DNA test for baldness?

Instead of nervously staring at the long line of bald domes in their family tree, young men who are worried about losing their hair can now take a DNA test that will determine their odds of going bald before 40.

HairDX, a company based in Irvine, Calif., that created the test, says the test searches for a genetic variant that 95 percent of all bald men share. Men who test positive for the genetic variant are at 60 percent risk of going bald before 40. The test also identifies whether a man has a less-common variant that means an 85 percent chance of not going bald by that age.

For $149, men can swab the inside of their cheek and send off the DNA sample to the company, which sends back results three to four weeks later that give all the hairy details about what is in store for their scalp. The test, released in January, is available on the company Web site and some doctors' offices.

Decrying 99.9 percent of hair-loss products on the market as "scams," company president Andy Goren says the DNA test provides a solid basis for when and how to seek treatment. "There are all sorts of creams that don't work," Goren said. "This gives you something scientific, and consumers like that."

Angela Christiano, an associate professor of genetics and development at Columbia University who is skeptical of the test's reliability, says it is hard to pinpoint the cause of baldness because very few genes connected to hair loss have been identified.

Although HairDX analyzes one genetic variant for hair loss, other still unknown variants play a vital role in determining baldness, she says.

"Picking one gene is a little arbitrary," Christiano says. "There's really nothing else you can look at, though. If we don't know what the other 10 genes are, it's hard to know what the contribution of this gene is."

Spencer Kobren, founder of the American Hair Loss Association, acknowledges that the test isn't "perfect" but still gave it the group's endorsement.

"To me and other physicians, we really think for the first time there may be a good indicator of hair loss, and why not utilize it?" he says.

Kobren says men usually wait until they see signs of balding before taking any action, but knowing they are genetically destined to lose their hair might give them the jump-start they need to keep their locks.

"If I can give you one more piece of information about yourself, use it," Goren says. "It doesn't hurt to know."