Archive for July 18th, 2006
By: Mike Yeager
Have you ever wanted to change your hairstyles every couple of weeks? It doesn’t mean there is something wrong with you.
Thinking about different hairstyles simply means that you are a complex person made up of many different dimensions. That is what brings you to this article, to get some information on different hairstyles.
First of all there is an important point to consider when considering about various short or long hairstyles . Do not try and fight the natural style of your hair. That is who you are.
A good stylist will encourage you to work with the hairstyle you were born with. After all, that is where your beauty is going shine from. Every woman wants incredible shine, more body, tresses that feel silky to the touch, with rich, natural-looking color that turns heads. Oh yeah, that’s right, you want that hair of yours to make heads turn and look your way. You can get all that if you choose good, quality products to treat your hair with.
Whether you are looking for a short hairstyle or formal hairstyle, good products and a good stylist will get you 99 percent of the way there. With some thoughtful searching you can find quality hairstyle products and great prices.
Take a few minutes to consider what you are looking for and consider what your needs are. Are you looking for a short, sassy hairstyle or long and luxurious hair? Whatever it is you will be able to find it and before you know it your hairstyle will reflect the person that you really are. Beautiful, elegant and attractive.
Mike Yeager is the publisher of www.a1-fashion-4u.com
July 18th, 2006
By Colette Bouchez
What works for men may work just as well for women.
You can style, spray, tease, mousse, and gel to your heart’s content.
But when your brush begins to hold nearly as much hair as you have on your head, all the styling products in the world won’t do you much good.
The problem — if haven’t already figured it out — is hair loss, and today, women are nearly at the same risk as men.
The good news: New treatment options can make a major difference. While the first step is always to have the cause of your hair loss diagnosed by an expert (a dermatologist is a great place to start), once that cause is determined, there are a variety of medications and treatments that can help — some developed especially for women.
Among the most popular is the FDA-approved over-the-counter topical preparation minoxidil (Rogaine). Originally developed as a treatment for male pattern balding, it works for women as well, helping to enlarge and lengthen the hair follicle. Though it may do little to grow more hair, it can extend the growth phase and thus can help you to keep the hair you do have, longer.
Over-the-counter minoxidil comes in two strengths — a 2% solution for women and 5% solution for men. But experts say women may see better results with the stronger preparation. “The 2% solution is way too weak for female pattern hair loss — you really need to use the 5% solution to get results,” says Michael Reed, MD, professor of dermatology at the NYU School of Medicine in New York City.
A study in the April 2004 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology compared 48 weeks of treatment with 2% and 5% minoxidil in women with female pattern hair loss. Compared with placebo, 5% minoxidil was superior in regards to hair count and patient and researcher evaluations of hair growth. While the 2% solution improved hair count and researchers’ assessments of hair growth, the patients did not appear to notice a significant improvement in hair growth.
Overall, both doses were well tolerated by the 381 women in the study without serious side effects. However, there were more side effects with the 5% solution — more itching and irritation as well as hair growth in areas other than the scalp, such as on the forehead.
“If you do have female pattern balding, the recommended treatment is minoxidil, and generally we recommend 5%, the one approved for men, because it is much more effective than 2%,” says Ted Daly, MD, of Garden City Dermatology and the Nassau Community Medical Center in East Meadow, N.Y. “The reason it is not approved for women is because a very small number may grow hair on the edges of their forehead, but if that happens, we cut it down to the lesser strength, and when we do that, it goes away.”
Be aware, however, that in higher concentrations minoxidil is likely to cause scalp irritation, itching, and dryness — problems that are often remedied by customized minoxidil preparations available in doctors’ offices.
For Men Only?
Reed says what is far more likely to help women are “off-label” medications — drugs approved for other problems, or strictly to treat hair loss in men.
Among the most popular is the decidedly “male” medicine finasteride — a drug originally developed to treat prostate disease and later, hair loss, in men. Prescribed under the names Propecia (1 mg strength) or Proscar (5 mg strength), they are known as enzyme blockers and they work by interfering with the process that converts testosterone to DHT in the hair follicle. Both drugs are pills that are taken orally.
Although both drugs have been shown to be dangerous to a fetus — hence, approved by the FDA for use only in men — experts say that in selected women they can be a real hair saver.
