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214 ILLUSTRATED WORLD
'Baldness Is More Frequent Anions Brain Workers than Among
Manual Laborers'*
years, appearing earlier or later according
to the physiological and not the
chronological age of the individual.
A fourth form of baldness is called
alopecia areata, baldness in irregular
spots, due, in some cases, to a parasitic
invasion of the denuded area ; in others
apparently caused by grave nutritional
disturbance accompanying some serious
ailment of the nervous system, and in
still others being - a symptom of constitutional
disease.
Theories in explanation of premature
baldness are put forward in bewildering
array by numerous authorities, not including
the barbers themselves, and most
of the theories have some foundation in
fact. The subject is comparable with
tuberculosis. It may be granted that
there are innumerable contributing or
predisposing factors which tend to lower
resistance in one way or another, but
only one essential factor for the transfer
of the disease, namely, infection.
Thus, Dr. Pincus dwelt upon the
hereditary factor, which he said was inherently
a tight or stretched scalp
muscle peculiar to certain families.
Indeed, Pincus considered this the
only predisposing cause of premature
baldness.
Professor Jamieson vigorously
upheld the theory that premature
baldness is more frequent among
brain workers because the same
nerves supply brain coverings and
the scalp itself and irritation or
congestion of the brain reflexly disturbs
the nutrition of the scalp.
Plausible, isn't it, brainy reader?
Dr. King, however, puts forward
the compression theory, attributing
baldness to the compression by
hatbands and tight caps of the
frontal, temporal and occipital
arteries which nourish
the scalp. He ascribes to
differences in the shape of
the head the varying areas
of baldness in different individuals,
insisting, for instance,
that the tuft often
preserved in the middle of the forehead
owes its life to the fact that it is nourished
by two little arteries which escape
pressure by passing up the forehead in
concavities between the frontal eminences.
Others take issue with him, and
ascribe the persistent forelock to the fact
that it lies over the belly of the scalp
muscle, is freely movable, and has a less
tense substratum for its bed.
Professor Ellinger considers the daily
wetting of the hair an important cause
of premature baldness. Water forms an
emulsion with the natural oil or sebum
of the scalp and hair, and this emulsion
dries and plugs the hair follicle, damming
up the sebum in the follicle and so producing
atrophy or wasting of the hair
root. Every theory, you see, is as sound
as a dollar. Any one of them is sufficient
to sell a hair tonic or commend a new
treatment.
The abnormally tight or stretched
scalp which Pincus deems the important
factor may be brought about, he asserts,
by anxiety of mind, depression of spirits
which the subject struggles against,