New Study Debunks "Dumb Blonde" Theory

Photo by PR Photos

You may want to think twice before making one of those "dumb blonde" jokes...

A new study out of Stanford University found there is no link between hair color and intelligence and personality. The study found that golden locks are the result of just a single letter of genetic code, meaning one letter can determine if you are blonde or brunette. No correlation between a person's intelligence and hair color was found.

The study also suggests eye color and hair color are not genetically related, meaning the coveted blonde hair-blue eyes combo are not genetically linked. 

To read more on the study, check out the National Geographic article here. 

New Research Links Divorce to Hair Loss in Women

If divorce wasn't already hard enough, a new study suggests it can also trigger hair loss in women. The research found that, genetics aside, marital status is the next strongest predictor of midline hair loss in women, noting that the loss of a spouse (through either divorce or death) raises the risk for thinning hair above that of married or single women. But marital status isn't the only influencing lifestyle factor the research uncovered, sun exposure, excessive drinking and/or smoking also appear to raise the risk of hair loss in women. 

The study, which examined 84 female identical twins, found those who were divorced or widowed exhibited more hair loss than married women. In addition, excessive alcohol consumption led to higher levels of female hair loss along the front of the head. Heavy smoking was a significant contributor to female hair loss in the temple area. However, women who drank moderately - two alcoholic beverages a week - experienced significantly less temporal hair loss than their twin. 

The research was presented recently at the American Society of Plastic Surgeons annual conference. 

While these findings may seen surprising to some, it confirms what experts already know, that stress and other lifestyle choices can impact how and when we lose our hair. 

More than half of women over 40 will experience hair loss, but thanks to medical advances and new technology, hair loss is now a treatable condition. There are special treatments available for women, such as FDA-approved Rogaine For Women, vitamin supplements, such as Viviscal, Low Level Laser Therapy, micro-surgical hair transplants and even Latisse, the celebrity eyelash drug.

The bottom line is, hair loss can be treated - but early detection is key for optimal results, so if you have questions or concerns, don't wait to call a board-certified hair restoration physician.

Researchers Find Drug to Regrow Hair in Mice

As with many medical discoveries, U.S. researchers may have accidentally stumbled upon a cure for baldness. 

Researchers made the breakthrough while testing the effects of a stress-reducing chemical compound on a group of hairless mice. Three months after the treatments, the mice had grown back all of their hair. Researchers duplicated the results in several repeated experiments. The compound also prevented hair loss in young mice.

While researchers are hopeful that this could lead to a breakthrough therapy for human baldness, they stress there is no way to know if the compound will translate to humans. 

UCLA professor of medicine and co-author of the study, Yvette Tache, said it could take up to five years to start clinical trials in humans. 

Additional information on the study can be found on the online journal PLoS One.

Study: Balding in 20s May be Early Sign of Prostate Cancer

Men who experience balding in their 20s may be twice as likely to get prostate cancer later in life, according to a new study.

The study, published this week in the journal Annals of Oncology, suggests that early hair loss could be used to select men for prostate screening. The study didn't report any link between between hair loss later in life and risk for cancer.

Male pattern baldness, or androgenic alopecia, is very common and affects 50 percent of men at some point in their lives, and some as early as their 20s.

Previous studies linked its onset to the conversion of testosterone to androgenic hormones, similarly, androgens have been implicated in the onset and growth of prostate cancer.

The drug finasteride, currently used to treat baldness, blocks the conversion of testosterone to an androgen thought to cause hair loss. Studies have also shown the drug to be successful at lowering the incidence of prostate cancer.

Further studies will be conducted to see if screenings might be appropriate for men with very early balding - but the research team warns that it is still too premature to conclude that early balding and prostate cancer are linked.