Avoid   Baldness

Hair loss is caused by varied factors. One of them is hyperthyroidism. Others factors include poor dietary choices, hormonal changes, vitamin deficiencies, surgery, certain medication and medical conditions - one of them being thyroid disease. If your hair loss is caused by thyroid disease - then here are ten steps you should take in order to deal with the situation as best as you can.

Step One: Get an evaluation - Visit a dermatologist and have him evaluate your hair loss - this is important in order to exclude any other possible causes.

Step Two: Be patient - If you have just embarked on hyperthyroid treatments, then you will just have to be patient and wait for hormone levels to stabilize and get back to normal. This could take anything from a few weeks to a few months. Hang in there.

Step Three: Understand the types of hair loss - Hair loss occurs in three ways. Normal shedding of hair is one of them, like when you take a shower or brush your hair - which is the most common type of hair loss with hyperthyroidism. The next is linked with fungal infection (autoimmune alopecia) - which results in circular bald patches and has nothing to do with thyroid disease. The final one is male pattern hair loss.

Step Four: Make sure it is not your thyroid drug - If your thyroid medication includes Levothyroxine as a replacement for your thyroid hormone, and hair loss continues - then you might need to go back to your doctor.

Step Five: Make sure you are not undertreated - Hair loss could also result from being undertreated. You might want your doctor to test you for optimal levels and then reconsider your medication.

Step Six: Find out if you need a second drug - Some people react better to a combination of T4 and T3 instead of only T4. Ask your doctor.

Step Seven: Consider an alternative treatment - Primrose oil can counter the conversion of testosterone to DHT on your scalp. You should try it.

Step Eight: Look at other alternatives - Studies reveal that 90% of women suffering from thinning hair had iron and amino acid lysine deficiencies. Consider including more meat, eggs and fish in your diet and perhaps even lysine supplements, as it is one of the most difficult nutrients to get in the food you eat.

Step Nine: Consult a doctor for prescription treatment - Check with your dermatologist for recommended drug treatments like Rogaine, Propecia or even scalp injections.

Step Ten: Talk about it with others - Hair loss is not only frightening but also affects self-esteem. It is best to discuss this with close friends and family, especially those dealing with the same problem.

Hair transplants for women are quite possible, but it does have its limits. Hair transplants are popularly advertised for men, as men are the gender most affected by hair loss.

For a woman to be able to have hair transplants, the hair loss needs to be androgenetic alopecia, scarring alopecia, traction alopecia, alopecia due to cosmetic surgery faults, accident trauma caused alopecia or cosmetic correction needs such as deficient eyebrow hair growth. These types of hair loss are permanent and thus qualify for hair transplant procedures.

Doctors will first remove and/or transplant all the affected sections. The only issue with women being treated with hair transplantation is the availability of a good donor area from which healthy hair follicles can be taken. Another issue is that women expect to regain a full head of hair following a hair transplant procedure however, this is impossible to achieve. With hair transplantation, hair follicles are merely redistributed and this does not mean that new hair follicles will grow. The procedure will of course improve the density of hair, but achieving the original density will depend on the level of alopecia and the available donor hair area on the scalp. This means that the larger the affected scalp area, the more limited will be the donor area - making the task that much harder and in regaining the original density of hair impossible.

Therefore, it is important that you take the careful advice of your surgeon before you decide on opting for a hair transplant, as you will need to assess the success rate and understand fully the limitations of such a procedure.

Baldness always brings up the ever-popular questions: Where does baldness come from? What causes baldness? Is baldness hereditary? Over the year, scientists have studied every possible chromosome and gene related to baldness.

However, as of now, there is still nothing certain available in terms or results from scientific research other than the fact that baldness is hereditary and that maternal genes most probably have a bigger effect on making us men bald. Nevertheless, nothing concrete has been deduced from research yet.

One interesting find is that if a woman has a bald father, she tends to carry that bald gene which in most probability will show up in her son who will be bald, like his grandfather. This however, does not apply to every case, but does in happen in most instances.

