Posts Tagged ‘Hair loss’

Types of Hair Implants

Posted by admin on December 9th, 2009

Get hair growing in your bald spot. The fact is, due to the causes of balding in men, the chances of rubbing something into your scalp and miraculously seeing hair start to grow is about zero. 95% of all men who suffer from hair loss have a genetic condition known as Androgenetic Alopecia or Male Pattern Baldness (MPB). The results of this condition are that the hair follicles, the part that grows the hair, are rendered useless by a substance called DHT. This DHT bonds with receptors on the follicle and causes it to slowly stop functioning.

Once enough of this substance has attached itself to the hair follicles they can no longer produce hair shaft material and the hair itself turns thin and whispy and eventually falls out. Although there are two FDA approved drugs, Finasteride and Minoxidil, that will help a little with this condition, once the follicle stops operating it is usually never going to produce hair again.

The only proven technique for getting hair to grow on a bald spot is to utilize hair implants in a hair transplantation procedure. A cosmetic surgeon performs this treatment which involves removing growing hair follicles from an area that still has good hair growth, usually the posterior, and inserting them into the bald area. If you are interested in this method of getting you hair back then you need to be aware of the different types of hair implants also called hair grafts.

The largest implant is known as the strip graft. This is comprised of a slice of scalp with about 30 hairs. It is removed from the donor area and then placed in an incision in the patient’s scalp at the balding area. This graft type is very noticeable because the hairs are in a straight line. The next type is also noticeable. The plug graft is a round section of scalp with about 12 hairs. When these are inserted into the scalp they tend to look like the hair on a cheap dolls head, tufts of hair growing every which way.

The mini-graft is usually comprised of about four follicles in a group. These are almost unnoticeable when inserted by a surgeon. Close inspection of the scalp can give away the fact that you had implants though. The best and most natural looking is the micro-graft. This techniques involves dealing with individual follicles or small groups of two or three growing in a natural cluster. The surgeon can insert these small grafts in such a way as the match the growth direction of surrounding hairs giving you a look that is as good as your natural hair.
Once you have lost the hair in a spot on your head the only real solution is to have a hair implants procedure performed by a qualified surgeon.

Cicatricial Alopecia

Posted by Health articles on November 26th, 2009

There are two main groups of alopecia: scarring alopecia and non-scarring alopecia.

Non-scarring alopecia

Non-scarring alopecia often involves alopecia variants where the hair falls off without inflammation or scarring. When a doctor tugs at some hair and the hairs come off effortlessly, a person mostly likely has non-scarring alopecia.

Non-scarring alopecia often heals on its own. Hair reproduction usually continues when a pre-existing condition has already been taken care of.

Cicatricial Alopecia

Cicatricial alopecia or scarring alopecia doesn’t necessarily mean that you will have ugly welts and scars on top of your head when the hair loss ceases. It simply means that a significant amount of alternation or injury is taking place inside the scalp. When the scalp is harmed from within (not the surface), scar tissue will emerge.

When scar tissue emerges, the membranes responsible for reproducing hair cells to replace fallen hair shafts are damaged permanently. The scarring from within causes the skin outside to appear shinier than usual. Therefore, the next time you see someone with a shiny pate, remember that the shininess might have been caused by scarring.

Characteristics Of Scarring Alopecia


Scarring alopecias have very similar physical properties. This is how a routine scalp examination at your general practitioner’s can yield accurate results regarding the state of your hair and your scalp. Doctors follow certain ‘clues’ to find out whether someone is suffering from the scarring variant of alopecia.

1. Skin’s physical appearance - normal skin is supple and regularly traversed by hair shafts. When the skin exhibits inverse characteristics, something is wrong.

2. Hair’s behavior – scarring alopecias almost always affect only the hair located at the very scalp. The rest of the body might not exhibit any symptoms of alopecia.

3. Blistering – if for no particular reason at all the scalp shows signs of blistering and extensive inflammation, coupled with hair loss, this may be a strong sign that active scarring alopecia is already present.

4. Evolution of the disease- a dermatologist would be able to identify scarring alopecias in any of its stages of development as a disease. You may find out that your disease may already be in an advanced stage, or it may still be in its ‘infancy’.

