Month: January 2010

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Hair Loss InformationFo-Ti, PABA, and Solving the Gray Hair Problem – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hello Mr.Rassman.

I heard a lot about Fo-Ti which is a Chinese herb which gives colour to hair. We can Find it in so many websites now I have two questions.

  1. I am aware that grey hairs cannot be reversed . But If I take Fo-ti atleast can I prevent my existing hairs from truning grey??So many Fo-ti suppliments are available in the market. Please go through the following site which contains the reviews of an over the counter medicine called Shenmin. Folica.com and more information on Shenmin.com
  2. I also heard about PABA which also helps giving colour to hairs. I think that is an FDA approved medicine will it be of some help in preventing my hairs from turning grey? If it is what is the recommended dosage for adults?

Sorry for such a big question. But you know my questions are always long.

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Gray hair

  1. I believe there are just as many Chinese men and women in this world who have gray hair compared to those of other races in other parts of the world, which makes me think that if something as simple as taking a fo-ti supplement really stopped gray hairs, there would be a disproportionate amount of the Chinese population with black hair. That being said, I’m not an herbalist and my opinion on these types of treatments has been generally poor, because there’s really not much regulation on them and most of the claims people attribute to them are old wives’ tales. Here’s an article about fo-ti on About.com that you might find helpful.
  2. Para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) is a chemical found in the folic acid vitamin and also in several foods including grains, eggs, milk, and meat (source: RxList). PABA is reported to be used for giving color back to hair if the graying was caused by stress or malnutrition, but I can’t find any studies to back up the claims and I have no personal experience with it. Because PABA is a supplement, the FDA does not approve, endorse, or verify claims; I also do not approve, endorse, or verify those claims.

Feel free to try these supplements if you want, but always remember that it is a buyer beware market and there is a lot of money to be made on false hopes and promises. Reviewing supplement information online is often quite daunting due to the seemingly hundreds of websites using unproven claims to sell you things, which helps spread the legend and creates a blurred line between what is real and what is fantasy. For further reading, I’ve written about the problems with supplements before.

Photo: CNN’s Anderson Cooper doesn’t mind his gray hair.

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Hair Loss InformationIn the News – US Athlete is Back in the Olympics After Finasteride Ban Lifted – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Zach LundHere’s the original article from 2006 about US athlete Zach Lund, who was banned from competing in the Olympics due to using Propecia.

Well, there’s been an update. Here’s a snippet from the new article:

Lund was informed he had tested positive for a banned drug. He was told he had to leave, immediately. Within minutes, he went from Olympic contender to Olympic exile.

“I had to pack my bags and walk out in front of everybody,” Lund said. “They cut up my credential. I was on top of the world, and then I was out on the street.”

Lund’s transgression? He was trying to preserve his hair. He was using Propecia, as he had for years to stave off baldness. But the main ingredient in Propecia is finasteride, which was on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s list of prohibited substances as a masking agent for steroids.

Lund, guilty of thinning hair, was labeled a drug cheat and kicked out of the Olympics.

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Read the full article: Bald is beautiful for U.S. skeleton star

Zach is back in the 2010 Winter Olympics, but it’s a shame that he was banned from competing in the 2006 games. He had been taking Propecia for years, informed the Olympic committee about it, and at some point the medication was added to the banned substance list for a brief time. During that brief time, Zach was banned from competing. The ban on finasteride has since been lifted by the World Anti-Doping Agency, but not before Zach lost all the hair that Propecia had been keeping for him.

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Hair Loss InformationMy Hair is Brittle and Thin – Is It Because of Weaves? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I am a 35 year aged female who has been wearing weaves for 2 1/2 years. I decided to grow out my perm so I can eventually have only chemical free hair. I have taken out my weave recently and have flat-ironed it to see how long it was and to get an idea on the health of my hair. My hair was not only brittle but very thin.

Is this a result of the sew in weaves? If so, is there anything I can do and/or products I can use to bring the health back to my hear and to a normal thickness? Please advise.

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Sew-in weaves can cause traction hair loss. Constant traction on your hair can cause thinning as it is being progressively damaged. This does not happen 100% of the time, but it is a common problem for women who wear their weaves tight or have a tightly braided hairstyle. If you lose the hair, it may never grow back.

Flat ironing your hair can also cause damage, particularly if it is already weakened from the weave. I would give your hair a full year to see if it recovers. At this point, patience is really the only thing I can recommend.

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Hair Loss InformationRestoring Damaged Hair Roots, Since It Hasn’t Regrown in Over a Year? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

(male) Is there anyway to restore damaged hair root’s to their natural health after a long abuse of hair dye products + straightening? I used to have really thick curly hair but now there is nothing to it, no grasp of elasticity, also it is really fine etc and has been like this for over a year now.

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If you have given your hair about a year to recover and nothing has happened, I suspect there is not much you can do. I suspect you might’ve chemically damaged your hair, but consider the possibility that you may also have a component of genetic balding. Mapping out your hair for miniaturization may help make that diagnosis. If this is the case, there may be medications that may help. See your doctor.

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Hair Loss InformationExcellent Results After Taking Propecia Every Other Day for 2 Years – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I have been taking 1mg of propecia every other day for almost 2 years now with excellent results. What are your thoughts on taking 1mg every other day?

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You’re probably not getting the full benefit of the medication (recommended dosage is 1mg daily), but if you’re seeing excellent results, there’s no reason to change that now. I’d only recommend patients switch to partial dosing (usually 0.5mg/day) if they have side effects.