“Both can be safely used in women who can’t or won’t become pregnant — and it does help retard hair loss and will even help regrow hair in some women, if it’s used long enough and in high enough doses,” says Reed.
Side effects include heavier growth around the hairline, but that is reversed when the drug is either discontinued or the dosage lowered. It also has been known to have a slight effect on libido, causing some women to experience a reduced desire for sex.
Still another available treatment is the pill Aldactone (spironolactone), a diuretic and testosterone inhibitor, which works by impacting the enzyme receptors in the hair follicle, thus stopping the cycle of androgen-related hair loss. While it works well for some women, it can cause breast tenderness and other annoying side effects.
Other Options
In addition, Reed says women should be aware that most specialists treating hair loss have special preparations that can reduce many of the side effects of the over-the-counter or prescription drugs by suspending them in milder preparations. In addition, most also have customized formulations that combine two or more significant ingredients, and often add natural “hair helpers” such as zinc and biotin, to increase effectiveness.
“This is why it’s important that a woman visit a specialist in female pattern hair loss, because she is likely going to need some of these specialized preparations in order to obtain optimum results,” says Reed.
Lastly, Ricardo Azizz, MD, reports many women have found help through the use of estrogen-dominant birth control pills — oral contraceptives that work by overriding the high levels of testosterone and flooding hair follicles with enough female hormones to keep testosterone-related hair loss from taking place.
“Most birth control pills function similarly, but we do try to avoid the super low-dose pills because we want more estrogen,” says Azizz, director of the Center for Androgen-Related Disorders at the Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Among the brands favored by hair loss specialists include Yasmin, Demulen, Desogen, and Orthocyclen.
While a rumor has long persisted that birth control pills can actually cause hair loss in some women, Azizz says it’s just not so.
“Birth control pills can cause a temporary change in the hair growth and shedding pattern, so if you are suffering from a non-hormonal cause of hair loss, and you take oral contraceptives, they might aggravate the loss, but they won’t cause the loss,” says Azizz.
Hope For The Future
Among the latest buzz in the alopecia (hair loss) community is a unique new process for regenerating hair growth via the formation of new hair follicles. Known as “follicular neurogenesis,” it is a kind of cloning that attempts to generate “hair seeds” that may ultimately help new follicles to grow.
“Essentially the method takes a sample of your hair, sends it to the lab where the follicles are microdissected, and the cells the body uses to make hair are extracted and isolated,” says Reed.
Those cells, he says, are then purified and cloned to make many cells, which are then microinjected back into the balding area where they will hopefully cause the cells to make more hair follicles.
While the system is still under development, Reed says that realistically it’s many years from having a clinical application. In one study, published in Nature in 1999, a similar cloning system was shown to work on rodents. But to date, Reed says those specific results have not been duplicated.
A lot closer to reality is treatment with the drug Avodart (dutasteride), a cousin to the already popular finasteride (Propecia and Proscar) and also originally developed to treat prostate disease. The big difference, however, is that while finasteride helps block one enzyme involved in the conversion of testosterone to DHT, Avodart appears to block two — and that may be a real boon to women.
“Propecia reduces body levels of DHT 50%-55%; Proscar reduces it 65%-70%, but Avodar reduces it up to 94% — so the gain here is significant,” says Reed.
Although still considered highly experimental for female pattern hair loss, it is currently being used in small in-office trials, and only in selected women who cannot get pregnant. Reed, who is one of the doctors testing the drug on women, says it is being tried on those patients for whom Proscar didn’t work after one or more years of treatment. He is optimistic about the results thus far.
“It may turn out to be the best enzyme blocker for women we have,” says Reed.
Finally, while hair transplants for men have long been considered a staple treatment, they were rarely considered appropriate for women — mostly for cosmetic reasons. However, reporting in the November 2003 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, doctors from the Mount Sinai Medical School in New York City say that advances in transplant technology — including less scaring — combined with more realistic expectations, are now making this a viable option for women as well.
Rather than removing plugs of hair one by one and transplanting them to a different area of the scalp, the current techniques remove an entire strip of hair, then dividing it into smaller sections that are surgically placed precisely where the hair is needed — even in between hairs that are still growing naturally.
