Premature Baldness Or Graying May Be Sign Of Heart Disease

A new study conducted by the European Society of Cardiology found that men who bald early or whose hair turns gray early may be at greater risk for heart disease, according to the BBC Thursday.

The study conducted on young men in India looked at more than 2,000 men and found that those with coronary artery disease were more likely to be balding or graying at an early age. The findings from the society were set to be presented at the 69th annual Cardiological Society of India conference which starts Thursday in Kolkata.

The study looked at 790 men under 40 who had coronary heart disease and 1,270 healthy men of the same age who acted as a control group. The men went through a clinical history and were then assessed for signs of balding or graying. Researchers then compared the changes in hair to the severity of the man’s heart disease.

Researchers found that men with the heart condition were more likely to have been graying, 50 percent of the men with the disease were graying as compared with 30 percent of the control group. They also found that men with the condition were more like to be balding. Premature balding occurred in 27 percent of the control group, but 49 percent in the group of men with the heart disease.

“The possible reason could be the process of biological aging, which may be faster in certain patients and may be reflected in hair changes,” said Dr. Kamal Sharma, chief researcher for the study to the BBC.

Alun Hughes, professor of cardiovascular physiology and pharmacology at University College London, told the BBC that this new study builds on previous research into the correlation.

“People have speculated that it may be an indicator of DNA damage associated with aging,” said Hughes. “Also, since hair follicles are a target for androgen, for example, testosterone, it has been suggested that early male pattern baldness could reflect differences in responses to androgens that might influence the risk of heart disease.”

A 2013 Japanese study of 37,000 men also found that those balding were 32 percent more likely to have coronary heart disease.