This is caused by the mother’s X-chromosome, which a child gets in womb, while the Y-chromosomes are from the father. Scientists say that baldness is carried by the X chromosome.

However, these theories are much debated, with some experts being doubtful of the fact that baldness is inherited from the mother’s genes. However, time has proven to some that this theory is true for their unique cases. New research revealed in October 2008 however, countered this and says that one male out of every seven males carries the X-chromosome and chromosome 20 variants, making these men seven times more likely to be bald.

However, with research still being carried out, the final say is yet to be revealed. Baldness could be hereditary, could be from your mom’s side and who knows, perhaps more than one gene is responsible for male pattern baldness. Who knows!

Every man dreads the day he will go bald. Male pattern baldness cannot be avoided but one can try a few treatments.

Almost every man faced with baldness tries several products that are advertised, be it a spray on, lotion, oil or even a toupee. Everyone wants a cure, but there is not one, not yet at least. What is comforting though is the development of a few new-fangled treatments to counter hair loss and could be available in the next few years.

Hair cloning (hair multiplication)
Hair cloning (also referred to as hair multiplication or follicular cell implantation) is the reproduction process of healthy hair follicles while distributing them widely enough to eliminate baldness. This is advanced version of hair transplants - as the formula is the same: borrow healthy hair from your head and fill in the spaces. This new treatment does not involve just the moving around of hair on your scalp, but also has the possibility to recreate thick, healthy, wavy hair.

Hair follicles are like plants. If a hair follicle is split into two and cultured properly, it will grow another strand of hair just like the first one. This can be carried out a few thousand or million times after which it can be reintroduced to the scalp. This will give new life to current hair follicles. This treatment is still in the development stages, but a British company developing it in June 2008, announced the successful completion of the Phase II trial of its hair implantation tests. The company expects the treatment to be available by 2013.

Genetic testing
Males who gain two particular genetic variants due to hereditary terms are seven times more like to lose their hair. An Icelandic company is in the process of developing a personal genotyping service. If the reports indicate that you do have those genes that could cause baldness, then you can immediately take advantage of any preventative treatments. This ‘crystal ball’ service is critical to the cracking of the androgenic alopecia code, which could lead to better treatments.

The company currently offers personal genotyping, but baldness diagnostics should be available sometime around 2010-2011.

Natural regeneration
Once thought to be only possible on selected animals like newts and salamanders, natural regeneration of hair follicles is now possible. Discovered by scientists working for the University of Pennsylvania, this process not only ‘reawakens’ hair follicles but apparently can be carried out with minimum or no scarring. The actual treatment though will be only be available around 2015-2018 and is being worked on by Follica Inc.

The statistics of genetic hair loss experienced by women has risen over the years. Hair loss in females is not as prevalent as it is in males - but it remains a problem. Outlined below are a few pointers to assist you - and ensure that you do not suffer from hair loss problems.

Female pattern baldness, which is the most common type of hair loss, is also called Androgenetic Alopecia. This hair loss issue involves the thinning of hair that can make you feel extremely self-conscious and create emotional issues and social anxiety.

Step One: Make sure that your intake of the necessary vitamins and minerals is within the recommended levels. Deficiencies of iron, copper, magnesium, zinc and vitamins A, B, C & E can all lead to hair loss in females. You need all these vitamins and minerals to ensure that you have a healthy scalp that will nourish your hair follicles, which in turn, encourages a good growth of hair.

Step Two: The root cause for female pattern baldness is DHT or Dihydrotestosterone. This hormone which is found in your bloodstream, if found over and above average levels in your scalp will choke your hair follicles -making it impossible for the absorption of nutrients from your blood. This is what makes your hair thin - and then eventually your hair follicles die. If you notice your hair thinning out, then look for a good herbal supplement that will fight DHT and prevent its formation on your scalp.

Step Three: The medication Minoxidil was initially developed for blood pressure. It helps to dilate blood vessels and ensures that the blood flow to the body is within normal levels. A side effect of Minoxidil is excessive hair growth. This medication is the only FDA approved medication for female pattern baldness.