Hair Loss Gene Identified

People anxious over their hair loss might not need to worry anymore, for a gene that prevents regeneration of hair has been identified - opening a broad path to treatments for thinning locks.

A healthy individual loses about 100 strands of hair daily, with losses occurring evenly around the whole scalp. However, this hair is replaced.

The problem begins when the shedding goes beyond that number, and replacement lags.

Now, after six years of study, researchers at the University of Bonn have identified a gene that causes a rare hereditary form of hair loss - Hypotrichosis simplex - throwing open the possibility of regenerating hair.

These researchers are the first to identify a receptor that plays a role in hair growth. They now hope that their research findings will lead to new therapies that will work with various forms of hair loss.

“Although Hypotrichosis simplex is very uncommon, it may prove critical in our search for an understanding of the mechanisms of hair growth,” Nature quoted project leader Dr. Regina Betz from Bonn’s Institute of Human Genetics, as saying.

At fault is a genetic defect that prevents certain receptors on the surface of hair follicle cells from being correctly formed.

For the hair follicle to function normally, messengers must bind to these receptors, triggering a chain reaction in the cell interior.

The fact that a receptor plays a specific role in hair growth was previously unknown.

Professor Dr. Markus Nothen, who holds the Chair of Genetic Medicine at Bonn University’s Life & Brain Centre, said: “The defective receptor structure falls into the category of what are known as G-protein-coupled receptors.”

This is good news, Dr Nothen says, because, “they are particularly well suited as points of impact for drug treatments.”

The researchers have also been able to find an endogenous messenger that binds in the hair follicle to the receptor, which opens up opportunities for developing new active agents.

As part of the study, another member of the project team, dermatologist Khalid Al Aboud of the King Faisal Hospital in Makkah examined a Saudi Arabian family with Hypotrichosis simplex.

DNA samples from the parents and from nine of their 10 children - including four sufferers - were analysed, providing the researchers the key to understanding some of the fundamental mechanisms of hair growth and loss.

The researchers now hope that this individual genetic case will lead to developments that can benefit more patients.

The study is due to appear in the March edition of Nature Genetics.

Why not call 0207 976 6868 and speak to one of our trichologist who will be happy to help and advise you.

Your initial consultation and assessment are free.

So why not take advantage of our expertise and get the facts so that you can make an informed decision on what is best for the future of your hair today.

Take control of your hair loss today so that it does not control your life.

However, not all cases are treatable. But with early diagnosis and treatment you will give yourself and us the best possible chance to help you.

HairMax LaserComb: Patient Information

INTRODUCTION

Some say it is the hair that makes the man or the woman; it’s been called our crowning glory and defines our style, framing our personal presentation. For many people, losing their hair is a frustrating experience.

Thanks to the HairMax LaserComb®, there is now well founded hope for those suffering from hair loss and thinning hair.

Lexington International, LLC began developmental work on Laser PhotoTherapy over 20 years ago in Australia. Since then, the company has been at the forefront of this emerging technology. In 2001, the HairMax was introduced to the market and, from its inception, over 90% HairMax users are satisfied with their results.

In 2007, the HairMax received clearance by the US FDA for the Promotion of Hair Growth in males with certain classes of Androgenetic Alopecia (male pattern baldness). The HairMax is marketed in 90 countries and is the first and only medical device ever cleared by the FDA for “Promotion of Hair Growth”.

The handheld HairMax is available without a prescription and is a one time cost that delivers long term benefits. It is portable, easy to use, requires only three treatments per week. HairMax is even described as “therapeutic” or “soothing” by many of its users.

How the HairMax Works

The HairMax works via the principle of Photo-BioStimulation, a process by which laser energy is delivered to the hair follicle. While the exact mechanism of action is unknown, it is hypothesized that Laser PhotoTherapy stimulates growth factors within the hair follicle.

Some users report stabilization of hair fallout at the onset of treatment followed by subsequent faster and thicker new hair growth. This points to the fact that the HairMax effectively targets the hair follicle at the cellular level and in some way both speeds up the hair growth process while at the same time inducing the growth of a thicker (or terminal) hair where a thin, dying hair may have been in place previously.

PATIENT CANDIDATES

Your physician will discuss with you whether the HairMax is appropriate for treating your condition.