5. Genetic predisposition – a doctor may compare medical histories in your family to trace whether similar occurrences occurred years or decades before you were born. This might give the dermatologist a clue of what exactly you’re afflicted with.

What It Does

Take note that some alopecia may cause just the stoppage of hair reproduction. The roots and follicles may still be intact; it’s just that the genes of a person inhibit the further normal growth of hair.

Scarring alopecias are another thing altogether. They’re destructive at the level of the hair follicles. If the hair follicles are the main target of your particular disease, doctors will categorize this as primary cicatricial alopecia. When the follicles are not completely harmed, the condition is called secondary scarring alopecia.

Secondary scarring alopecia often occurs in cancer patients that have to undergo regular treatments. Chemotherapy destroys cancer cells and inhibits the normal reproduction of the body cells. In some cases, radiation destroys the sensitive membranes in the scalp.

Hair Replacement For Men

Posted by Canadian health care on November 15th, 2009

If you know that you might have inherited hair loss from either of your parents, you may not even need hair replacement at all. What you want to do is begin early on to attack the genetic condition so that it does not get a chance to attack you. Before the onset of your hair loss, you may want to try Propecia, the marketing name for the drug finasteride which is known to actually preempt hair loss due to heredity in male pattern baldness. All you need is a small daily dose, and your hair may actually never get to fall off.

Men also have the hair replacement option of sprays in cans that you can apply topically on a daily basis or when you feel like it. It causes your scalp to appear as though you have hair on it, and it is sold in virtually every convenience store in the country. And when any disease causes your baldness or hair loss at all, you need to get that disease or infection cured on time so that it does not cause permanent damage to your hair follicles or sebaceous glands.

That way, you will be able to do hair replacement at almost no cost to you because your hair can simply grow back after the infection is gone.

Hormone therapy often works the best for women, but it is also an applicable hair replacement technique for men. By taking hormone treatments in drugs that inhibit the action of testosterone, and in the meals that you eat, you can stop your hair-loss effectively and cause your hair to grow back with relative ease. You should get right to it and see to how rapidly you can get your lost hair replaced synthetically or realistically by the male hair replacement techniques you have just learnt.

There are many causes of hair loss. Both men and women can obtain it. It can be because of nutritional deficiency, hormone imbalance, stress, and diseases. But generally the most common cause of it is called adrogenetic alopecia. It is the medical term for hair loss or baldness. Adrogenetic refers to the influence of androgens (male hormones), and genetic predisposition to balding can be the reason of such a hair loss. Genetic is not that simple, and also the hair loss case. Just the presence of someone in your family of balding is not enough to predict that you will also become bald. It is really hard to predict who will go bald and how fast will it be.That is why planning for hair restoration will be very important for those people who gets alarmed about it. Normal man and women produce androgenic hormones. Dihydrotestosterone, androsteinedione, testosterone (DHT) is the most common.

For men, testicles and adrenals are the one to produce it. For women ovaries and adrenal glands are the one to produce it. These hormones are important for both sexes. But have different concentrations, and this is more predominant for males than females. This in part, differentiates the genders.

Exposure of hair follicles to DHT, in a susceptible person for a period of time leads to male and female pattern to baldness or the so-called adrogenetic alopecia. There is no exact age for balding occurrence. Balding is a process, simple; yet this fact is often ignored.

This process can be slow or rapid. It usually starts at late teens. Illnesses and medical conditions is one of the causes of hair loss. Such as thyroid disease and diabetes, can cause hair loss. Those people with liver and kidney diseases and lupus can also have baldness. Adult women and teen girls can have hair loss due to hormone imbalance in polycystic ovary syndrome.

Medications such as acne medicines cause hair loss. Amphetamines in diet pills can also cause hair loss. And the very known medication that causes hair loss is chemotherapy.

Alopecia areata is a skin disease than causes hair loss on the scalp and sometimes on the body. It is an autoimmune disease. The own immune system is the one to damage the hair follicles. Alopecia areata starts as small bald patches and can progress to total baldness. Trichotillomania is a psychological disorder in which a person pulls his/her own hair that can also lead to hair loss. Hair treatments and styling the hair gives tension to scalp and hair becomes damaged and leads to hair loss. Nutrition is also one factor of baldness because of lack of protein, vitamins and minerals that sustains the hair. Disruption of hair cycle growth is also a problem. Like delivering a baby, getting anesthesia, or having surgery.

