Dec 2009

A woman’s genes are much more likely than lifestyle factors such as stress or diet to cause greying hair, a study suggests.

Unilever scientists studied more than 200 identical and non-identical Danish twin sisters aged between 59 and 81.

The scientists found little difference between the greyness of the identical twins - who share the same genes.

But there was more difference between non-identical twins, whose genes differ, the study found.

The study, published in the journal PLoS One, also suggests receding hair is linked to mainly genetic factors.

But it indicates hair-thinning on the top of the head is connected to environmental and lifestyle factors.

On the issue of greying hair, lead researcher Dr David Gunn said although many theories had been put forward to explain different rates of greying, there was little hard scientific evidence to back them up.

He said: “This study offers us a fascinating insight into the reason why women go grey and it certainly suggests that environmental factors are not as important as we once thought.

“The research indicates that irrespective of how stressful a woman’s life is, there are greater forces at play which are more likely to cause her hair to grey.”

Nina Goad, of the British Association of Dermatologists, said previous work had also found few identifiable environmental factors among people who went grey much earlier than their relatives.

Full Hair Loss Article

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Thinning hair is a problem affecting millions of people all over the world, from all walks of life.

Hair loss is more common and widespread than is publicly acknowledged, amazingly, a recent estimation showed that more than 30% of women will have thinning hair to the point that it is noticeable by the age of 50 and 50% of men by the age of 40.

With hair loss so prevalent, it seems incredible that it is still a largely taboo topic and that people avoid talking about hair loss.

Suffering from thinning hair can be very distressing and lonely, and information resources, available support, and solutions for hair loss aren’t promoted or easily publicly accessible.

With this in mind, Nanogen proudly launches a television campaign, encouraging people to address their thinning hair problem.

Hair loss is often stress related, and just taking the first step to manage the condition can make all the difference. Nanogen wants to raise public awareness of thinning hair, and the modern solutions to the problem.

The days of badly made hair pieces and wigs are long past; Nanogen aims to deliver the results latest research and new technologies to hair loss sufferers.

Nanogen’s own Nanofibres, known as the, “Instant Hair Transplant,” are used worldwide, and have been nominated for the Most Innovative Beauty Product at the Estetica Beauty Awards in Europe just this year.

Nanogen has received many other acclaims from sources as diverse as Dr. Farjo, Board Governor and current Vice-President of the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery, to Glenn Kinsey, director of the famed Mark Glenn Hair Enhancement studios.

As a result of Nanogen’s research they are also the only hair loss product to be fully recommended and endorsed by the UK Alopecia society.

The television campaign will run for approximately a month, during which time new customers can talk to Nanogen hair loss advisors and try Nanogen’s hair camouflage Nanofibres at a reduced price.

Full Hair Loss Concealer Article

Despite a downturn economy in 2008, treatments for hair loss increased 26 percent worldwide from 2006 figures, according to a recent survey conducted by the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS), a non-profit medical association dedicated to the advancement of the art and science of hair restoration. The number of patients treated in 2008 was approximately 811,363.

In Austin, McGrath Medical did even better than the world average and experienced a 35 percent increase in hair restoration treatments.

“Advancements in treatments for hair loss and more natural looking results are increasing the demand for hair restoration,” said Daniel McGrath, D.O. of McGrath Medical in Austin, TX. “Many are finding hair restoration gives them a competitive edge in the workplace by giving them a younger appearance, which helps to instill more confidence.”

According to the recent survey, the average age of patients undergoing hair restoration surgery for the first time in 2008 was 38 years old.

This statistic shows a gradual decline in age over the years – a trend that people are seeking treatment for hair loss earlier instead of waiting until they are older and hair loss becomes more noticeable.

Full Hair Restoration Article

The tennis ace said he was so destracted by thoughts of the hairpiece falling off and causing him huge embarrassment during his first Grand Slam final that he lost the match.

Agassi made the confession about his locks, which won him a legion of female admirers, in his new autobiography, Open.

He said: “Every morning I would get up and find another piece of my identity on the pillow, in the wash basin, down the plughole.