INDICATIONS FOR USE

The HairMax LaserComb is indicated to promote hair growth in males with androgenetic alopecia who have Norwood Hamilton Classifications of IIa to V and Fitzpatrick Skin Types I to IV.

(Studies on the use of the HairMax LaserComb in women have just been completed.)

STUDIES DEMONSTRATING

HairMax EFFECIVENESS

A clinical trial in support of the FDA submission was designed and conducted as a multicenter, randomized, sham-device controlled trial. It was conducted under strict GCP (Good Clinical Practices) guidelines and was overseen by an IRB (Independent Review Board).

The primary aim of the study was to assess the following:

promotion of hair growth
cessation of hair loss
changes in hair density
scalp overall health
safety

Study subjects used the HairMax three times per week on non-concurrent days for a total of 26 weeks. Hair density measurements were recorded at baseline and at 26 weeks, with additional clinical visits taking place at 8 and 16 weeks.

CLINICAL RESULTS

Subjects in the HairMax treatment group demonstrated a significantly greater increase in hair density (+19.80 cm2) than subjects in the placebo (sham-device) group (-7.60 cm2). Subjects in the HairMax group also had significantly better self assessments of overall hair health and regrowth than subjects in the placebo group.

There were no reports of adverse side effects from any of the subjects.

You can buy the HairMax LaserComb direct from us:

HairMax LaserComb Premier Model £335.00 RRP

HairMax LaserComb Compact SE Model £245.00 RRP

Why not call 0207 976 6868 and speak to one of our trichologist who will be happy to help and advise you.

Your initial consultation and assessment are free.

So why not take advantage of our expertise and get the facts so that you can make an informed decision on what is best for the future of your hair today.

Take control of your hair loss today so that it does not control your life.

However, not all cases are treatable. But with early diagnosis and treatment you will give yourself and us the best possible chance to help you.

Hair Loss During Military Duty Merits Compensation

If a solider incurs illness causing hair loss during mandatory military service, should the nation compensate him or not? A court ruled the government should recognize him as a man of merit so that he can be entitled to some benefits provided by the government.

A 26-year-old man, Kwon, who joined the army in December 2002, had three patches of circular balding in July, 2004, while he was training in hot weather. But he could not take immediate treatments as he was on a 10-day exercise. He received treatment after training but had lost about 80 percent of his hair.

After his condition showed no improvement, Kwon was hospitalized for better treatment, from November that year through January 2005 when he was discharged from military service.

The hair loss has expanded to his whole body since, including his eyebrows.

After the discharge, Kwon filed an application to the regional office of the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs to be recognized as a national meritorious man, saying he got the depilatory disease due to stress from the military service, including having to wear helmets in sultry weather.

But the office rejected his application in April 2006, saying the disorder was unrelated to military duty.

Kwon filed a suit with a district court in Suwon, and the local court ruled in his favor. “The hair loss seems to have occurred due to stress from his duties, considering symptoms appeared 21 months after entering the army and he did not have any diseases which may have caused the balding,” the court said in the ruling.

Similar suits are expected to follow, as Kwon said two of his peers had circular hair loss as well during training.

Once recognized as a person of national merit, one is eligible to a national pension and various other government benefits.

LaserComb Clinical Study Testimonial

You can buy the HairMax LaserComb direct from us:

HairMax LaserComb Premier Model £335.00 RRP

HairMax LaserComb Compact SE Model £245.00 RRP

Why not call 0207 976 6868 and speak to one of our trichologist who will be happy to help and advise you.

Your initial consultation and assessment are free.

So why not take advantage of our expertise and get the facts so that you can make an informed decision on what is best for the future of your hair today.

Take control of your hair loss today so that it does not control your life.

However, not all cases are treatable. But with early diagnosis and treatment you will give yourself and us the best possible chance to help you.

Start On Way To Baldness Gene Therapy?

Richard Roth: Scientists Find Gene That Could Be Just That; Does Baldness Matter?

(CBS) Is being bald really beautiful, as some folks would have you believe?

The curious thing, suggests CBS News correspondent Richard Roth may be that, jokes aside, hair loss hasn’t seemed that much of an impediment to a lot of men in the public eye. Fame for them hasn’t relied on functioning follicles.

Just ask Michael Jordan. Or Sean Connery, for instance.