Still, the experts advise that women should consider hair transplants only after a trip to a dermatologist, a diagnosis, and at least one round of treatment with medication.
July 18th, 2006
By: PR Newswire
Research scientists at the University of San Francisco Wound Center may have stumbled onto the answer to hair loss: something that has frustrated mankind for centuries.
Their discovery was made while applying a synthetically formulated compound, Copper Peptide, to severe wound areas on several patients. During this process something unusual happened. Not only did the wounds heal about 30 percent faster, but a significant stimulation of the follicular cells occurred. As a side effect, these tripeptide complexes actually grew hair around the wound area.
The discovery was so startling that they then applied the same Copper Peptide complex to a female patient who had suffered roughly 90 percent alopecia (hair loss) for years. After about six months of use, she had recovered almost 100 percent of her hair. Dr. Loren Pickart, the leading authority in Copper Peptide technology, describes it as being like a protein injection to the scalp.
Tests were then conducted with chemotherapy patients and recent hair transplant recipients, all with great success in stimulating newer and stronger hair follicles. The implications of such a startling discovery have gotten the attention of several large companies. Neutrogena, Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble, and Dow Chemical are just a few of the big companies that Dr. Pickart has turned down as potential partners.
The discovery could have major implications in the somewhat shady area of the hair growth industry. There are many products that promise amazing results for hair loss, but they usually fail to deliver. Most have some sort of DHT inhibitor with traces of Minoxidil so they can claim Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval. The only licensed company that has been authorized by Dr. Pickart to manufacture for the public is Everest R & D Labs, located in California’s Simi Valley.
Incredible advancements in the manufacturing process of Copper Peptide technology are bringing even better results in hair re-growth than the original tests. Some people providing the company with feedback are offering amazing stories, with positive side effects that include the reduction of acne and psoriasis. There have been many reports from both men and women. Reports from women include statements that their graying hair is regaining some of its original pigmentation.
This product has been integrated into a therapeutic shampoo and conditioner called Follipro. As more and more corroborating evidence from research universities around the country become available, the possibilities for this new technology could be far-reaching.
July 18th, 2006
By Miranda Hitti
Due to Birth Defects Risk, Women in Study Taking Propecia Also Took Oral Contraceptives
Propecia, a drug used to treat male hair loss, may help fix women’s hair loss when taken with birth control pills, a new study shows.
The study included 37 premenopausal women with female-pattern hair loss (thinning hair) who took Propecia and birth control pills for a year. Hair loss improved for most women, mainly with “slight” or “moderate” gains, the researchers write.
The women saw things a bit differently, and the researchers say more work needs to be done before drawing any conclusions.
Up to half of all women experience female-pattern hair loss at some point in their lives, write Matilde lorizzo, MD, and colleagues. The scientists work at Italy’s University of Bologna. Their study appears in the Archives of Dermatology.
About the Drugs
Originally used for the treatment of prostate problems, Propecia is now being used for male-pattern hair loss. Propecia works by blocking the formation of the male hormones that can cause hair loss.
Propecia is a prescription pill taken once daily, but it’s not approved for use by women due to the risk of birth defects.
The women in Iorizzo’s study took the same type of birth control pill, which contains an ingredient that curbs male hormones. That ingredient might also curb the women’s hair loss, the researchers write.
None of the women had abnormal hormone levels, the study shows.
Before and After
Iorizzo’s team photographed the women’s scalps before and after treatment, using a high-tech camera to spot any hair changes.
After checking those photos, the researchers saw “slight” improvements in 12 women, “moderate” improvements in eight women, “great” improvements in three women, no improvement in 13 women, and worsened hair loss in one woman. The researchers used a measurement called the “hair density score” and found that 12 women had a significant increase in their scores.
Then, the researchers showed the photos to the women and gave them a questionnaire for feedback. Most women — 29 out of 37 — noted improvements in their condition. The others replied that their hair looked about the same as before.
Improvement in the Eye of the Beholder
No side effects were reported. “This treatment was well accepted by the patients, who judged the results to be even better than did the investigators,” the researchers write.
