Category: Other

I have read some studies online about black tea and dht.They seem to indicate that black tea reduces dht as much as propecia while actually increasing serum testosterone levels. Do you know anything about this

Earl Grey is black tea, and it’s probably the most common tea in the UK… where hair loss is just as prominent as anywhere else in the world. Those who try to connect DHT with the current supplement/food source of the day can have a big market impact, so it doesn’t surprise me that the buzzwords get people excited.

As far as I recall, the study about black tea and DHT was in a couple dozen lab rats and it was published a few years ago. I don’t know anything further, but I suspect that if there was anything to it, more would’ve been announced since then. If someone has more info, please feel free to let me know.

Snippet from the non-hair-loss article:

The first pluripotent human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) have been generated from somatic cell nuclear transfer, according to a study published today (October 5) in Nature. The findings validate this controversial method, and may one day allow therapeutic stem cells to be created from a patient’s own genetic material.

Read the rest — New Way to Make Embryonic Stem Cells

I meant to post this last week, but it’s still worth posting for those that might have missed it. If there’s too much scientific jargon in the article, there’s also one on CNN.com that might be a better read.

This is a controversial and newsworthy topic, and although cloned humans aren’t on the way yet, further research could pave the way to making disease a thing of the past.

Snippet from the non-hair-loss article:

Healthy men should no longer receive a P.S.A. blood test to screen for prostate cancer because the test does not save lives over all and often leads to more tests and treatments that needlessly cause pain, impotence and incontinence in many, a key government health panel has decided.

The draft recommendation, by the United States Preventive Services Task Force and due for official release next week, is based on the results of five well-controlled clinical trials and could substantially change the care given to men 50 and older. There are 44 million such men in the United States, and 33 million of them have already had a P.S.A. test — sometimes without their knowledge — during routine physicals.

Read the rest — U.S. Panel Says No to Prostate Screening for Healthy Men

I know this isn’t hair loss related, but it’s important medical news that the male visitors of this site should read.

For many years, we have known that most men with prostate cancer will never actually die from the disease. The decisions to treat it and how to treat it are very controversial. I was never satisfied that there is any good treatment — or rather, any one treatment — that is better than an another. Treating prostate cancer through radiation or surgery has significant side effects, and the risk of sexual function loss is a real one for those men who decide on surgery.

There are many types of prostate cancer from an aggressive point of view. The opinion expressed in this advisory just takes the view that “what you do not know will not hurt you”. I am not sure that I believe this, but then again, I don’t believe in many of the treatments being offered either. I’ve always wondered what I would do if I had an elevated PSA test, but thankfully I’ve not had to make that decision.

Snippet from the non-hair-loss article:

More than two-thirds of men who contacted an email advice service run by a leading sexual advice charity had erection problems, which were frequently linked to loss of sex drive, according to research in the October issue of IJCP, the International Journal of Clinical Practice.

The study by UK researchers also found that a large number of men from the Middle East and Indian subcontinent sought email advice on problems with premature ejaculation and masturbation. Previous research has suggested that these issues are often related to arranged marriages.

Read the rest — Email Sexual Advice Study Highlights Problems Raised by Different Ages and Cultures

This isn’t about hair loss, but it’s interesting nonetheless. The frequency of libido or erectile dysfunction (ED) problems reported are far more common than previously thought. Granted the results are just from email surveys, but the report just scratches the surface of a common problem.

The real question is — how much of this reflects the physiology of these men? I suspect that the ED problems reflect not just the physiologic changes of aging, but of the social fabric that men fall into. Such things like alcohol consumption, depression, marriages that lost their vitality, etc… are amongst the problems that cause the libido and ED problems.

One particularly interesting bullet point from the article says that most of the masturbation related worries come from India, and I’d estimate 95%+ of the “masturbation causes hair loss” emails I get come from the same area (even though I’ve written over a dozen times that it is just a myth).

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A question about the hair bulk measurement tool – surely it’s dependent on the person measuring having exactly the same length hair every time a measurement is taken otherwise it’s going to produce inaccurate results?

I mean, great if you know your hairdresser can cut your hair the same length perfectly each time you want to do a measurement but realistically that’s not going to happen unless you use clippers which most of us don’t want to do.

Or does it not work this way? Am I missing something?

If not, then I’d think that a camera would be a better way of judging hair loss.