Roth who, in the interest of full disclosure, we should point out is bald himself, says even a very random check of public opinion suggests baldness may not be the bane of all existence.

“I’m not a superficial kind of person, so I don’t think it would make a difference to me,” one woman told CBS News. “I don’t mind at all,” said another. “If a man is masculine, and manly, I think it’s completely irrelevant.”

The truth, says Roth, may be more complex given that, just in the United States alone, according to the Food and Drug Administration, around $1billion a year is spent on mostly bogus remedies for baldness.

Just-published genetic research doesn’t exactly point to a cure, says Roth. It points more to a hope that, having pinpointed a gene linked to one very rare condition causing baldness in a small group of people, scientists may finally be on the path of — if not at the doorstep to — something bigger.

Gersh Kuntzman, who wrote “Hair: Mankind’s Historic Quest to End Baldness,” explained to Roth that, “The silver bullet is always been gene therapy, because there is no drug that can grow hair on a bald man’s head. It can’t be done, because the follicles have already shrunk up. You can’t reopen it. However, if you can figure out what genetic process constricts those follicles, then maybe you can change that pattern and actually keep those follicles from constricting and have healthy hair grow forever.”

Still, Roth points out, “The fine print reads, ‘They haven’t done that yet’ which, perhaps, leaves us where we began: instead of raising false hopes — or hair — celebrating a loss, as an asset.”

Why not call 0207 976 6868 and speak to one of our trichologist who will be happy to help and advise you.

Your initial consultation and assessment are free.

So why not take advantage of our expertise and get the facts so that you can make an informed decision on what is best for the future of your hair today.

Take control of your hair loss today so that it does not control your life.

However, not all cases are treatable. But with early diagnosis and treatment you will give yourself and us the best possible chance to help you.

being bald really beautiful, as some folks would have you believe?

P2RY5 is the cause of hair loss

RESEARCHERS have found the genetic basis of two distinct forms of inherited hair loss, opening a broad path to treatments for thinning locks, according to a recent pair of studies.

Geneticist Regina Betz of the University of Bonn and her colleagues hunted down a gene P2RY5 that causes a rare, inherited form of hair loss called Hypotrichosis simplex. They found their quarry, after six years of research, among families in Saudi Arabia. It is the first receptor in humans known to play a role in hair growth, according to the study.

The disease affects both men and women, who begin to go bald during childhood.

At fault is a genetic defect that prevents certain receptors on the surface of hair follicle cells from being correctly formed.

For the hair follicle to function normally, messengers must bind to these receptors, triggering a chain reaction in the cell interior. The fact that a receptor plays a specific role in hair growth was previously unknown to scientists.

“We can now search selectively for related substances that may be used in therapies for very different types of hair loss,” said a researcher.

In the other study, Angela Christiano of Columbia University lead a team that found another mutation of the same gene that results in “woolly hair” — sparse, dry and tightly curled hair over the entire scalp.

Examining families in Pakistan, the researchers determined that the mutation is expressed in the inner root sheath of hair follicles, which anchor and shape individual hairs.

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HairMax LaserComb Users Testimonials

You can buy the HairMax LaserComb direct from us:

HairMax LaserComb Premier Model £335.00 RRP

HairMax LaserComb Compact SE Model £245.00 RRP

Why not call 0207 976 6868 and speak to one of our trichologist who will be happy to help and advise you.

Your initial consultation and assessment are free.

So why not take advantage of our expertise and get the facts so that you can make an informed decision on what is best for the future of your hair today.

Take control of your hair loss today so that it does not control your life.

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HAIR LOSS:HOW TO GROW YOUR HAIR (COMBAT HAIR LOSS) Part 7

HAIR GROWTH - THE POSITIVE FACTORS

We come now to the second group of factors, those with a positive effect, the “boosters”, which we need to consider now that we have eliminated as many as possible of the negative group, but do not underestimate the boost that can be achieved in hair growth and condition by getting all the correct elements in place and simply eliminating the negative factors.

In the positive group we must genuinely take a holistic approach to our own well being, and a simple regime of a good, varied diet (especially the fresh fruit and vegetables), moderate exercise and controlled stress levels will optimise our hair growth and condition. Within that genetic blueprint you really can produce substantial improvements in this way.

