The Truth About Wearing A Hat And Baldness

Hair loss is a huge source of embarrassment for some, if not all, people. Due to some cases like hereditary reasons, sickness, and environmental conditions, hair loss is inevitable. However, not all hope is lost as you can simply cover your head with a hat in order not to draw attention to your hair impairment. While this method has been used for many years, people these days are questioning the long-term effects of wearing hats, specifically the connection between hats and hair loss. Are hats actually increasing the likelihood of baldness? Well, in this post, we take a look into the relationship between a hat and baldness and see if wearing hats is bad for you in the long run.

Does Hats Causes Baldness?

The immediate answer is “no”, so that’s a relief. To this day, medical professionals and researchers have not seen a direct impact of hats on hair loss, which means that it’s safe to say that hats do not necessarily cause baldness. However, some people may believe that hats do cause hair loss may be due to the fact that hats, when worn too snugly on the head, can lead to tension on the hair and scalp, thus resulting in early signs of baldness. As such, this is a good warning sign to not wear your hats too tightly on your head and to allow the scalp to get a little breather from time to time.

All in all, wearing a hat comes with many benefits and is good for you. Besides providing some shade, hats protect the wearer from the sun’s harmful UVA and UVB rays, which decreases the likelihood of skin damage and vision loss. Other benefits include protection from environmental exposure and helping the body to cool down or preserve heat.

Causes of Baldness and Hair Loss

Instead of hats, here are the most common causes of hair loss in both men and women.

Genetics play a defining role in whether or not an individual is more vulnerable to hair loss. Known as androgenic alopecia, or otherwise more commonly known as male or female pattern baldness, this hereditary condition is inherited from mothers and other female family members that results in the hair follicles shrinking over time. This occurs due to a mix of hormones, aging, and of course, genetics. While this hair condition is progressive, it often takes years or even decades for the effects to worsen, giving you ample time for treatments.

This applies especially to women. In situations where hormones change frequently, such as during childbirth, pregnancy, and menopause, you’ll find that hair sheds quickly. The reason is that a change in hormones, specifically a decrease in estrogen and progesterone, slows down overall hair growth. Hormonal imbalances caused by thyroid problems also prevent the hair from growing.

There are good reasons hairstylists and medical professionals advise against facing too much stress. While having some stress is good, severe stress can lead to a medical condition called alopecia areata, which occurs when the immune system starts attacking the hair follicles. In more dire cases, the stress would traumatize the body so badly that the immune system goes into shock, resulting in temporary hair loss.