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Hair Loss Information18 Year Old with Hair Loss or Mature Hairline? (with Photos) – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dear Doc,

I’m an 18 year old male and worried that my hairline’s begun to recede. I don’t have any particular family history of balding, both my grandfathers had most of their hair and so does my mother’s brother. Its only my father who is balding (he is 50 and has lost lots of his hair on the top of his head).

I’ve noticed that when I run my hands through my hair I occasionally lose one or two. Also when the hair is wet i tend to lose a few if I run my hand through my hair. I don’t see more than two or three on my pillow when I wake up.

I’ve always had a high hairline with temples higher than the rest of my hairline, but I think its starting to move back slowly.

I also have little red spots near the receding areas of my hairline, almost like acne (I have very little acne on the rest of my face). Looking at my pictures, would you say this is just a mature hairline or the start of the balding process. Also sorry for the long e-mail, but I’ve tried to list everything I can. I’d appreciate some advice on what I can do, as my hair is still very much part of my identity, and I don’t want to spend the next couple of years worrying and counting hairs.

Many thanks

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While I thank you for permission to post these, usually I require a frontal view with the eyebrows lifted high so that the creases on the forehead show. You supplied two side views with the eyebrows lifted and a poor quality photo that requires me to guess. I’ll take a stab at it anyway. Click the photos to enlarge.

 

It does look like you are developing a mature hairline, but there is also a sign of some thinning that goes further back than just the leading edge, suggestive of miniaturization behind a maturing hairline.

You need to get your scalp mapped out for miniaturization and see if there is thinning behind the leading edge and how far back it goes. This is suggestive of early male pattern balding at a level where a drug like Propecia (finasteride) can stop it. See a doctor who cares about you and what may be early balding.

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Hair Loss InformationFinasteride Interactions? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi Dr.,

I am a big fan of your site. I get to read your new posts everyday by subscribing to your RSS feeds. My question is, given that I take 1 tablet of 1mg Propecia everyday, will it interact with other supplements or even certain food?

For example, here’s a list of supplements that I take daily (i take throughout the day, separate times):
1. vitamin b complex and biotin
2. vitamin c
3. vitamin e
4. multi vitamin
5. omega complex
6. co-q10
7. methatione (gluthatione)

Or how about foods:
1. coffee
2. green tea w/ honey
3. soy milk
4. fiber (like wheat bread, fruits)

Just wondering if trying to be health by consuming these will counteract w/ Propecia or vice-versa? Hope this is a valid inquiry.

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I have been getting these sorts of questions quite frequently lately. The supplements and foods you’re consuming shouldn’t have any negative interaction with Propecia. The only interaction I can think of with food is with grapefruit, which causes problems for a variety of medications.

The following 16 drugs are listed as having a moderate interaction with finasteride (Propecia): bosentan, diltiazem, diltiazem/enalapril, efavirenz, efavirenz/emtricitabine/tenofovir, fluconazole, fluvoxamine, itraconazole, nefazodone, nelfinavir, posaconazole, rifapentine, saquinavir, sirolimus, tacrolimus, and voriconazole. And there’s 1 drug that has a mild interaction: terazosin. These are the generic names, and for a more complete list (including brand names) see Drugs.com.

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Hair Loss InformationCyproterone Acetate and DHT – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dr. Rassman,

I know this may sound like an odd question, but, would an antiandrogen such as Cyproterone Acetate reduce the levels of DHT in the male body? Would it preserve hair in a person with very little balding. I realize there are major side effects with this drug, but am still curious.

Thanks, and keep up the wonderful work, your blog is quite informative!

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Anti-androgens in men can cause a chemical castration, so yes, I would say that the side effects are major. A castrated male has no sex drive and may lose facial and body hair. Cyproterone is not something I’d suggest fooling around with.

The direct answer to your question comes from Wikipedia: “Some in vitro studies have suggested that cyproterone or cyproterone acetate may have a slight inhibitory effect on 5-alpha-reductase, however no significant reduction in DHT production has been observed in vivo.”

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Hair Loss InformationCould Getting a Perm Trigger Genetic Hair Loss? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Big permI’m a 19 year old guy who has had a moderately high hairline and slight recession at the temples since the age of 15. It seems to progress VERY gradually and I have no hair loss anywhere else. I always dye, style, tease, crimp and straighten my hair and it doesn’t seem to effect it, but I’m after a bigger style and am considering a perm. My hair is fine, but not extremely so.

Is it safe to get a fairly loose perm done at a good salon? Will it speed up my hair loss?

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If you’ve got the genetics to lose hair, any number of things (including chemical damage) could trigger an earlier onset of the genetic process. You’ll have to decide if it’s worth the risk. I doubt you’ve got much risk based on what you described, but if you do decide to have the perm done you should try to minimize the risk by having it done by someone professionally trained.

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Hair Loss InformationCan a Straightening Iron Permanently Damage Hair? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi, would just like to say firstly that I have found your site really helpful and informative, thanks! I’m an 18 year old female, currently straighten my fringe every day and I’m really concerned that this will cause permanent damage. I know that straightening can make hair brittle, causing it to fall out until a new one grows, but I read somewhere that heat from straightening irons can travel up the hair shaft and burn the follicle, meaning the hair will never grow back. Is it possible to damage the follicles like this? I have had a look through the site but can’t find a definite answer. Thanks.

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Straightening your hair everyday will make the hair brittle, as you already know. However, it will not kill your hair follicles, which are below the skin and not impacted by hot irons and the like. On the other hand, chemical straighteners could kill the hair roots if used improperly.