Three quarters of balding men fear hair loss is slimming their chances in love
DR FURQAN RAJA
Three quarters of balding men believe their hair loss is holding them back from finding true love, according to research. The study of 800 adult males who have thinning or no hair found 73 percent claimed to have less luck on the dating scene than their hirsute friends.
One in five blame their receding hairline, with 32 per cent believing they were luckier in love when they had full locks.
It also emerged 40 percent feel their hair loss has knocked their confidence when approaching women.
The Private Clinic of Harley Street, which commissioned the research, said:
“Most men are already anxious around dating but hair loss forms a large part of this anxiety. Images portrayed on social media have raised unrealistic expectations and we find people comparing themselves to what they see as perfection.
“While some may think hair loss is not a significant issue, it can have a psychological impact on confidence, especially as physical features are one of the areas dates often notice first.
But the good news is there are solutions to tackling baldness and ultimately maintaining good health of your hair to last longer.”
The study also found 18 percent of those polled have experienced some form of negativity towards their hair loss, with a further 23 percent witnessing it happen to other people.
Of those, 47 percent have heard comments about not wanting to date someone who is losing their hair, while 41 percent have faced jokes about a receding hairline.
And 48 percent have noticed someone staring at their hair or baldness.
As a result, 42 percent wished they had a better head of hair, with 22 percent of those thinking about this as often as once a day.
While 30 percent have even considered a hair transplant, believing it would improve their career, love life and confidence.
But of those who haven’t considered the procedure, 47 percent think it would be too expensive while 13 percent fear the treatment.
The study, carried out via OnePoll, also found 39 percent started to notice their hair thinning before reaching their mid-thirties, with 44 percent blaming it on genetics.
While 26 percent put their baldness down to cutting their hair too short and 21 percent worry it’s due to dying it too much.
Mr Michael Mouzakis, expert hair transplant and plastic surgeon, also based at The Private Clinic, which offers FUE hair transplants, said:
“Baldness is caused by various factors such as excess hair treatment, stress and mostly down to genetics. We’re here to help men keen to make the first step and be more open about their hair in a positive manner. It’s normal to lose hair. We can lose between 50 and 100 hairs a day, often without noticing.
Hair loss is not usually anything to be worried about, but occasionally it can be a sign of a medical condition. Some types of hair loss are permanent, like male pattern baldness and female pattern baldness. This type of hair loss usually runs in the family. Other types of hair loss may be temporary. They can be caused by an illness, stress, cancer treatment, weight loss or iron deficiency.”
This article was also featured in The Mirror and Joe.co.uk