Hair Loss, Insulin Resistance, and Heredity in Middle-aged Women. a Population-based Study

In 2003, a study was conducted in Finland to examine the prevalence of female androgenic alopecia (AGA) and its possible connections with insulin resistance and family history of alopecia. The study involved 324 women aged 63 years. The results showed that extensive hair loss (at least grade II or III on Ludwig's scale) was quite common, affecting 31.2% of the participants. Women with extensive hair loss had significantly higher insulin resistance associated parameters such as waist and neck circumferences, abdominal obesity, mean insulin concentration, and urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio. The risk for extensive hair loss was significantly increased in women with the highest quintiles of neck or waist circumferences, hyperinsulinemia, microalbuminuria, and a paternal history of AGA. The study concluded that markers of insulin resistance significantly increased the risk for female AGA, and a paternal history of alopecia was more common in women with AGA.