The study didn’t include a comparison group of women who unknowingly got a fake drug (placebo). Iorizzo’s team says their study is “a basis for future work,” but not the final word on the topic.
More work is needed to see if Propecia was responsible for the improvements, if the birth control pills also played a role, and what doses of Propecia work best, note Iorizzo and colleagues.
July 18th, 2006
By Colette Bouchez
Experts say vitamins, herbs, even diet can help women cope with hair loss It’s been called the “ultimate bad hair day” –
the moment a woman realizes that her sink contains a lot more than just the few strands she’s used to seeing following a shampoo or even a vigorous brushing. The problem is hair loss, and whether the result of the aging process or a true medical or genetic condition, the number of women affected appears to be on the rise.
While there are certainly a number of specific medical treatments that offer great results, depending on the cause of the hair loss, and the extent, experts say there are a variety of natural treatments that can yield important benefits for anyone concerned about the health of their hair. Among the first natural lines of defense: Eating a healthy, nutritious diet.
Eating for Hair Health
“The same foods that are good for your body and your health overall are good for your hair, including foods that are high in protein, low in carbohydrates and have a reduced fat content,” says dermatologist Michael Reed, MD, an expert in female hair loss at New York University Medical Center in New York City. Reed says that what you put on your plate may not put hair on your head, but it can help the hair you do have remain healthier longer.
Another important dietary need are essential fatty acids, found in foods like walnuts, canola oil, fish, and soy.
“This is just an observation, but I believe there are many people who may have a sub-clinical lack of omega 3 fatty acids — these are ‘good’ fats, which have anti-inflammatory properties and may actually play a role in healthy hair,” says Samantha Heller, MS, RD, a nutritionist at NYU Medical Center.
Heller also warns women that another potential deficiency — a lack of iron that often occurs during the reproductive years — can lead to anemia, a reduction of red blood cells that is often an undiagnosed cause of hair loss in women.
“The deficiency may be so slight you barely notice it, but it can play a role in female hair loss,” says Heller. Adding more iron-rich foods to your diet — like broccoli or brewer’s yeast — may actually help reverse some forms of hair loss, she says.
Also important to healthy hair growth are foods containing vitamin B12 — including eggs, meat, and poultry. According to dermatologist and hair loss expert Ted Daly, MD, it’s a nutrient hair just can’t live without, and women can easily develop a deficiency.
“In my office it’s not uncommon to find a B12 deficiency in women who come in seeking treatment for hair loss,” says Daly, a clinical professor of dermatology at Nassau University Medical Center. Often, he says, supplements are necessary to restore levels, which in turn, can sometimes improve hair loss.
And while you’re reaching for that bottle of B12, don’t shortchange yourself on the other B vitamins, particularly biotin. According to experts, this nutrient is also essential for hair growth. It’s so important that biotin supplements are often prescribed right alongside medical hair loss treatments such as Propecia, Proscar, or minoxidil (Rogaine, Ronoxidil).
“Biotin is a major component in the natural hair manufacturing process — it is essential to not only grow new hair, but it also plays a major role in the overall health of skin and nails,” says Andrew Lessman, clinical researcher and creator of Your Vitamins, an all-natural supplement line manufactured in Henderson, Nevada.While Lessman says we can get biotin from our diet — it’s present in foods like liver and egg yolks — we would have to consume thousands of calories daily to get what our hair needs. That’s one reason why he and so many dermatologists suggest biotin supplements.
Indeed, Daly says he routinely recommends up to 3 mg of biotin daily for his hair loss patients, while Lessman developed a healthy hair, skin, and nails product containing 2 mg of biotin per daily dosage, which he believes is the minimum for healthy hair.
The recommended daily intake (RDI) of biotin is a scant 300 mcg — and even the healthiest diets usually contain no more than 30 to 50 mcg, says Lessman.
Both Daly and Reed also recommend zinc supplements — normally about 80 mg daily — because studies show this nutrient may affect the levels of androgens, the hormones involved in some forms of genetic hair loss.
Lessman and Heller, however, are more cautious, advising against the use of zinc supplementation in levels any higher than what might be in a multivitamin.