What then of the hair growth products, the would-be chemical “Exorcets”, do they work? Can they assist? There are a surprisingly large number of agents known that are clinically proven to produce hair growth, not always it might be said in the required place, and not usually at the rate that would be wished by the recipient. The central problem lies in the invariable genetic nature of the hair loss which provides a slightly tilted horizon, a downward sloping background, which, short of genetic engineering, we will have to live with, and even if the baldness gene or genes can eventually be identified, which one can be sure will eventually happen, it is not clear whether the loss for everyone of this marker of maturity and hopefully wisdom would really be such a good idea.

HAIR LOSS:HOW TO GROW YOUR HAIR (COMBAT HAIR LOSS) Part 6

THE EXTERNAL FACTORS
The next group are the external factors. Among the most obvious external influences are a wide range of, not necessarily uncommon, genetic shaft defects, i.e. faults in the structural make up of the hair shaft, that lead to subsequent problems of hair breakage, poor hair condition and the inability to grow a full head of hair. These genetic shaft defects are invariably impossible to resolve and the effect is usually, but not always, detrimental. The ‘spangled’ hair in cases of ‘pili torti’, for example, gives a wonderful sparkle and shine particularly for longer female hair.
Ailments of the hair and scalp listed here under ‘External Factors’ occupy an enormous area of breadth and diversity and require specialist treatment by a Dermatologist or Trichologist. Psoriasis, seborrhoeic eczema, pityriasis, ringworm are all distressing ailments, although with expert supervision they can be treated and reversed or controlled. It is very unlikely that one can obtain healthy hair growth, whilst these conditions pre-exist.
External damage can, of course, be self-induced and damage and scarring following cosmetic treatment is relatively common. Heavily bleached and weathered hair will be dry, brittle, and probably have some structural damage. The central cortex and outer cuticle layer may be damaged, and the hair structure will be unwinding, rather like the end of a piece of rope, which the dead, keratinised shaft structure quite closely resembles. This structural collapse will not stop the hair growing at the active growing root end, but it will cause extensive hair breakage and the resultant appearance of hair loss. The hair shaft may also be damaged or destroyed by professional treatment, particularly perming, straightening or hair colouring which has not been correctly performed. Again, the hair should re-grow normally unless permanent damage or scarring has occurred to the scalp. The legal pursuit of the perpetrators is usually lengthy and unsatisfactory resulting in further hair loss.
Hair breakage and loss may also be quite literally self induced, sucking, pulling, twiddling and plucking your own hair will inevitably lead to hair damage and loss, giving the characteristic cropped patches of almost bald scalp. Like any habit, this can be extremely difficult to stop and there may well be a problem, even with “acceptance”, for this condition. Watching the television or driving the car are two of the most common times for this to occur. Cessation of the activity will invariably result in the return to full hair growth, but breaking the habit can prove very difficult. Help should be sought from a friend, or family member, or, in more serious cases where psychosis may be present, expert guidance should be obtained.
More gentle external factors include seasonal variations where there is a greater fall in Spring and increased hair growth in Autumn, rather like the other mammals where the effect is pronounced. This change in growth rate in human hair is significant, and all clinical trials of hair growth products need to extend to a minimum of one year to allow for these seasonal variations.
Increasing age reduces the growth rate, with reduced hair texture and condition, as well as the loss of pigment in the hair shaft, and the onset of greyness. The failure of melanin production in the dermal papilla is considered by some researchers to be a highly significant mechanism and to be involved in the progress of Androgenic Alopecia. This is still the subject of further research but may explain why young men in their 20s and 30s who become prematurely grey do not appear to suffer from Androgenic Alopecia.

