Archive for the ‘Hair Loss’ Category
The hair loss industry is not one that inspires great confidence in most people. I have to admit this is perfectly understandable given the damage caused by the many rogues and charlatans who have abused the trust of far too many vulnerable people – people who have received worthless and even dangerous products or advice in exchange for their hard earned cash. The end result is the prevalance of a stigma that the industry is hard pressed to shake off.
But is this perception really justified nowadays? Are there no genuine treatments that sufferers can turn to in a bid to treat the ravages of premature hair loss? The simple answer is YES, there are several safe, affordable, accessible and effective hair loss treatments currently available. Some have even been approved by FDA for the treatment of hair loss conditions while others draw on natural remedies as the basis for commercially available products. Whether or not any of them are suitable for a given individual depends on a number of important factors.
First and foremost, every individual must determine the exact cause or causes of his or her hair loss. This may appear to be an over-simplistic statement but the truth is, most people undergoing a course of treatment for hair loss have proceeded on the basis of self-diagnosis. Given the fact that premature or excessive hair loss is often associated with underlying medical conditions, this is perhaps not the most sensible course of action.
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Antioxidant supplements play a protective role for our general health including the health of our hair. Antioxidants supplements are supposed to slow down the oxidation reactions which are brought about by the free radicals. The Free radicals are highly reactive unstable atoms generated in our body that can damage cells leading to a number of diseases and ageing.According to the Free-radical theory of aging, these highly reactive oxygen species (ROS), damage the DNA, proteins and other cellular structures like the cell membranes and cell organelles.
The reaction of free radicals within cells, and subsequent damage has been linked to a range of disorders and chronic diseases including cancer, arthritis, atherosclerosis, alzheimer’s and diabetes and inflammatory conditions
Antioxidants are able to slow down or block these dangerous reactions in the body. They do it either by reacting with intermediates and halting the oxidation reaction directly. They react with the free radicals and prevent the oxidation reaction from occurring.
Antioxidants supplements can be taken as dietary supplements or taken as tablets and capsules. Studies suggest those dietary antioxidants supplements provide a range of are benefits for our health. However, excess antioxidant supplementation may be counter-productive. Diet carrying antioxidant supplements A healthy and balanced diet containing antioxidant supplements plays a pivotal role in retaining your hair’s health. Some of the herbal nutrition supplements and some fruits which contain antioxidants serve as natural medications for hair loss.
Antioxidant food supplements are found in various forms – vegetables, fruits, grain cereals, legumes, nuts, etc.
The sources of antioxidants include fruits (berries and peppers, apple skins, cider, wine), vegetables (spinach, tea leaves), fungi (mushrooms), whole grain cereals (hops, barley, millet and maize), nuts (pecans, pistachios, almonds), beans (cacao including chocolate, coffee). Polyphenol antioxidants This type of antioxidant is characterized by the presence of several phenol functions. It is found in a wide array of phytonutrient-bearing foods. Examples include – most of the legumes; fruits like apples, blackberries, cantaloupe, cherries, cranberries, grapes, pears, plums, raspberries, and strawberries; vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, celery, onion and parsley. All the above are rich sources of polyphenol antioxidants.Alternative sources of polyphenol antioxidant include red wine, chocolate, green tea, olive oil, bee pollen and several grains. Antioxidant vitaminsSome of the vitamins that are good sources of antioxidants,. the antioxidant vitamins are–vitamins A, C and E.
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Andropause and hair loss often go hand in hand. Imagine clumps of hair falling off your head, or observing strands of once healthy hair collecting in the shower drain. Maybe you run your hand through your hair and feel it thinning. It can feel daunting and quite scary.
Typically, hair loss is a result of an imbalance of male testosterone hormone in the body. Instead of infusing the hair with healthy testosterone, enzymes break it down to a simpler form known as dihydrotestosterone.
An excess of this hormone has the effect of decreasing the size of hair follicles which eventually break down and make your hair fall off sporadically. The medical condition that is best associated with hair loss in Andropause sufferers is hyperthyroidism. Hyperthyroidism is a by-product of decreasing levels of Human Growth Hormone, which is responsible for regulating our aging process. Andropause sufferers’ hormones have a profound effect on the rate and consistency of hair loss. Dihydrotestosterone (considered by medical circles the strongest, most potent form of testosterone) is responsible for building and growing body hair in men (at normal levels – an excess causes hair degeneration.)
This includes body hair, pubic hair, head hair, armpit hair – any hair. DHT is directly produced in the skin, made to work by supporting enzymes that break it down for distribution throughout the body. DHT levels are present more in certain areas of the body than in others – explaining why we may have a full crop of hair on our heads and little bushes of hair on our chests and backs. Realize, women also have DHT in their bodies but produce less of it.
That explains why women don’t have body hair. Case in point: an excess of DHT is prevalent in Andropause sufferers, explaining the reason for hair loss. The enzyme used to break down testosterone to dihydrotestosterone is ¨over activated¨ – working too hard and too fast.
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A standard hair transplantation procedure involves the removal of donor strip of hair from the back of the head from where the follicular unit grafts are dissected under a microscope. These grafts are then preserved in saline and are then transplanted on a bald patch on the crown area of the scalp.
Given the time consuming and tedious nature of this procedure, a hair transplant surgeon is often able to transplant only about 500 to 600 follicular unit grafts per day. However, thanks to the recent hair transplant advances, this technique is often replaced by the follicular unit extraction (FUE). The cost per graft of FUE is typically twice the cost of the standard follicular unit hair transplant procedure discussed above but it is comparatively faster and minimally invasive.
Some hair transplant advances
In a typical FUE procedure a small round punch is made in the donor area to directly extract 1, 2, 3 and 4 hair follicular unit grafts. The follicular units extracted using this process is typically referred to as “blunt dissection” where a punch is made to envelope the entire follicular unit separating it from the surrounding soft tissues.
Once the underlying follicular unit is separated from the surrounding tissues, it is easily extracted using a small forceps. The small holes left behind after the follicular unit extraction gradually heal over the next few days and are not detectable to the naked eye once the patient’s hair grows out. The healing time is much less than the donor strip extraction procedure.
While the FUE procedure has been adopted by most hair transplant clinics, the standard strip excision method is still the most popular hair transplant procedure because it is more economical than the FUE.
Moreover, due to some recent hair transplant advances such as the use of trichophytic closure technique, the linear donor scar created by the strip excision procedure is now often rendered almost undetectable to the naked eye. This advancement in the hair transplantation technique has made FUE procedure relatively less appealing.
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