Vitamins for hair loss treatment

Posted by admin on October 27th, 2009

Have you just discovered a sudden and unexpected loss of hair? Many folks will encourage you to simply take vitamins for hair loss but you must seek an urgent health checkup from your doctor, registered medical practitioner or dermatologist to determine just exactly what may be the cause of this condition.

You will then need to establish a well balanced vitamins for hair loss program that incorporates several attacking fronts at the same time if you really want to restore and maintain the good health of your scalp.

The 9 essential nutrients to regain and promote a healthy scalp:

Vitamin A (found in fish liver oil, spinach, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, apricots and peaches). Plays a role in a variety of functions throughout the body, such as immune function, maintaining normal skin health, hypokeratosis (white lumps in follicles). Warning: Consuming a large quantity of vitamin A daily is toxic to the body.

Vitamin B3 – niacin (found in brewers yeast, wheat germ and fish). Boosts scalp circulation.

Vitamin B5 – pantothenic acid (whole grain cereals, brewers’ yeast and egg yolks). Prevents strand falling and graying.

Vitamin B6 (brewers’ yeast, whole grain cereals, vegetables and egg yolks). Essential for protein and red blood cell metabolism and for the nervous and immune systems. It is helpful in prevention of thinning of strands.

Vitamin B12 (fish and eggs). Assists in preventing hair loss.

Vitamin C (citrus fruits, strawberries, kiwifruit, cantaloupe, pineapple, tomatoes, green peppers, potatoes and dark green veggies). Promotes healthy skin and hair and ensures the health of capillaries supplying blood to follicles.

Vitamin E (cereals, green leafy vegetables, broccoli, soybeans, eggs, cold-pressed vegetable oils, wheat germ oil, raw seeds, nuts and dried beans). Increases the oxygen in our system and improves circulation to the scalp.

Vitamin H – biotin or B7 (royal jelly, brewers’ yeast, liver, legumes, soybeans, swiss chard, tomatoes, romaine lettuce, carrots, almonds, eggs, onions, cabbage, cucumber, cauliflower, goats’ or cows’ milk, raspberries, strawberries, halibut, oats, and walnuts). Biotin is necessary for cell growth and is shown by many studies to stimulate and maintain a healthy scalp.

Vitamin B9 – folic acid, also known as folacin or folate (leafy vegetables such as spinach, asparagus, turnip greens, lettuces, dried or fresh beans and peas, fortified cereal products, sunflower seeds, liver and liver products and certain other fruits and vegetables and bakers’ yeast are rich sources of folate). Both children and adults require folic acid to produce healthy red blood cells and prevent anemia. It is also essential to numerous other bodily functions.

What about the important minerals & herbs?

Don’t forget the minerals essential to maintaining a healthy head of hair: zinc, calcium, manganese, magnesium, iron, copper and sulphur. Plus the herbal extracts: horsetail silica, saw palmetto, indian ginseng, omega-3 and evening primrose.

These are found in the same fresh produce as for above listed vitamins or produced from ground herbs or herbal extracts and are available in capsules, tablets or powder form.

So, the first plan of action to get the vitamins for hair loss you need is to eat regular, fresh and well balanced meals, alternatively you can undertake a daily course of balanced tablet or capsule supplements.

Alopecia

Posted by admin on October 20th, 2009

Alopecia or hair loss is the medical description of the loss of hair from the head or body, sometimes to the extent of baldness.

ALOPECIA

The study of genetics will improve hair baldness therapy. Preventing baldness is possible. Treatment pharmacological minoxidil and finasteride has opened the way for others medications to treat hair loss. The future, according to experts, is gene therapy for hair loss. If until recently the treatment of baldness and hair loss was a breeding ground for false promises, at present, the scientific way towards solving the alopecia and hair loss has just begun. New derivatives of finasteride as episteride, the turusteride, MK-963, the RU-58841 or the local palicación receptor antagonists of male hormones are being of various tests to treat hair loss.
Hair loss process
GENE THERAPY

According to a review published in August in New England Journal of Medicine , there are now many fronts in the search fo find a remedy for hair loss. On the one hand, the Boston magazine refers to the need to know all key pathophysiological different kinds of alopecia and well design drugs that protect the follicles which causes deterioration stop producing hair. But without a doubt, scholars have put almost all its hope in the possibilities offered by gene therapy. We have already identified one of the genes associated with alopecia universalis, a type baldness very rare in which a mutation in a gene on chromosome 8 causes the affected person has no hair on any part of your body.