HAIR LOSS:HOW TO GROW YOUR HAIR (COMBAT HAIR LOSS) Part 5

HAIR GROWTH - THE NEGATIVE FACTORS
In the first group, the “Negative Effect” group, we have already mentioned the obvious systemic problems that will have an important influence. You must, of course, be fit and well but conditions such as anaemia, over or under active thyroid, or polycystic ovaries, for example, will have a serious adverse effect on hair growth and must be diagnosed and treated without delay. Anaemia may be caused partially by dietary deficiencies, giving rise to low iron and ferritin levels, particularly common in people who do not eat red meat and do not take the necessary “B Group” vitamin supplementation, particularly B12. You do not need to be clinically anaemic before low iron levels in the body will reduce your hair growth rate.
The trace elements present in minute quantities in the body but essential catalysts for the operation of the chemical network, must all be present, even arsenic is now thought to be an essential trace element. The macro elements (calcium, magnesium and phosphorus), the elements present in larger quantities used in the production of bone and other tissue must of course be present in the optimum quantities. All the vitamins (from A to U) must also be present in the body at the recommended level (especially vitamins A, B group vitamins, vitamin C, and vitamin H for hair and skin growth). They are all vital for normal body processes. The body cannot synthesise any of these elements or minerals; they must all come from the food we eat. Likewise with the vitamins, they must almost all come from the food we eat; only a few can be synthesised by the body. Restricted diets, slimming courses and poor nutrition can very quickly lead to specific deficiencies and consequent hair and skin problems. Nutritional problems are by no means confined to Third World countries and many modern sophisticated clinics see cases of nutritional deficiencies. To eat well may seem blindingly obvious, but without a healthy, varied diet, which includes quantities of fresh fruit and vegetables, your hair and skin will not be at their best. If you have any doubt, arrange a blood test or a mineral hair analysis for these levels to be checked.
Just as deficiencies in certain agents will have an adverse reaction, so does the introduction of unwanted agents, especially toxins, into the blood stream. Smoking, excess alcohol, and most induced chemicals (drugs of abuse) will have a serious, adverse affect on hair and skin growth.
Chemotherapy is an extreme example of a severe toxin introduced deliberately into the blood stream to fatally affect the mutant cancerous cells present. The collateral damage to the rest of the body is considerable including (least importantly of all) the hair follicles, which, in response to the severe toxic trauma, immediately and synchronously, stop growing, even though they are in the growth (anagen) phase.
The resultant “anagen effluvium” (total hair fall) results in immediate cessation of hair growth; the now non-growing hairs are held in the follicles for a further short period before being shed to produce temporary total baldness. New hair growth is already activated in the hair follicle and the new hair synchronously re-grows back to its normal position, although the texture and colour of the hair may have been affected by the severe trauma.
Many drugs are of course introduced into the blood stream for their therapeutic effect and these pharmaceutical agents, whilst performing their primary task for which they were prescribed, will also disturb the existing delicate hormone balance to some extent, i.e. they will have side effects. This secondary action, the side effects, is usually negative, but not always and the treatment of high blood pressure with Minoxydil in the 1970s produced not only hirsute women (women with excess hair growth in the male pattern) but re-growth of vellus hair on the bald scalps of men suffering from Androgenic Alopecia, a feat which up until then was thought to be impossible and precipitated an enormous jump in research and development of drugs for the treatment of common baldness.
There are other systemic conditions of a more insidious nature, such as Alopecia Areata, a partial failure of the auto-immune system of unknown cause or origin, although stress, which has the effect of raising hormone levels, is implicated. The white blood cells of the body attack the healthy hair follicles causing breakage and loss of hair in the characteristic coin-shaped patches. The mechanism, although much studied, is not well understood, and there is now thought to be a genetic influence in this condition. A high percentage of Down’s syndrome children suffer from Alopecia Areata.
Systemic problems are the second biggest group of factors involved in hair loss, after the leading genetic group of influences and many serious conditions, secondary syphilis, lupus, HIV, etc., first appear as dermatological problems of the hair and scalp.

