Does Hair Just Fall Out When the Hairline Matures?

Hi Doc, I have a question about the hairline maturation process. I’ve heard mixed things and I’m a little bit confused. Does the (non-balding) maturation process occur with or without miniaturization? Or can it be either/or? You have suggested that the hairs just fall out, but I’ve also read from you that they miniaturize. Can you please shed some light on this for me?

When you age from the teenage years to your twenties, your hair can recede a bit. This does not mean you are balding and you probably do not go through the miniaturization process. How this happens is not an exact science.

I would say your very front hairs will thin out over time as it miniaturizes and falls out if you have the balding process. In many of the young men who have come to see me and who appear to be developing a mature hairline let’s say half way up to the mature position, I rarely see miniaturization… while those men who eventually develop male pattern baldness will show miniaturization in the leading edge of the hairline.

The location of the mature hairline can be seen here.