According Authors of this review, identify and explain the operation of all the genes involved in androgenetic hair loss will be critical to develop treatments. For Ralf Paus and George Cotsarelis, a dermatologist in Hamburg University and Pennsylvania, “the hair follicle is the way of access more feasible to implement them. For now, being tested on mice local laboratory introduction of liposomes containing DNA capable of regenerate the damaged follicle. If some of these expectations come to fruition, it will mean a step giant in the eradication of what for many is a very serious problem.

The Two Sigma Research Institute, presented last week a study on the psychological impact of mild to moderate hair loss in 403 males between 25 and 45. 63% of respondents feel less attractive and 28% believed that most hair could find mates more easily. More than half of those who said they felt anxious about hair loss, and 14% of those who say not to worry about the problem, have tried some kind of remedy for hairloss. All who are in these circumstances must know that, for now, only two medications have proven effective to treat baldness.

One is minoxidil, a vasodilator of smooth muscle (whose mechanism of action is still unknown) that triggers the hair follicles and get hair loss improved by over 80% of patients, with little effect side. The second is finasteride, released on 1998. This drug inhibits an enzyme that promotes male baldness genetically predisposed. It has been shown that finasteride slows alopecia in 80% of cases, with a good safety profile and few contraindications.

Do you know which vitamins or minerals can help you curtail hair loss? If you want to recapture your lost hair, then you need to know what nutrients are necessary for healthy scalp to promote hair regrowth.

For those of you who want to see a healthy volume of hair on your head again, make sure you try to increase the intake of the following vitamins and minerals in your diet.

Vitamins

The first vitamin is Vitamin A. This fat soluble nutrient can be found in food sources such as sweet potato, carrot, broccoli, cheese, spinach or leafy vegetables. Vitamin A plays a key role.

Vitamin B are crucial for the support and maintenance of hair, skin and nails. It can promote and enhance your body immune system against bacteria and infections. Vitamin B7 or Biotin is helpful towards maintaining healthy hair follicles and growth. You can typically find biotin in food sources such as onions, cucumber, cabbage and eggs. A recommended daily intake for a normal adult age 19 to 70 years old is about 30 ug/day.

Minerals

There are many minerals that has been proven to aid hair regrowth. One of the reasons is because copper can facilitate blood circulation to the scalp area. It shows great effectiveness in stimulate the hair follicles to produce new hair cells. As a matter of fact, many pharmaceutical companies are adding copper elements to their hair loss products to help hair grow faster.

Another mineral you should watch out for is Zinc. This nutrient is able to inhibit hair losses by retarding the buildup of DHT. A deficiency of Zinc can cause a chemical enzyme called (Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha) to be released. This enzyme can cause damage to the body and hair. Hence, make sure you take enough load of zinc each day. You can find zinc in food sources such as oysters, meats or wheat germ.
And now, I want to share with you an all-natural, dermatologist-formulated solution to help slow thinning hair in both men and women. This wonderful hair loss remedy helps stop hair loss and stimulates healthy hair growth so you can grow new hair naturally.

Natural Hair Loss Remedies

Posted by Health articles on June 29th, 2009

There are various different hair loss treatments to choose. These vary in their charge and amount of success. In spite of the success and popularity of lines such as cheap Propecia 5 mg there are a large number of people who don’t like the suggestion of taking pills on a long term way to counter the causes of hair loss. To this end, there is a great interest in more natural produce in the hope that they won’t hurt the body. There is a long history of searching for the perfect natural hair loss remedy. The clinical data for their success is usually quite scarce, but this doesn’t put people off using them particularly if they are easy to prepare and apply.

Most of natural remedies use herbs and essential oils. Essential oils form the smells and tastes of the majority of plant products. They are also removed to be used in aroma therapy products. The herbs and essential oils may be used by their selves or in the form of a blend. Here are some examples of natural remedies that can be tested.