HAIR LOSS:HOW TO GROW YOUR HAIR (COMBAT HAIR LOSS) Part 4

COMMON BALDNESS
It is the hormones of course that trigger Androgenic Alopecia at the onset of puberty, resulting in hair loss and patterning in 90% of men and approximately 50% of women. This is a major degenerative shift in the hair growth pattern universally referred to as Common Baldness or Male Pattern Alopecia and Female Pattern Alopecia. Given that this change is genetically pre-determined, it is therefore extremely difficult to slow or reverse this very gradual but definite deterioration in these pre-determined areas of the scalp. Androgenic Alopecia is triggered, as its name suggests, by the androgens (masculinising hormones present of course in both sexes).
At puberty the male sex hormone, testosterone, appears in both sexes and is partially converted by the enzyme 5-? reductase into the much more active form di-hydroxytestosterone (DHT). It is this more active form DHT that causes miniaturisation and eventual loss of the hair follicle in pre-determined areas of the scalp in cases of Androgenic Alopecia.
The new hair that is produced by the dermal papilla has a slightly shorter growing (anagen) cycle and is smaller in both length and in its diameter. The cycle is repeated, with each successive hair getting smaller and smaller, reverting eventually to the very fine baby (vellus) hair. Eventually the dermal papilla ceases to function, hair growth production stops and the hair follicle finally atrophies and is lost. These dormant dermal papillae can be reactivated by
suitable chemical stimuli for up to about five years after hair production ceases before they are permanently lost.
The scalp shows the characteristic bi-temporal recession and movement of the front hair line in men with thinning of the frontal and crown areas, proceeding in the pre-determined stages, leading ultimately to complete baldness in some cases.
Women usually have a different pattern of hair loss. The hairline is retained and thinning occurs behind the hairline on the frontal and crown areas and often the areas above both ears are affected. Complete baldness in women is not normal, although it is possible for some women to experience hair loss in the male pattern.
There are a large number of treatments available for use for MPA and FPA and many clinically proven agents that will promote hair growth in cases of Androgenic Alopecia (and many more that will promote the growth of hair in unacceptable areas) and these treatments will certainly assist in stabilising the position and promoting modest re-growth but any changes are not dramatic, they are marginal at best and should be seen as “buying time”, delaying the onset of hair loss. Probably the most effective treatments will buy you five years, possibly a little more, before you are back in the same position. This result can certainly be worth achieving but you can liken it to trying to run back up the genetic down escalator. The condition will revert eventually to its genetically pre-determined position.
Now the hormones may be masters of the biological universe but they are by no means the only agents or conditions that can affect hair growth and many of these can have a substantial, sometimes devastating effect. We need to consider conditions that have both a negative effect, i.e. they must be present and correct to achieve normal hair growth and without them hair growth will be adversely affected. In the second group, the agents or situations that can positively affect hair growth, they can increase the growth response above what would normally be expected. This is the second group, the “positive effect” group.
We will consider the first group, the “qualifying” group; they are necessary, but only to return to the genetic “norm”, but it is vital that they are in place and we will, of course, look then at the second group, the genetic “boosters”, the fireworks, the ones that can lift you, within reason, above the genetic norm. It is important to understand their significance and the way in which they fit into the overall pattern of hair growth.

HAIR LOSS:HOW TO GROW YOUR HAIR (COMBAT HAIR LOSS) Part 3

COMBAT HAIR LOSS: How To Grow Your Hair Back (Part 3)
GENETICS AND HORMONES
We are born with a pre-determined genetic blueprint; we arrive at birth pre-coded with our own personal barcode taken from the gene pool supplied by our individual ancestors. This dip into the gene pool will provide the gene coding which will determine virtually everything for each individual from the colour of our eyes and our height, to our temperament, our mathematical ability and the eventual appearance of grey hair in later life. This set of instructions is initiated and controlled by the hormones, a group of complex chemical compounds, released by the various glands in the body in minute quantities, acting as chemical messengers, the veritable “conductors of the orchestra”.
Any change or interference to this hormone messenger network or to the hormone receptors in the body will have dramatic consequences for our physiological make up and possibly our overall well being. Disturbance or non-
functioning of the hormone system should be referred to an endocrinologist, a hormone specialist. Distortion of the hormone levels may result in hair loss, or increased hair growth, or hair growth in the wrong places.
The hormone system may be disturbed by a number of factors, possibly hormone anomalies present at birth, and also any subsequent systemic illness or condition will potentially alter the hormone levels. To obtain optimum hair growth and condition you must be quite simply “fit and well”.
Stress is heavily contra-indicated, or not advised and high stress levels must be managed or controlled. Stress raises the hormone levels, especially Adrenalin. The body’s defence mechanism is triggered and non-essential body activities are shut down, this unfortunately includes hair and skin growth which, as far as the body is concerned, are non-essential, secondary activities, as indeed they are compared with the primary organ activity of the heart, brain, lungs, kidneys, etc. It is, of course, possible to have quite major hormone changes, which are naturally occurring, puberty for both men and women and childbirth and the menopause for women. The sex hormones are released at puberty, oestrogen levels increase dramatically during pregnancy, (oestrogen can increase two hundred fold in pregnancy and the consequent drop in levels after birth can lead directly to postnatal depression), and oestrogen production ceases almost completely when the ovaries are no longer functioning after the menopause and it will be no surprise that each of these naturally occurring major hormone shifts have an immediate effect on hair growth and hair condition. The stage is thus set and we will all follow, barring major events, the pre-arranged genetic pathway and no other factors or influences come close in comparison in their effect and complete control over our hair growth. The miniature vellus hairs on the babies, the appearance of pubic hair at adolescence, the sudden growth of hair from the ears in men after the age of 50, they are all controlled by the hormones. They are truly the chemical wizards; they have magical powers and control.