“I asked myself: you want to wear a toupee? On the tennis court? I answered myself; what else could I do?”

He wore the wig for the French Open in 1990, the first time he had reached a Grand Slam final.

“Then a fiasco happened,” he said. “The evening before the match I stood under the shower and felt my wig suddenly fall apart.

“Probably I used the wrong hair rinse. I panicked and called my brother Philly into the room.

“It’s a total disaster!” I said to him. He looked at it and said he could clamp it with hair clips.

“It took 20 clips. “Do you think it will hold?” I asked. “Just don’t move so much,” he said.

Full Andre Agassi Hair Loss Article

October 2009

Having your scalp licked by a cow or rubbing curry powder into your head might not seem the most logical way to stop a receding hairline, but for centuries these are just two of the more bizarre methods people have used.

But fear not, balding Brits need suffer in silence no longer. Figures released by leading hair transplant provider, The Hospital Group, show a massive 444 per cent growth in treatment between 2004 – 2009.

Recent years have seen celebrities help raise the profile of hair loss, and in particular how to cure it. Cold Feet star, James Nesbitt, Fawlty Towers actor, John Cleese, former rugby star Austin Healey and even HRH Prince William have all been the victims of increased sensitivity to male sex hormones (androgens), which induces premature hair loss.

Nesbitt and Cleese have tackled the problem head on though, both undergoing cosmetic surgery to cure their ailments.

However it isn’t just men who suffer from the affliction, The Hospital Group have seen treatments for women rise by 300 per cent over the five year period.

An epidemic of alopecia is said to be sweeping across the country, damaging hair follicles so that hair falls out and cannot grow back, with the key contributor said to be stress.

The condition known as Frontal Fibrosing Alopecia (FFA) can cause women to lose up to five inches from their hairline. If FFA goes undiagnosed, women can even lose hair at the sides and back of their head.

Scientists believe that FFA is a result of the immune system attacking hair follicles, which causes inflammation at the root. This can damage stem cells in the follicles and prevents hair from growing back entirely.

Full Hair Transplant Article

Jan 2009

A team from Peking Union Medical College led by Xue Zhang have uncovered a DNA mechanism which results in Maria Unna hereditary hypotrichosis (MUHH), a baldness that strikes before adulthood.

MUHH is a rare inherited condition characterized by hair loss that starts during childhood and it affects both men and women - children born with the condition have very little or no hair at birth and have wiry or coarse hair in childhood which they progressively lose at puberty.

Victims often have no eyebrows or eyelashes, very little armpit and pubic hair and poor nails and women often have normal thickness hair which does not grow very long and loss of hair on other parts of the body.

The culprit in MUHH are flaws in the gene U2HR located on Chromosome 8, which acts as a key switch in the process as it controls a small peptide that in turn affects a protein called the human hairless monolog, or HR, which is crucial for the regeneration of hair follicles.

The discovery was made by trawling through the genome of 19 Chinese families with a history of MUHH, which is how the team found that mutations of U2HR led to increased levels of HR.

Full Hair Loss Article

Hair loss occurs in a progressive nature. Most men have a specific pattern in which hair starts to fall out and then over the years increases down the same route. Women on the other hand, do not typically have the same experience. Unlike a receding hairline, or a particular bald spot forming on a man’s scalp, a woman will generally experience broad hair thinning throughout the entire top of her head. In both cases, men and women, the pattern in which air falls out increases in time.

Many people assume that losing hair as we age is just a normal part of life. This same group of people also assumes that we have no responsibility when it comes to the cause of hair loss or the increased of the amount of hair that is lost in time. However, this is a wrong assumption. Below are a few examples of how people can directly cause the loss of their hair, whether they realize it or not.

1. Wearing hats most of the time: It is very fashionable these days to sport head coverings and tight caps. However, because hats can affect the blood flow to the scalp, this may cause hair loss. This is especially true if you wear tight hats. The result of hair loss due to covering your scalp with a hat does take time to make it’s effects known, but once it starts, the pattern of loosing your hair speeds up faster than if you had never started the hat-wearing habit.

