5. Thinning hair on your scalp
An increased level of androgens, commonly – yet mistakenly – called male hormones, produces changes in a woman’s body as well. Many of these changes are common in a boy developing during puberty and are rarely seen in a girl in the same period of her life. But in the case of the polycystic ovarian syndrome, as well as other syndromes or alterations where the level of androgens in female bodies are higher than expected, some classically male physical characteristics can manifest.
In the case of women with polycystic ovarian syndrome, the most common phenomenon directly caused by androgens is a male hair pattern. For this reason, and especially starting middle age, women with polycystic ovarian syndrome may have thinning hair on their heads, but not in the rest of their bodies. This is the direct result of the action of androgens on the hair follicles of their scalps.