Study offers insight into future baldness

National report

- A study published in the June issue of the

Archives of Dermatology

demonstrate a hair-count method to determine if you're balding, according to HealthDay News.

The method, called the "60-second hair count", was used in the study by 60 healthy men aged 20 to 60 without signs of balding. The men washed their hair three mornings in a row with Neutragena T/Sal shampoo, and on the fourth day, they were given identical combs to comb their hair over a towel or pillowcase of a contrasting color. They then counted the hairs that had fallen out. This procedure was repeated on the next two days and the count was verified under a microscope.

Based on the results, authors conclude that losing 10 hairs is "normal" in men aged 20 to 40, the shedding range was zero to 78 hairs with a mean of 10.2 hairs. In older men, the range was zero to 43 with a mean of 10.3 hairs, the study reports.