Male pattern balding in women.

[Angelic69]

Hi all, I know a lot of us have hair thinning issues and recently mine have become quite alarming. I have just been introduced to a substance called dihydrotestostrone, DHT. hormone.org › glands-and-hormones-a-to-z DHT, or dihydrotestosterone, is an androgen produced as a byproduct of testosterone. ... If you're genetically susceptible to hair loss, DHT can bind to receptors in your hair follicles and cause them to shrink, weaken and eventually die.18 Sep 2017. I know there has been posts about RT3 and testosterone and was wondering if anyone thinks that this may be why some of us are experiencing this problem on levothyroxine as it may convert to rT3 and then onto testosterone . forhims.com/blog/dht-and-ma.... Most testosterone is bound to sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) protein and isn't active. ... Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is made from testosterone by an enzyme. DHT is five times more potent than testosterone. DHT is primarily used by the body in the prostate, skin, and hair follicles. I myself have not only experienced male pattern hair loss but also changes within my skin only since I started levothyroxine. I was wondering if anyone has ever been blood checked for this substance in relation to their personal hair loss journey and if so could you please share your experience. If no one has been checked for this substance I wonder why when there are several fingers that seem to be pointing this way.

[greygoose]

I know there has been posts about RT3 and testosterone and was wondering if anyone thinks that this may be why some of us are experiencing this problem on levothyroxine as it may convert to rT3 and then onto testosterone .

No, rT3 does not convert to testosterone. It converts to T2, then T1, and then the component parts are recycle in the body. I would love to read the 'explanation' on the site you linked to, but the link only leads to a blank page.

Everybody has some rT3 in their blood. T4 always converts to both T3 and rT3. It's if you have excess T4 - high FT4 - that it starts converting to more rT3 than T3.

However, in the early days of taking levo, it can encourage testosterone to convert to too much DHT. The antidote to this is Evening Primrose Oil and Borage Oil. But, it should only be temporary.

[Angelic69 in reply to greygoose]

Don't know why page for link is blank, I did check link and it was ok on my side. I will check my history and see if I can find link.

hypothyroidmom.com/10-thing...

The hormonal process of testosterone converting to DHT, which then harms hair follicles, happens in both men and women. Under normal conditions, women have a minute fraction of the level of testosterone that men have, but even a lower level can cause DHT- triggered hair loss in women. And certainly when those levels rise, DHT is even more of a problem. Those levels can rise and still be within what doctors consider “normal” on a blood test, even though they are high enough to cause a problem. The levels may not rise at all and still be a problem if you have the kind of body chemistry that is overly sensitive to even its regular levels of chemicals, including hormones.

Try this one, its not the same link but mentions thyroid hormones as a cause of hair loss and the bit above is later on on the same link.

[greygoose in reply to Angelic69]

That link worked, but it didn't say anything about rT3 converting to testosterone, which was the bit I was interested in.

[Angelic69 in reply to greygoose]

My hair loss was stabilised but just started falling out again in great amounts. I had been given mercury pharma levo instead of my usual Almus or teva, so may be due to that although all generics are supposed to be equal. It wasn't just hair loss my constipation got much worse too and my energy levels were ridiculously low, couldn't function at any level. I've been back on Teva and hair loss seems to have slowed down a bit.

[shaws Administrator]

Some times hair loss can be due to Alopecia and if we have one autoimmune condition we can develop others unfortunately.