Teenager with Low Iron, Dandruff, and Hair Loss

Dear Doctor,

Hi I’m a 16 year old boy attending my last year of high school. The problem is that I’ve noticed my scalp is thinning. My hair has always been quite thin but its getting REALLY thin now. I’ve taken a blood test, and the doctor said that I had low Iron. Could that be the problem? I’m taking iron pills and eating right to get my iron level up again. Besides from thinning hair I am also noticing that I feel dizzy sometimes, and my stamina has really gotten bad.

I’m really concerned about this, because my hair thinning is quite noticeable, you can even see my scalp with enough light.

I should also point out that I have greasy hair and that its infected with dandruff.

I have bought some special kind of shampoo to improve my hair loss state, so we’ll see how that goes.

My question is: Do you have any advice for me? What should I do? Should I buy any specific products?

Thanks in advance

Sounds like you need a relationship with a good doctor who can make your diagnosis (rule out male patterned balding which does happen to 16 year olds). Low iron is absolutely a cause of hair loss. Dandruff is not a cause, nor is dandruff an infection. We replace our scalp skin regularly as old skin get shed (dandruff when the shedding is more rapid) and new skin grows from below. You can wash out the dandruff with shampoos that are designed to get the flakes out.

For a diagnosis, you need to get your hair mapped out for miniaturization to rule out genetic balding, which would show a normal donor hair area and thinning elsewhere. Low iron should show miniaturization of the hair all over the head.