The Vikings used a lotion of goose poo. The ancient Greek medic Hippocrates believed the best cure for baldness was really pigeon droppings, which he mixed with horseradish, cumin and nettles. One 5,000 year-old Egyptian recipe suggested blending the burned prickles of a hedgehog immersed in oil with honey, alabaster, red ochre – oh, and fingernail scrapings – and slathering the concoction liberally over the affected area.

For as long as men have had access to mirrors, they’ve been fretting about their scalps getting lonely. It was a particular obsession of Julius Caesar, who tried everything to get his hair back; the wreath of laurels he wore was less a nod to Roman tradition than an attempt at covering up his shiny pate. By the time he met Cleopatra, he was almost completely bald. In a last ditch attempt to save his mop, she lovingly recommended a home remedy of ground-up mice, horse teeth and bear grease.

Alas, it didn’t work. He lost his hair like many great men before and since, including Socrates, Napoleon, Aristotle, Gandhi, Darwin, Churchill, Shakespeare and Hippocrates – who, despite the pigeon droppings, was so bald he even has a type of baldness named after him. Eventually Caesar began growing his hair longer at the back and combing these strands forwards across his head, a technique which was optimistically described as “illusion styling”. Now it’s known as the comb-over.

Thousands of years later, we’ve moved on from garlands and revolting concoctions to expensive creams, tonics and shampoos, and last resorts of toupes, pills and surgery. Today you can attend a hair loss clinic, sign up for hair-loss counselling and it’s not unusual to see adverts telling balding men to “see their doctor”. Papers discuss balding in epidemic terms, meanwhile the phenomenon even has a new scientific-sounding name, “androgenic alopecia”. If you didn’t know otherwise, you might think it was a medical condition.

For read the full text click here:

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20160921-the-benefits-of-going-bald

  • Other similar themes:

Five tech trends shaping the beauty industry – https://e-dermatologie.md/five-tech-trends-shaping-the-beauty-industry/

How much water should you drink a day? – https://e-dermatologie.md/how-much-water-should-you-drink-a-day/

Why do women live longer than men? – https://e-dermatologie.md/why-do-women-live-longer-than-men/

Skinny genes the ‘secret to staying slim’ – https://e-dermatologie.md/skinny-genes-the-secret-to-staying-slim/

Why you don’t really have a ‘type’ – https://e-dermatologie.md/why-you-dont-really-have-a-type/

Can social networks help you lose weight? – https://e-dermatologie.md/can-social-networks-help-you-lose-weight/

Low-calorie shakes and soup diets ‘recommended for obese’ – https://e-dermatologie.md/low-calorie-shakes-and-soup-diets-recommended-for-obese/

Probiotics labelled ‘quite useless’ – https://e-dermatologie.md/probiotics-labelled-quite-useless/

The reasons why women’s voices are deeper today – https://e-dermatologie.md/the-reasons-why-womens-voices-are-deeper-today/

The people who cannot smile – https://e-dermatologie.md/the-people-who-cannot-smile/

Potential new cure found for baldness – https://e-dermatologie.md/potential-new-cure-found-for-baldness/

Five things you might be surprised affect weight – https://e-dermatologie.md/five-things-you-might-be-surprised-affect-weight/

What is the ‘ideal’ female body shape? – https://e-dermatologie.md/what-is-the-ideal-female-body-shape/

Is the taboo around male make-up disappearing? – https://e-dermatologie.md/is-the-taboo-around-male-make-up-disappearing/

These are the six biggest fashion looks for 2018 – https://e-dermatologie.md/these-are-the-six-biggest-fashion-looks-for-2018/

Is this what real beauty looks like? – https://e-dermatologie.md/is-this-what-real-beauty-looks-like/

The secret to a long and healthy life? Eat less – https://e-dermatologie.md/the-secret-to-a-long-and-healthy-life-eat-less/

Why vitamin pills don’t work, and may be bad for you – https://e-dermatologie.md/why-vitamin-pills-dont-work-and-may-be-bad-for-you/