Growing Your Hair Naturally, The Solution Everyone Has Been Waiting For.

By Steven Bennis; Founder, Client & President; Natural Hair Growth Institute
Suburban Woman North Shore - Volume III Issue IV July / August 2007

Fact or Fiction - Top Five Myths About Hair Loss
Most people are unable to untangle fact from fiction when it comes to hair loss. Some of the blame lies with the many companies and individuals exploiting hair loss myths in order to sell bogus hair products. Other myths may linger because people with hair loss, particularly women, are reluctant to talk about an issue that remains sensitive and sometimes emotional.

The following are the top five myths about hair loss:
Myth 1: Hair loss comes from your mother's side of the family. For those of you secretly blaming your mother's grandfather for your male- or female- pattern baldness, it's time to let go. The hair loss gene does not get passed down from your mother, nor does it skip a generation.

Myth 2: Wearing a hat causes hair loss. This is just something our mothers told us to get us to take the hats off at the dinner table. Wearing a hat has no effect on the function of the scalp or the hair follicles.

Myth 3: Shaving your head will make your hair grow back thicker. This is an old wife's tale about shaving a part of your body and the hair in that area growing back thicker. While this may have happened to some women while trying to get rid of their facial hair, it doesn't work for balding men and women.

Myth 4: Hanging upside down will grow lost hair back. People believe that by hanging upside down more blood will rush to their head allowing more nutrients to get to the hair follicles due to gravity. Simply put, hanging upside down will not grow your hair. It does not work.

Myth 5: Eating more protein will make your hair get thicker. Some people believe that, since hair is made up of protein, by eating more of it, your hair will naturally get thicker. There is no relationship between eating excessive protein and hair growth.

The Social and Psychological Impact of Hair Loss
Hair loss is a devastating experience that millions of people around the world have to deal with in their lifetimes. For some, it's a fact of life, for other, it's a cosmetic tragedy. In our society, a full head of hair is directly related to one's vitality, image and success in life. And because it's so important to make a good first impression, people hate losing their hair. In many cases, hair loss can be so devastating to the point where it impacts one's actions and inactions socially and professionally in life.

For women, hair loss is more devastating than it is for men. While it is socially acceptable for a man not to have a full head of hair, it is absolutely unacceptable for a woman to be bald or even have thinning hair. In our society, there are no role models for women with thinning hair. In many cases, hair loss affects a woman's self-esteem and changes her life in a real negative way to the extent that causes an inability to work and socialize.

Hair Loss - Top Four Causes
Dihydrotestosterone (DHT)
DHT is the number one cause of hair loss for males and females. DHT is a hormone in one's body that, once it reaches the hair follicles and dermal papilla, it tends to prevent proteins, vitamins and minerals from providing the needed nourishment to sustain life in the hair of these follicles. With this, the hair follicles tend to reproduce at a slower rate and this in turn either shortens the growing phase of the hair follicles or lengthens the resting stage.

Stress
Stress resulting from a traumatic experience, illness or nutritional deficiency can also be a major factor in hair loss. Typically, women's hair seems to be more sensitive to the effects of stress than men's hair. This may be because women with a genetic predisposition towards hair loss usually have a higher percentage of fragile miniaturized hair.

Poor Circulation
Poor circulation to the scalp is among the many factors contributing to hair loss. Tightness of the scalp, which is believed to be hereditary, can be exacerbated by stress and poor diet. This condition can inhibit blood flow, particularly to the top of the head, preventing nutrients and essential elements from reaching the hair follicles. Hair follicles are one of the most rapidly metabolizing tissues in the body. Their high metabolic rate requires an excellent blood supply to carry oxygen and other nutrients to the cells. If the blood supply diminishes, the follicles grow into gradual decline, vanish and merge with skin tissue.

An Unseen Culprit
In clinical testing, Biotechnical Researchers discovered the presence of the parasite, Demodex Folliculorum, on the scalps of 100% of men and women with thinning hair. Demodex produces the enzyme lipase, which is necessary for Demodex to digest the sebum it feeds on. Lipase can adversely affect the quality, condition and appearance of your hair. Although the scientific world has known about Demodex since the 1800's, the connection hair was only recently established.

About Hair Loss
Alopecia is the general medical term for hair loss, and it has many different causes. Normal human hairs can be classified according to their phases of growth. Anagen is the growing stage of hair, while telogen is the sleeping stage of hair. For people who have a perfect head of hair (Type I), about 80 percent of the hairs in their scalp are in the growing stage while 20 percent of the hairs are in the sleeping stage. For Type I people, it has been estimated that their scalp contains about 100,000 hairs and they can afford to lose up to a 100 hairs a day. For people who are experiencing hair loss (Type II), however; only about 20 percent of the hairs on their scalp are in the growing stage while 80 percent of the hairs are in the sleeping stage. For Type II people, it has been calculated that by losing on average a 100 hairs a day, they will lose at least 50,000 hairs in less than two years. That is 50% of what they had to begin with. Simply put, Type II people can't afford to lose even 10 hairs a day and therefoe, should not wait until it's too late.

Alopecia can be broken down into several different types, including alopecia areata (temporary hair loss in a coin-shaped patch), telogen effluvium (temporary hair loss secondary to a stressor on the system), and androgenetic alopecia (male-pattern hair loss). By far, androgenetic alopecia is the most frequently encountered type. It generally shows itself in the 20s or early 30s by gradual loss of hair, chiefly on the top of the head and in the angles at the frontal hairline. For women, it's called female-pattern baldness, as opposed to male-pattern baldness. Both male-pattern baldness and female-pattern baldness refer to what is called androgenetic alopecia, which means hair loss caused by sensitivity to male type hormones, which men and women both have. Women are more protected by estrogen for a period of time, but the cause is the same. It's just that they have it happen later, it goes more slowly, and the pattern is such that it's easier to cover up than it is for men. As an example, if a man loses half of his hair, he is going to be bald. If a woman loses half of her hair, it's going to be diffused all over her head, so it's just going to be thin hair or "see-through hair".

Telogen effluvium is the second most common type of hair loss in women. This type happens when the hair goes into a resting or shock phase after some type of insult. The most common cause of this type of hair loss is pregnancy. This type of hair loss can also occur quite commonly in women who are on crash diets and lose a great deal of weight in a short period of time, or after acute illnesses, such as an acute infection. The third most common type of hair loss for women is alopecia areata. Areata is Latin for "round" or "circumscribed", which means that people suddenly see bald spots here or there, or little, tiny short hairs that are broken off. Sometimes it's noticed by the person cutting their hair. It's often related to some stressful event, and it's believed to be some type of immunologic imbalance. The immune system goes after its own hair for some unknown reason, causing them to go into the resting phase and slow down their growth so they break off or come out.