HAIR LOSS:HOW TO GROW YOUR HAIR (COMBAT HAIR LOSS) Part 2

HAIR GROWTH – THE MECHANISM
Hair consists of long “keratin” fibres, twisted in a rope-like structure with an outer protective cuticle or coating of hardened, keratinised cells giving a structure of considerable tensile strength. The hair is produced by the dermal papilla, a cluster or peg of highly active cells just below the surface of the skin, fed by the blood micro capillaries in the dermis, and from which the hair fibre grows in its hair follicle or shaft. The growing fibre structure becomes keratinised or hardened to form the final hair structure, which extrudes from the skin or the scalp. The hair fibre at this point is dead and it is only the growing or germinating root tip of the hair where the living, soft hair cells are to be found. These highly active dermal papillae cover the whole of the body, except for the palms of our hands, soles of our feet, and the mucous areas, and the number of dermal papillae remains the same as we have at birth. The body cannot grow or produce any more dermal papillae.
The hair continues to grow from the dermal papilla for a fixed period of time; the growing (anagen) phase lasts usually two to seven years, depending on one’s age, health and genetic make-up. This is followed by a short period of change, (catagen), lasting seven-fourteen days, during which the activity of the matrix stops, the hair shaft becomes detached from the dermal papilla and moves upward somewhat in the hair follicle, which itself contracts and moves upwards.
Finally, the resting (telogen) phase, lasting usually two to three months, allows the non-growing hair to detach itself from the hair follicle and to be shed from the body, the new growing hair having already started to form at the dermal papilla in
the base of the hair follicle. The cycle then repeats itself, in a non-synchronised pattern, over the 100,000 or so dermal papillae on the human scalp.
The shedding of the dead hair is a completely natural process and, as it is non-synchronised across the scalp, it is perfectly normal to lose hairs each day. A healthy scalp has 100,000 to 120,000 hair follicles and dermal papillae and a hair fall of 100 to 300 hairs per day is normal. Except in cases of heavy excess hair fall (telogen effluvium), it is a mistake to be worried about hair fall, after all the new hair is already growing in the hair follicle alongside the previous dead hair which it helps to push out. It is not usually a good idea to collect or count the hairs that have been shed as it leads only to further hair fall with the increased stress.

HAIR LOSS:HOW TO GROW YOUR HAIR (COMBAT HAIR LOSS) Part 1

HOW TO GROW YOUR HAIR
(A Do-It-Yourself Guide)
Introduction
Hair Growth – The Mechanism
Genetics and Hormones
Common Baldness
Hair Growth – The Negative Factors
The External Factors
Hair Growth – The Positive Factors
Conclusion
The Check List
References and Further Reading
HOW TO GROW YOUR HAIR
INTRODUCTION
This book is intended for all of those people who would like to improve their hair growth and hair condition and for anyone who is interested in understanding the factors underlying the growth of body and scalp hair. It is based on first hand observation of many thousands of clinical hair disorder cases and on personal academic research in the field of hair growth and bio-medical science.
It is certainly possible within one’s own genetic blueprint to improve your hair growth and condition, by understanding the factors that are involved, eliminating or reducing the factors that have an adverse effect, and by pursuing vigorously the known plus factors.
Although it is true to say that a good deal of the precise mechanism for hair loss is still not fully understood, certainly for women, a very considerable amount of information is available and this book attempts to set out the fundamental factors involved in achieving healthy hair growth.
If you know how your hair grows and you study the factors that affect hair growth and follow the advice presented here, you will obtain the very best possible hair growth and condition