buildup that i have that COVERS the root that i'd like an explanation for. thanks for the response though.

someone has to have some explanation/guess as to why this happens.

BUMP! :lol:

 

[YoungAndThin]

yeah I have that too. the white substance is dry right?

I can just pinch it off my hairs. I always thought it was some weird form of dandruff or something.

i

 

[dw99]

yeah, it's a dry substance that just comes right off when you rub your fingers over it.... i know it must have some significance as it's only on hair that falls out of my thinning spots.

i can't help but think that if i could get rid of this substance that my hair might drastically improve. :?

 

[marsbtchsx]

i got the same exact problem.....the shits all over head tho....im going to the derm to ask him specifically about that problem soon....i keep thinking if i treat that my hairloss situation would get better also

 

[dw99]

marsbtchsx, thanks for the reply... please keep me posted as to what your derm says about the problem as i would be very interested.

also, for how long have you been losing your hair and in what pattern? do you think you have male pattern baldness or some other form of hair loss?

 

[Dpunkz]

I got the white stuff on the bottom of each hair root too. I personaly think that we will find out that trhis has nothing to do wiht our hair loss. I belive that all hair that falls out will have that same kind of substance at the bottom of it.

 

[hairschmair]

I'm still not clear on whether the white substance discussed is different from the usual white substance (which is the root of the hair).

 

[dw99]

hairshmair, the white subtance being discussed is NOT the root of the hair, which you will find is almost impossible to remove from the end of the hair.

the substance we are discussing actually covers the root and can be easily removed by sliding ones fingers over it. hope this clears things up.

 

[marsbtchsx]

ill def let u kno....i dont have any resession or however u spell that....im just diffusing all over but mostly at the crown....the right side above the swirl the most diffused...im on month ten of propecia and i think its slowly going to sh*t

 

[Trent]

i thought you had like a really good hair day a few weeks back? with a new style where they were calling you GQ and stuff? what happened?

 

[marsbtchsx]

i hope ur not talking about me lol...cause none of that happened at all

 

[yello911]

Yup, I get those. Sometimes they are yellow and very hard. I sometimes feel little bumps on my head and I pick at them. When it comes out, there is a clump on the end that comes off really easily exposing the white root. Sometimes I will have two hairs encapsuled in the same clump. I believe it's hardened sebum. If I brush my hair often and wash it daily, this problem is greatly reduced.