Rosemary and sage can be used to try and promote the health and production of hair follicles. They should be simmered together and then the solid parts sieved out to leave the liquid part. This is then put on as a rinse over the head. It is wise to do this after using your shampoo.

Red pepper can be blended with water and then applied to the bald or thinning patch. It is thought that the irritating nature of the red pepper enlargens the blood supply in the skin and thereby promotes the health of the hair follicles.

Aloe Vera can be used in a liquid formulation and applied to the head. It helps the healing of irritated scalp and cleans the hair follicles. In doing this, it promotes their health and can reduce hair loss. It is known that Aloe Vera can also promote hair growth by stimulating some growth enzymes in the hair follicles.

Safflower oil can be rubbed into the scalp. This is another natural product which works by opening up the blood vessels in the scalp and accordingly increasing the blood supply to the hair in the scalp. This gives good conditions for aiding with hair regrowth.
American Hair Loss Association – Hair Loss Treatment
“According to The Washington Post, American hair loss suffers spend more than 3.5 billion dollars a year in an attempt to treat their hair loss. Unfortunately 99% of all products being marketed in the less than ethical hair loss treatment industry are completely ineffective for the majority of those who use them.”
Onion has been used for centuries in relation to baldness. It can be rubbed onto the scalp before washing the hair. The onion decreases any inflammation in the scalp and establishes a better blood supply to the hair follicles

In terms of Aromatherapy you could apply a mixture of lavender and bay essential oils in an almond oil base. This should be rubbed into the scalp. The essential oils and massage endeavour to increase the circulation of blood in the scalp and therefore aid the health of hair follicles.

For those of you who don’t want to have the effort of making your own natural materials there are commercially sold ones such as Revivogen. Its main active ingredients are natural materials which help to stop the formation of DHT. In this way it works in the same way as Propecia. But, it is not taken internally. It is only massaged onto the scalp. In addition to DHT inhibitors there are other ingredients included which are said to to block the receptors of androgens in scalp follicles and also to promote hair growth.

Whatever your thoughts on natural applications, there is one main thing which is that you will not come to any harm trying them. In the round they are also cheap as well. If you are into herbal things then it might be worth trying some out. Even if they don’t work very well in respect of regrowing lost hair they should help to keep the scalp in good condition which could help and keep the last follicles in good health.

Hair is a definitely the crowning glory for people as it gives a new look to a person. The length, thickness and styling not only create a new look but also enhance the personality of a person. No wonder, there are innumerable styling saloons that are working constantly to give a new look. When a person experiences hair loss, it can affect his / her confidence.

Hair loss problem also affects a person psychologically. When a person notices receding hair line, his or her confidence goes for a toss. It also affects their day to day life. The constant worry about their looks affects their life to a large extent. Hence, many people start looking for ways to tackle the problem. With medical hair restoration, one can easily get over the problem. There are innumerable ways to tackle this problem.

Men and women suffer differently. Men usually experience baldness over the head. Women, on the other hand, experience a receding hair line. There are many ways to tackle the problem. Losing around 50-100 hairs is considered normal. This is not a major problem. Hair usually grows after a period of time. However, excessive hair loss creates major problem. There are many ways to tackle the problem. Hair restoration transplants are the most popular way of tackling this problem.

The problem can be cured easily. There are various kinds of gels, pills, lotions, and shampoos that are available in the market. They have known to bring about a positive impact. Besides, there are plenty of reviews that you can read to know more how to tackle the problem. A person suffering from this kind of problem can do a comparative study and opt for the best treatment.

Women generally experience this kind of problem around the entire head. Men tend to suffer with the problem over the crown and temple. Many women also have a genetic predisposition to this kind of problem. This is mainly due to the fact that a large amount of testosterone in their systems reacts with hair cell enzymes to produce thinning hair.

An appropriate procedure will help in tackling the problem. Consulting a hair specialist will help identify the cause. Besides this, nutritious diet and regular exercise regime will also help resolve the problem. Many people are known to suffer from premature loss of hair due to genetic factors. Cases where this problem is due to genetic factors, the chances of curing the problem are far less. However, the fact that a person who is bald will have children who wilt run bald prematurely bald a far less. With appropriate hair loss treatment for women, it is easy to get over the problem.
Sadhna D