Hair Transplant at Age 50: Not Too Late

I find there are so many misconceptions surrounding hair transplants, but one of the most common has to be about age and viability. What’s the cut-off point to having a hair transplant? Is there a maximum age when you can no longer have this procedure? Should I have a hair transplant at 50?

These are all viable questions and I want to clear up the confusion about having a hair transplant at age 50 in the below article. I will look at how your hair changes approaching your 50s and the factors that affect the viability of you having a procedure at this stage of your life.

Understanding How Your Hair Changes at 50

I’m sure you are probably aware of how your hair changes as you get older but it’s important to know the specifics as this will affect the results of your hair transplants. As you get older, you may notice the following concerning your hair:

• Your hair becomes thinner.
• It can also change color.
• You can experience hair loss.

Our hair has a growth cycle where hairs age, fall out, and grow again within the same follicles. As we get older, this growth cycle slows down and becomes less effective.

The first side effect of this is that our hair becomes thinner. While you once had luscious, thick hair during your 20s and 30s, your hair will gradually get thinner as you approach your 50s.

Our hair also grows back at a slower rate as we grow older. This is not a type of genetic hair loss like androgenetic alopecia, but a natural aging process. Lastly, your hair can lose its color and turn grey.

Viability of Hair Transplants at 50

Three main factors affect your viability for a hair transplant at age 50 – your hair loss, the quality of your hair, and your general health.

What is the extent of your hair loss?

A hair transplant involves taking your hair from the back of your head and implanting it into the areas of hair loss. Therefore, you must have enough donor hair to have a successful transplant.

For example, perhaps your hair loss is extensive and you are essentially bald on the top of your head. In a case like this, you may not have enough donor hair to cover the hair loss and get a satisfactory result.

What is the quality of your hair like?

The extent of hair loss is vital, but the quality of your hair matters too. As explained above, in your 50s, the quality of your hair has degraded. This means that your transplanted hair will be the same quality.

A hair transplant isn’t giving you new, young hair – it’s transplanting your old, grey, thinning hair and you have to be realistic about the end results based on this.

How is your general health and fitness?

As we get older, our bodies don’t recover in the same way from injury and surgeries. Medically speaking, a hair transplant is a relatively mild type of surgery compared to something like an organ transplant or hip replacement.

That being said, you should still be physically fit, and not have too many underlying medical conditions that could hinder your recovery or cause complications after the hair transplant.

At the age of 50, hopefully, you are still in good shape and can cope well with a hair transplant procedure, compared to if you were 70 for example. You can take a look at our before and after results to see some older patients and how a hair transplant can work perfectly fine at the age of 50.

Consultation and Professional Evaluation

It’s incredibly difficult for a man to assess their hair loss condition and the quality of their hair. This is why to determine your suitability for a hair transplant at 50, I advise booking a consultation with a professional hair loss specialist.

Having a professional evaluation allows the factors I mentioned above to be discussed. The surgeon will look at your hair, check its quality, and see if you have enough good-quality donor hair to have a transplant.

You will also discuss what you want to achieve and other factors like your health. After the consultation, you should have a clear idea of whether a transplant is viable or not.

50 Could be an Ideal Time for a Hair Transplant

While 35 is considered to be the best age for a hair transplant, having one in your 50s can also work. It all depends on the quality of your hair, the severity of your hair loss, and your situation including your health.

Oftentimes during our 50s, our hair may not have thinned or greyed too much unlike when we are in our 60s or older. This means that oftentimes a hair transplant at 50 is viable and the results can be fantastic. To be certain, the best course of action is to seek a consultation and get a professional evaluation.