@norascience.health: Your hair isn't falling out. It's shrinking. Here's what's actually happening on your head 👇 You have around 100,000 hair follicles. Each one is a tiny factory that runs in cycles: it grows a hair for 2 to 7 years, rests for about 3 months, sheds it, then starts a new one. That's why losing 50 to 100 hairs a day is completely normal. The problem starts with testosterone. An enzyme called 5-alpha-reductase converts some of it into DHT, a much stronger hormone. In some people, the follicles on the top and front of the head are genetically sensitive to it. When DHT attaches, the follicle starts to shrink. The growth phase gets shorter, and every new hair comes back thinner, shorter and lighter than the last. After enough cycles, the hair is so fine you can't even see it. That's baldness. The follicle is still there. It just stopped making real hair. A few things most people don't know: → The back and sides almost never go bald because those follicles resist DHT. That's exactly why surgeons use them for hair transplants, and they keep resisting DHT in their new spot. → In women, it usually shows up as thinning across the top, not a receding hairline. → Stress, illness or childbirth can push lots of follicles into the resting phase at once. 2 to 3 months later the hair sheds all together, and it usually grows back. → Round bald patches are a different thing entirely: the immune system attacking the follicles (alopecia areata). Can you stop it? Finasteride blocks the enzyme that makes DHT. Minoxidil keeps follicles in the growth phase longer. But both work best early, because a follicle that's been dormant for years rarely comes back. So remember it like this: baldness isn't hair falling out. It's follicles slowly shrinking, one cycle at a time. 💾 Save this for later and send it to someone who's been checking their hairline in the mirror. Did you know the follicle is still there? Tell me in the comments 👇 This is educational, not medical advice. Talk to a doctor or dermatologist before starting any treatment. #hairloss #baldness #dht #hairgrowth #Science

Nora | Health & Science

Open In TikTok:

Region: GB

Monday 12 October 2026 12:56:59 GMT