For the bulk analysis, you need to have an adequate length of hair (maybe 2 inches in length) so that the hairs can be bundled up and the bulk can be measured. Any adequate hair length will work the same, even if it is 3 feet long, because the measurement is made at about one to one and a half inches from the scalp. Think of a person bundling up a long pony tail. If you have more hair, the bulk of the pony tail will be much greater. As the measurement is limited to a point about one inch from the scalp, the longer hair will not impact the measurement.

We take a baseline measurement at the same coordinates of the scalp each and every time you return (12 months). If you cut your hair with clippers with a buzzcut style, you cannot do a bulk measurement. If you have gel or other products on your hair it will give a higher bulk reading, so we ask that there are no hair products on your hair when you come in for the analysis.

If your hair is very short, then we can always use a miniaturization study, looking at hair diameters at a microscopic level. Bulk measurement is doing it at a macroscopic level. These are all our attempts to measure an objective (not subjective) value of your hair status. The subjective measurement can be a simple before after picture of your head/face. The picture can be highly variable depending on lighting and angles. At NHI, we try to keep the angles and the lighting and the camera model, lenses, aperture, and external flash location as constant as possible.

Doctor,
A few months back you had mentioned an upcoming trip to Europe. You also said that you planned to meet with Gho to discuss his technique or whatever. I am just following up to see if the visit ever materialized? Many people would appreciate a blog update on that situation. ALSO- many people would like you to be the first doctor to offer HST in the United States!

thanks for your time,
anonymous baldy

When I said “on my next trip to Amsterdam” I didn’t mean that I was planning on going there right away.

I was hoping to talk to Dr. Gho at the recent ISHRS meeting in Alaska, but he didn’t attend so we did not have an opportunity to meet to discuss what he was doing.

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Dr. Rassman,

Off topic, but as a former doctor working in the heart field and as a doctor who worked in the cardiac field what do you think are the biggest contributors to heart disease? Is there any one variable (e.g., high cholesterol, smoking, diabetes) that is most dangerous?

This is not a simple answer for a blog post. I will give a cursory answer to it nonetheless in the hope that what I have to say will help someone and possibly could even save a life. Apologies to those that come here for hair related posts, but this isn’t one of them.

Putting aside congenital heart disease, the things that are most dangerous for developing heart and vascular disease are the lifestyles and diets we have. There’s no one factor that I would be willing to pinpoint. What I tell people who ask heart related questions is that we are dealt a set of genetic cards… and if we win, it reflects the way we play those cards. If we keep ourselves healthy (good diet, exercise, no poisons in our system like cigarette smoking or excessive alcohol) we will live longer.

Some people are genetically programmed for high cholesterol and high body fats, so we must take control of those bad cards by going that extra mile. For example, the vegetarian who eats fruits and vegetables daily will have a lower cholesterol and lower body fat than the meat eater who sucks in daily milkshakes instead of water and consumes excessive calories with Big Macs a few times each week. Even the insulin dependent diabetic can improve his card deck with a good exercise program and controlled diet under good medical supervision. I’m not blowing any minds by saying this, I realize, but perhaps there’s one person out there that it’ll click with.

Just remember, life is fragile and you never realize it until you are given the bad news (like a cancer that you ignored when you notice rectal bleeding over the past few years or develop chest pain with your first heart attack). Those of you who think that your body is impenetrable, waking up with chest pain may indicate that you could be too late.

I see that mice are often used in studies for medicine before they are tested on humans such as this article posted recently on this site in regards to balding (here). I am not sure if anyone would have this information readily available, but how often is medicine that is successful in mice also successful in humans? I am curious to a percentage of a success/fail rate.

Thank you for your very informative site!

Animals such as mice, dogs, monkeys, etc are often used in medicine. In general, it may take many years for the study to leap from animal trials to human trials. With respect to the success and failure rates of such studies ever making to human trials, I would wildly guess that there are way more failures than successes… but I don’t have precise figures to satisfy your curiosity.

If someone has sebhoraic dermititus or Psoriosis, and the creams or whatever treatment prescribed do not totally remove the unsightly dandruff/scalling what should some1 do? If you just leave the dandruff alone will it go away eventually on it’s own? or w/ repeated applications of treatment? Or should I keep washing it? or apply more treatment? I never know what 2 do exactly.

The treatment of seborrhea is best in the hands of skilled dermatologists that specialize in skin conditions such as what you’re describing. I am not the right doctor to ask about it, as I am not a dermatologist.

If you don’t have a dermatologist in your area that a friend or family member can recommend, I’d try the American Academy of Dermatology’s doctor locator.

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