Am I Looking at Hair Genetics the Wrong Way?

Hello doctors, thank you so much for taking the time to do this, I really appreciate it.

Let me start off saying that I am a male and 19 years old. My question is about family hair types and the balding gene. My father is bald (looks like NW6 or NW5V). When he was younger, he told me he had hair that was like mine in that it was wavy/not naturally straight. Now this is my question, does this mean I inherited his hair gene since my hair is like his? Does this also mean I will go bald because of this, or is this the wrong way to think about the genetics?

I read your other posts about a gene being inherited but not expressed, but I would really like to know in your professional opinion that if my hair is like my dad’s(in terms of style only, his colour was black but mine is brownish)did I get his gene for hair and hair loss?

Thank you so much.

I really have no clue as to how you will bald or when or if you will even bald at all. It’s just not an easy thing to predict based on what you’ve told me. Male pattern baldness is genetically inherited, but just because you and your father have similar hair characteristics, does not necessarily mean you will have the same hair loss pattern. The only real way to tell is by time. In time, you’ll know if you’re destined to follow your father’s balding pattern.

The next best thing is an examination by a qualified physician with a miniaturization study. With that, you should be able to get an idea of early thinning (if any) and slow it down with medication. Then with follow-up studies of your scalp, you’ll be able to see how the hair loss is progressing and the doctor should be able to make an educated guess as to where you’ll end up.