Wednesday 31 August 2011

What Can Make Treatments Stop Hair Loss and Regrow Hair

Whether you take an herbal supplement or purchase a hair regrowth product such as a shampoo containing all-natural DHT blockers, there are plenty of natural methods to promote the natural regrowth of lost hair. Millions of men and women in the United States suffer from receding hairline, male pattern baldness, thinning hair, and hereditary conditions that cause significant hair loss.

While most genetic hair loss problems are unavoidable issues concerning stress, poor nutrition, vitamin deficiencies, and hormonal imbalances, they can still be treated with natural hair regrowth products. In nature, there are certain plants and herbs known to encourage hair regrowth as well as stop the damaging effects of hair loss and thinning hair patterns. Below you will find a few natural ingredients that are commonly found in some of the most effective hair loss treatment options:

Saw Palmetto

One of the most popular herbal DHT inhibitors is called saw palmetto which is usually less inexpensive than most of the other commercial remedies on the market. This natural ingredient is often favored in hair loss products because it carries fewer side effects than other commonly used substances such as finasteride and dutasteride. A benefit of relying on saw palmetto is that the herb doesn’t interfere with the cellular activities when it works to prevent the conversion of testosterone into DHT.

Thyme, Rosemary, Lavender, and Cedarwood

One study that involved seven months of treatment claims that aromatherapy shows promise in promoting natural hair regrowth. With a safe and effective method of treating temporary hair loss, test subjects had the essential oils of thyme, rosemary, lavender, and cedarwood rubbed onto their scalps on a daily basis.

The application of these oils is usually coupled with a massage. Scalp massage with these essential oils enables the reactivation of dormant hair follicles and allows the nutrients from the oils to travel to the hair roots, cells, and tissues, thus regrowing hair.

In the end, 44 percent of the test subjects showed notable improvement in their hair growth. This is especially good news to those who wish to avoid steroid treatments as a way to combat hair loss.

Arnica

The flowers of arnica are known to stimulate blood circulation and are known to be vital ingredients in creams and ointments known to combat hair loss (alopecia). When used as a well-diluted tincture, arnica also becomes a suitable hair rinse.

Southernwood

The aerial parts of southernwood are known as a traditional remedy that stimulates hair growth despite a lack of scientific proof backing the claims. While some people take 10 to 20 drops of tincture up to three times per day; others create an infusion that is used as a hair rinse. When combined with stinging nettle, sage, and rosemary, a more effective product is created.


Natural hair regrowth products aim to revitalize the scalp and stimulate hair follicles to regrow healthy hair. In many cases, users have enjoyed healthier thicker hair with the help of natural ingredients such as burdock, cayenne, rosemary, sage, oat straw, sarsaparilla, kelp, spirulina and nettle. Burdock, cayenne, and nettle work in combination to eliminate toxins from the body that hinder hair growth. The rest of the herbs promote healthy natural hair regrowth while providing nourishment for the hair follicles.

Wednesday 24 August 2011

3 Things to Take to Treat Thinning Hair

Using hair loss treatments for thinning hair has a combination of results, depending on the hair loss treatment that you use and the reason that you are experiencing thinning hair. Making sure that your diet is adequate is often the first step in ensuring that your hair is healthy, while hair loss treatments can help reduce hair loss from genetic factors.

Thanks to advances in science, you have several options available when you have thinning hair or are experiencing hair loss. You may find that a shampoo with minoxidil is all that they need to combat thinning hair, especially if they catch their hair loss at its beginning stages. But minoxidil is also known to cause harmful side effects such as swelling of the face, eye irritation, and nausea.

Other options include surgery, changing your diet and using a combination of herbs and vitamins for hair regrowth. Surgery is usually a last resort, but it can and does work for many people. Today, hair restoration surgery is an excellent option for those who have experienced localized hair loss.