“It’s imperative that zinc and copper remain in the proper ratio. And unless you also supplement copper you don’t want to dramatically increase zinc intake,” says Lessman. What’s more, since both metals are pro-oxidants (meaning they contribute to unhealthy free radical formation) Lessman says supplementation in any significant amount would require careful health monitoring by a doctor.
Heller adds that taking too much zinc can also cause a copper deficiency, which in turn can actually cause hair loss — another reason she believes supplementation of these minerals is unnecessary. What may be important for women to take, however, is the nutrient known as methylsulfonylmethane or MSM — a substance vital to the life of hair and skin.
“The same way that biotin is a component of the manufacturing process of hair, the sulphur found in MSM can be intrinsic to the structural development of hair — particularly because it is so well-absorbed,” says Lessman. He recommends 700 mg of MSM daily.
The Buzz on Herbs For Hair Loss
Among the herbs making medical headlines is saw palmetto, shown in clinical trials to have some impact on benign prostatic hyperplasia — or enlarged prostate. Because this condition has been linked to an increase in the same hormones related to hair loss — androgens, including testosterone — at least some experts believe that saw palmetto may work much like the hair loss drug finasteride (Propecia or Proscar), which was originally developed to treat prostate enlargement.
While there are no clinical trials attesting to saw palmetto’s usefulness as a treatment for hair loss, there is at least some reliable research showing that it can stop or at least reduce androgen activity within the hair follicle. Whether or not this can stop hair loss in women is completely unknown — a fact that causes Heller some concern.
“If the herb is strong enough to effect androgen pathways, then women should not be taking it without their doctor’s approval — particularly if they are using any form of female hormones, including HRT [menopausal hormone replacement therapy], birth control pills, or even phytoestrogens [such as soy],” says Heller.
What may be a bit safer for women to take is green tea, which some studies have shown may influence blood concentrations of hormones linked to at least one form of genetic hair loss known as androgenic alopecia. In one study published in the journal Nutrition and Cancer in 1998, Japanese researchers found that drinking green tea could increase levels of the sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) in women. Since this biochemical binds testosterone, the more SHBG present in a woman’s body, at least theoretically, the less testosterone will be in her bloodstream. And that, say some experts, may block the chain of hormonal activity that initiates some forms of hair loss
“I don’t think we have solid evidence that green tea can help, but it is certainly a good source of antioxidants and may have some anti-cancer properties, so it certainly would not hurt a woman to include it in her diet,” says Heller.
Other folklore treatments involving herbs and plants include licorice extract (thought to prevent hair loss, but can also increase blood pressure); horsetail (which is a source of silica, a component in healthy hair); apple cider vinegar and sage tea applied directly to the scalp (thought to stimulate hair growth); psoralea seeds (a Chinese herb applied to the scalp) and ginger (either taken as a tea or applied to the scalp).
Hair Loss and Hair Care: What You Should Know
The idea that hair care products — including shampoos, dyes, bleaches, perms, and even blow dryers — can damage your tresses should come as no surprise. However, what you may not realize is that hair damage from products or procedures is not the same as hair loss caused by genetic or even medical problems. Surprisingly, this means that hair care products generally don’t figure into the hair loss equation.
“Damage from hair care products or procedures generally causes breakage — which is not the same as hair loss that occurs at the level of the hair follicle — so it’s rare that anything you can put on your hair is going to increase the risk of hair loss,” Daly tells WebMD. In this respect, he says, women suffering from hair loss don’t have to be afraid of grooming, or even color treating or perming their hair.
“It’s possible that a perming solution or a dye might inflame the scalp and cause problems related to hair loss, but that is very, very rare and not likely to happen,” says Daly.
At the same time, Reed says it’s also not a good idea to “punish” the hair you do have by over processing — or by overusing a hot blow dryer.
“You should certainly observe the same common sense rules you would if you didn’t suffer from hair loss, and take care of the hair you do have,” says Reed.What may be important for women to take, however, is the nutrient known as methylsulfonylmethane or MSM — a substance vital to the life of hair and skin.
“The same way that biotin is a component of the manufacturing process of hair, the sulphur found in MSM can be intrinsic to the structural development of hair — particularly because it is so well-absorbed,” says Lessman. He recommends 700 mg of MSM daily.
