Archive for the ‘Hair Loss’ Category

Diagnostic Tests for Hair Loss

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If you have a nagging feeling that you are experiencing hair loss, yet you have no way of knowing if this is true or merely a figment of your imagination or probably due to paranoia over hair loss, then you need a proper way to know if indeed you really are experiencing hair loss.

Hair loss is inevitable, that’s why it elicited big concerns from men and women all over the world. Heredity and hormonal factors may influence hair loss that cannot be controlled. Hence, it is important to diagnose balding in its early stage so that medical hair restoration techniques and procedures can slow down or hinder its progression. If hair loss occurs in a person with no family history, then a physician should look at other areas which are the possible causes of hair loss.

The Unmistakable Link between Hair Loss and Lupus

Hair loss or baldness may be an early sign of lupus. Lupus causes widespread inflammation — particularly on the face and scalp. Because of this inflammation and other factors, the hair on your scalp may gradually thin out, although a few people lose clumps of hair instead.

Lupus hair loss is directly caused by Discoid Lupus Erythematosus (DLE), a chronic skin condition. It can trigger inflammation to the skin especially in the facial and neck areas. This condition can lead to the development of red lesions with scaly or crusty appearance. Baldness occurs when lesions grow on the scalp, causing damage to the hair follicles.

Alternative Treatments for DHT Hair Loss

DHT hair loss is common in both men and women irrespective of age and gender. DHT or dihydrotestosterone has been the cause of 95% of hair loss among men and women. DHT is a byproduct of the hormone testosterone combined with 5-alpha reductase. DHT is essential for normal functioning of prostate gland, but it harms the body when it is overproduced. Hair follicles have several types of receptors including DHT receptors. Receptors are sites of an organ or tissue that respond to certain substances. When excessive DHT exists in your blood, it induces the hair follicles to shrink. Thus, DHT deteriorates and destroy hair follicles causing it to miniaturize and when not treated accordingly, the hair follicles will eventually die.

Causes and Cures of Hair Loss in Men and Women

Since testosterone is one of the primary male hormones, men are more susceptible to DHT; this also explains the more dominant occurrence of hair loss in men than in women. The hair follicles of women, on the other hand, are not very much bothered by DHT because of the protective effects of estrogens (primary female hormones) and progesterone. It is when women reach menopause—and their level of estrogens fluctuates or produced in lower levels—that DHT is more capable of penetrating the hair follicles and cause damage.

Hair care doctors and specialists have come up with various cures for hair loss in men and women. Hair loss cures of note are the ones that are specially formulated to block the formation of DHT in the scalp. One of which is the minoxidil topical solution, popular in its efficiency to stop hair loss.

How Vitamins Contribute to Hair Loss

Vitamin A is essential to hair health. It is a key component to developing healthy cells and tissues in the body, including hair. It works with silica and zinc to prevent drying and clogging of the sebaceous glands, the glands responsible in producing sebum that is an essential lubricant for the hair follicle.

Vitamin A deficiency can lead to problems such as dandruff, hair loss, and thinning hair. It can commonly cause thickening of the scalp and dry hair. Smoking, air pollution, laxatives, extremely bright light, certain cholesterol-lowering drugs, and aspirin are some known vitamin A inhibitors. Liver, eggs, fortified milk, fish oil, and red, yellow, and orange vegetables are good sources for vitamin A.

Facts about Hair Loss in Men and Women

Men are more susceptible to alopecia or hair loss because of their genetic makeup. Testosterone (a principal male hormone), when acted upon by the enzymes 5-alpha reductase, is converted to DHT (dihydrotestosterone). The accumulation of DHT in the scalp weakens the hair follicles and hampers the growth of healthy hair, causing hair loss in men that is commonly known as male-pattern baldness. The high presence of testosterone in men is the reason that baldness or hair loss is more observed in males. It is a blessing in disguise that men are more able to sport complete baldness.

The reason that hair loss in women is less pronounced is the presence of the primary female hormones estrogen and progesterone. These hormones are the protective agents against DHT. Upon reaching menopause, however, estrogens are produced in fluctuating or decreased levels; hence, the buildup of DHT pushes through.

What Is Hair Loss

What is Hair Loss

Hair loss is certainly not a bizarre phenomenon to most men. One of the most prevalent kinds of condition that can inescapably occur in men is androgenetic alopecia or better known as male pattern baldness. It has been proven that majority of men endure this unfavorable condition when they reach puberty, particularly at the age of 25 to 50. Though, some instances pointed out that teenagers have also struggled androgenetic alopecia which is thought to be caused mainly by heredity or genetic factor. In the United States alone, there are over 50 million men who are affected by androgenetic alopecia wherein 30 million women are also irked. Most of these people or over 80 percent are bothered by this condition.