Prior to resorting to surgical hair restoration options, the following are usually observed in order to treat thinning hair:

1. Take Vitamins and Supplements

If you are experiencing male pattern baldness, or have just begun to experience thinning hair, then you may have success using hair loss supplements. Hair loss supplements typically contain saw palmetto, which binds the enzyme in men that causes hair to thin.

Women may have less luck with supplements, since the causes of female pattern baldness are unknown at the current time. Childbirth and hormonal imbalances are suspected to be the cause of thinning hair in women, but there is little proof to back this up.

2. Take Care of Your Hair

Thinning hair may also be caused by the use of commercially prepared shampoo, which contains sodium lauryl sulfate. Sodium lauryl sulfate has been known to dry hair out, causing it to become brittle and to break off easily. Hair loss caused by sodium lauryl sulfate is typically minimal, but you may want to consider using something else when you are suffering from thinning hair.

You should also take steps to make sure that you use a nourishing shampoo that contains biotin. Biotin is a naturally occurring substance that works to strengthen hair, and can be found in many hair loss shampoos and conditioners.

3. Take a Professional’s Advice

You may also want to talk to your doctor about your options for regrowing your hair. Hair loss is a common complaint among men and women, and your doctor may have the answers that you need. He or she can also advise you on taking hair loss supplements, which can interfere with some medications and medical conditions.


Hair loss does not have to take control of your life, especially when you have several options available. You can often use a combination of treatments in order to combat hair loss, including using hair loss supplements and special shampoos for thinning hair.

Wednesday 17 August 2011

Hair Loss Causes: Hair-Straightening Products Set the Record Straight

There are hair-straightening products that fall under the heading of keratin-based straighteners; keratin in and of itself is not harmful. Found naturally in healthy hair and nails, it poses no danger.

However, what reportedly gives the treatment its straightening power is not the keratin, but the formaldehyde, and the more it contains, the more powerful and effective the treatment will be. Although most companies say their products contain less than the 2 percent level of formaldehyde considered safe to use, that margin of safety is now in question.

Complicating matters further is the report that many salons are now mixing their own versions, or pumping up the premixed formulas with additional formaldehyde—and this, say experts, is where the real problems may lie.

‘Our investigation into the misleading claims and horror stories of this industry shows that this federal action cannot come soon enough’, Jane Houlihan of the Environmental Working Group recently told CosmeticsDesign.com, the leading cosmetic industry publication.

Last month the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) took a stand to protect workers by issuing a ‘hazard alert’ letter, warning of the dangers of formaldehyde exposure.

This comes on the heels of another made by National Academy of Sciences whose findings upheld those of the Environmental Protection Agency, who determined quite some ago the health dangers linked to formaldehyde exposure, including an increased risk of several cancers.

Hair Products, Not the Only Risk

While formaldehyde in hair products is the current issue on tap—deemed to cause excessive shedding of hair or hair fall, this is not the first time this hazardous chemical has come under fire. Indeed in 2006, nail polish manufacturers buckled to environmental concerns about hazardous chemicals—including formaldehyde—by voluntarily agreeing to remove them.

The California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative has organized Health Salons Week of Action in Washington, DC. This will include a Tri-Caucus congressional briefing on salon worker health and safety, a roundtable hosted by the EPA and the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, and Lobby Days and Hill visits conducted by advocates and salon workers who regularly face chemical challenges from the potentially harmful chemicals—including formaldehyde derivatives—still found in many products.

The ‘fake wood’ furniture industry has also been blamed for the ‘off gassing’ of formaldehyde fumes that result from resins used to make some products—fumes that have been linked in some studies to an increase in childhood asthma, as well as other breathing problems.

What’s interesting to note, however, is that while formaldehyde itself is being blamed for these health concerns, in reality, this chemical is really a gas that can’t be blended with liquids. So the real issue may not be the formaldehyde itself, but rather that of the chemical combinations which result from formaldehyde derivatives.

Currently, six other nations have recalled or banned the use of formaldehyde-based hair straighteners. Under the current law, the FDA may issue a voluntary recall for these products in the United States, but that has yet to happen.