Balding crisis engulfs the post-’90s generation

The front page of the Wuhan Morning News today features a strange picture: the back of a bald-man’s head with a nail sticking out of it, and a goat leashed to the nail. The goat is walking the circumference of its leash, eating the man’s hair, making him bald. The headline reads “ Why the baldness crisis has engulfed the post-90s generation.”

The article says a recent survey of men aged 20 to 40 has shown that men today are, on average, losing their hair 20 years earlier than the previous generation. While the bald patch used to be a typical symbol of being successful and middle-aged, Chinese men born in the 90’s generation are beginning to bald in their 20s. Some are even losing their hair as early as high school.

Experts believe this earlier hair loss is a “modern disease,” related to the modern lifestyle. The article includes personal interviews with several young Chinese men who began balding early. It treats balding as a medical issue as opposed to an aesthetic one, and describes how Dr. Ping Aiping, a dermatologist at the Wuhan Union Hospital, frequently encounters cases of early-onset baldness. He says his hair-loss patients are getting younger and younger. These young men often feel insecure about their baldness and find it difficult to find employment. They are eager for medical attention.

The article advises that men count the number of hairs they lose each day. If that number exceeds 150 hairs, they should actively seek medical attention. The causes of hair loss are environmental, and include: eating too much meat, staying up late, and going to the salon too often. The article finishes by pointing out that, for young people, preventing hair loss is very simple: eat a light diet, rest and improve your way of life.

This front page stood in contrast to the majority of front pages today, which focused on an important speech Hu Jintao gave yesterday at the Opening Ceremony of the Provincial and Ministerial Level Leading Cadres Symposium. The speech was presided over by Xi Jinping, and attended by other high-ranking Party members, including Wu Bangguo, Wen Jia bao, Jia Qinglin, Li Changchun, Li Keqiang, He Guoqiang and Zhou Yongkang.

In the speech, Hu Jintao stressed that cadres should hold high the great banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics, take guidance from Deng Xiaoping’s theory of “Three Represents,” thoroughly implement the scientific concept of development, emancipate the mind, and continue reform and opening up along the road of socialism with Chinese characteristics. He noted that the 16th Party Congress has traveled a bumpy road, and will have to overcome a series of severe challenges to achieve the next phase of development.

The speech made headlines across the country, and was featured on many front pages, including the following examples:

Reuters has more on Hu Jintao’s speech at the link below.

Links and Sources
Wuhan Morning Post: 脱发危机 为何缠上“90后”?
Beijing Daily: 胡锦涛在省部级主要领导干部专题研讨班开班式上发表重要讲话强调 
Reuters: China’s Hu calls for party unity as succession looms
CNN: How will China’s tech-savvy post-90s generation shape the nation?  
Telegraph: China cancels visa restriction on bald Taiwanese visitors  
Wikipedia: Three Represents

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