I’ve always been told that hair loss in men was passed down through the mother’s side — i.e., whether or not the mother’s father had hair loss would affect whether her sons would.

It seems that’s not exactly the case.  It sounds like the hair loss gene is on the X and Y chromosomes, so it can come down from either your mom’s or your dad’s side.  So even if your mom’s dad didn’t have any hair loss, you could end up needing hair replacement surgery.

So I guess when I have kids someday, they may not be as lucky as I thought.  My dad’s hair has thinned a little bit, but only a little, and it’s taken a long time to do so.  I always thought that boded well for my children, but perhaps not!  My maternal grandfather’s hair has thinned considerably as he has aged, though he hasn’t gone completely bald on top.  And though my husband’s dad hasn’t had problems with balding or thinning hair, we don’t know anything about his maternal grandfather, as his mom never knew her father.

So it’s really a big mystery what kind of genes our children will inherit.  But I suppose the mystery is half the fun, right?

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