Numerous options for men battling baldness

Hair's lookin' at you!

Yvette PutterOn the first morning of his Worst Toupee in the U.S.A. contest, Dr. Daniel Kamen's phone is ringing madly with people wanting to know more on how they can judge candidates in this politically incorrect competition.

Kamen is the author of Sam Donaldson's Toupee and other material off the top of my head, a book he says is inspired by the well-known ABC news reporter and years of witnessing bad coverups.

"He's the benchmark of bad toupees," says Kamen. "His is the sort of thing you would wear only if you lost a competition."

Describing himself as a natural joker, Kamen stresses his contest is not meant to offend anyone and should be looked at with light spirits.

"If someone's offended, then maybe they shouldn't be wearing it. This really is fun. I'm not going to put anyone up who doesn't want to be there — except maybe celebrities."

With a full head of hair himself, Kamen thinks many men believe a hair piece is the best option after losing hair to remain attractive, but he thinks men should embrace their baldness.

"There's worse things in life," he says. "Bald looks much better than an ill-fitting toupee."

For the millions with receding hairlines, though, losing what many perceive is a masculine symbol is no laughing matter.

Caused by factors such as genetics, age and hormonal changes, many aspects of balding are non-preventable.

Micron Laboratories specialist Paul Pon believes hair loss brings a very defeating feeling to those who suffer from it.

"Image is everything, and in that first moment, you still need to sell yourself."

Gordon Allen, manager of Hair Club for Men in Calgary, agrees.

"There's a real desire to maintain one's youth, and balding really ages someone. So, especially if you're in your 20s, you really stick out," Allen says.

Despite some of its negative connotations, the hairpiece still plays a valuable role in the industry, and it's come a long way since its early, synthetic days.

Today, the hairpiece uses human hair matching colour, texture and even natural hair line.

"The technology really has come a long way. The hairpiece now is really instant hair and natural looking," Allen adds.

Sixty-million people suffer from hair loss every year and the hair replacement industry is jumping to offer consumers everything from quick-fixes to extensive surgical procedures.

At Micron Laboratories, Pon performs natural follicle rejuvenation therapy. This involves herbal-based topics and a study of the scalp and follicles to determine the cause of hair loss.

For those considering surgical options, Pon and Allen say it is best to go to well-established locations.

"There's a lot of sneaky salesmen out there, so you do have to be careful. But there are very safe procedures available," says Allen.

Hair transplants, in which grafts are taken from donor areas to be transplanted to the bald spots, is the closest a person can get to having one's own hair through replacement, says Allen.

As for the bad toupee contest, people can submit their worst toupee picture to threeboyspress.com, where the public will vote on a winner.

Canadians are welcome to join, says Kamen.

The contest runs though Nov. 14, 2005.
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FAST FACTS

• Avoid things that cause breakage,such as rubbing hair too vigorously after washing or using a hot hairdryer.

• Wash your hair daily. Dirty hair lies flat to the scalp which makes it look more sparse.

• Baldness occurs when the scalps become overly sensitive in the production of DHT.

• On average complete baldness will be reached 20 years after the initial loss of hair.