The Buzz on Herbs For Hair Loss
Among the herbs making medical headlines is saw palmetto, shown in clinical trials to have some impact on benign prostatic hyperplasia — or enlarged prostate. Because this condition has been linked to an increase in the same hormones related to hair loss — androgens, including testosterone — at least some experts believe that saw palmetto may work much like the hair loss drug finasteride (Propecia or Proscar), which was originally developed to treat prostate enlargement.
While there are no clinical trials attesting to saw palmetto’s usefulness as a treatment for hair loss, there is at least some reliable research showing that it can stop or at least reduce androgen activity within the hair follicle. Whether or not this can stop hair loss in women is completely unknown — a fact that causes Heller some concern.
“If the herb is strong enough to effect androgen pathways, then women should not be taking it without their doctor’s approval — particularly if they are using any form of female hormones, including HRT [menopausal hormone replacement therapy], birth control pills, or even phytoestrogens [such as soy],” says Heller.
What may be a bit safer for women to take is green tea, which some studies have shown may influence blood concentrations of hormones linked to at least one form of genetic hair loss known as androgenic alopecia. In one study published in the journal Nutrition and Cancer in 1998, Japanese researchers found that drinking green tea could increase levels of the sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) in women. Since this biochemical binds testosterone, the more SHBG present in a woman’s body, at least theoretically, the less testosterone will be in her bloodstream. And that, say some experts, may block the chain of hormonal activity that initiates some forms of hair loss
“I don’t think we have solid evidence that green tea can help, but it is certainly a good source of antioxidants and may have some anti-cancer properties, so it certainly would not hurt a woman to include it in her diet,” says Heller.
Other folklore treatments involving herbs and plants include licorice extract (thought to prevent hair loss, but can also increase blood pressure); horsetail (which is a source of silica, a component in healthy hair); apple cider vinegar and sage tea applied directly to the scalp (thought to stimulate hair growth); psoralea seeds (a Chinese herb applied to the scalp) and ginger (either taken as a tea or applied to the scalp).
Hair Loss and Hair Care: What You Should Know
The idea that hair care products — including shampoos, dyes, bleaches, perms, and even blow dryers — can damage your tresses should come as no surprise. However, what you may not realize is that hair damage from products or procedures is not the same as hair loss caused by genetic or even medical problems. Surprisingly, this means that hair care products generally don’t figure into the hair loss equation.
“Damage from hair care products or procedures generally causes breakage — which is not the same as hair loss that occurs at the level of the hair follicle — so it’s rare that anything you can put on your hair is going to increase the risk of hair loss,” Daly tells WebMD. In this respect, he says, women suffering from hair loss don’t have to be afraid of grooming, or even color treating or perming their hair.
“It’s possible that a perming solution or a dye might inflame the scalp and cause problems related to hair loss, but that is very, very rare and not likely to happen,” says Daly.
At the same time, Reed says it’s also not a good idea to “punish” the hair you do have by over processing — or by overusing a hot blow dryer.
“You should certainly observe the same common sense rules you would if you didn’t suffer from hair loss, and take care of the hair you do have,” says Reed.
July 18th, 2006
A healthy diet can help your hair stay strong and lustrous. Your diet can also prevent hair loss. In fact, very specific nutritional deficiencies can affect your hair.
Essential fatty acids — especially omega-3 fatty acids — play a key role in skin, hair, and nails. You should eat some of these foods, which are rich in omega-3, every day:
• Salmon, tuna, mackerel, and other fatty fish
• Flaxseed oil
• Walnuts and almonds
Vitamins B-6, B-12, and folic acid are also important to your hair. Vegetarians and vegans often don’t get enough of these vitamins.
Good sources of vitamin B-6 include bananas, potatoes (both white and sweet), and spinach.
Eating plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables — especially citrus fruits and tomatoes — will help you get folic acid. Whole grain and fortified grain products, beans, and lentils also contain folic acid. Major sources of B-12 include meat, poultry, fish, and dairy products.
Protein is also critical for keeping hair healthy, but many people don’t get enough. Lean meat like fish, chicken, eggs, and soy products are good sources of protein; eat one serving every day.
Because trace minerals like magnesium and zinc also affect hair, it’s a good idea to take a daily multivitamin.
July 18th, 2006