2. Oily scalp: Here is another example of a condition that can be directly related to the decrease amount of blood flow that is available to your hair follicles. By not washing your scalp enough a build up of natural skin oils can affect your hair. Regular washing can help reduce this problem.

3. Brushing your hair too much: This is one issue that I have personally experienced myself. I was once told by a hairstylist that if I want to grow my hair long then I should brush it with 50 strokes every time I went into the bathroom. Needless to say, after about six months, I noticed severe thinning in the areas that I was brushing. Once I stopped, the hair eventually started to come back like normal. Unfortunately, I set forth in motion a pattern that caused my hair to grow back thinner in that area for the rest of my life.

4. Brushing your hair too little: Opposite of brushing your hair too much, by not brushing your hair enough, you may not be stimulating the right amount of blood flow needed to retain growth in hair follicles. It doesn’t take much, but just brushing your hair with a few strokes that hit the scalp will be enough stimulation.

September 2009

A new shampoo promises to change the way men view their morning routine. Zenagen claims to be the first shampoo especially formulated to help prevent hair loss. When is the last time you saw toothpaste without whitening benefits or ordered a smoothie without an energy boost option?

People love new enhancements to boring products, and one company is changing the way men look at shampoo.

Zenagen Preventative Hair Loss Shampoo bills itself as the premier preventative hair loss shampoo. The company claims to have created an easy to use shampoo that helps prevent the onset of balding, which is estimated to affect over 55 million men in the United States.

Samuel Freeman, Zenagen Marketing Director, states the shampoo was created to provide an easy solution for men concerned with hair loss.

“Why go bald if you don’t have to?”

This is the question Zenagen asks consumers, and they seem to be listening. “Young men today are more health conscious and concerned about going bald. Zenagen has been extremely well received by consumers, whom view the new shampoo like an insurance for their hairline. Typically men prefer to keep their hair rather than try to regrow when it’s already too late,” says Freeman.

“A New Approach to an Old Problem”

Rather than branding the product as the next magical hair growth remedy, the company chose to promote a shampoo that helps protect against hair loss.

Full Hair Loss Shampoo Article

If you dread trips to the barbershop and cringe every time you pass a mirror, there’s a pretty good chance you’re concerned about hair loss.

Whether you’re starting to see strands of your hair at the bottom of your shower or are just worried that your thick head of hair won’t last forever, there are helpful foods that prevent hair loss.

You may be, however, genetically predisposed to hair loss, and if that’s the case, there’s not much you can do but keep your fingers crossed.

Making sure certain foods are in your diet will help keep your scalp healthy, happy and, hopefully, hairy. Here are some foods that prevent hair loss, which means you need to stock up.

Fish, eggs and beans
Hair is primarily made of protein and, therefore, it makes sense to eat a protein-rich diet if you’re trying to maintain your healthy hair. However, eating a steak every day isn’t going to help you.

High-fat diets will result in increased testosterone levels, which has been linked to hair loss — so steaks are not among the foods that prevent hair loss. Stick to leaner proteins such as fish (which has a myriad of health benefits beyond just maintaining your hair), chicken, calf’s liver, brewer’s yeast, low-fat cheese, eggs, almonds, beans, and yogurt.

Soy milk and tofu are also smart to add to your diet because they are high in protein and low in bad fats.

Raisins
Iron plays a key role in manufacturing hemoglobin, the part of the blood that carries oxygen to your body’s organs and tissues. When your hemoglobin is at a healthy level, oxygen is properly dispersed.

This means your scalp is getting a good flow of blood, which will stimulate and promote hair growth.Adding more iron to your diet doesn’t mean you have to feast on liver day in, day out, but when you’re craving something sweet, remember that dried fruits (like raisins) and cherry juice are packed with iron.

Eggs; dates; raisins; dark green, leafy vegetables such as kale; and whole-grain cereals are all high in iron.

Vitamin C improves the absorption of iron, so fruits such as oranges, strawberries and lemons should be on your grocery list of foods that prevent hair loss.

Bean sprouts
Silica may not be a word you commonly hear associated with diet (or foods that prevent hair loss, for that matter). If you’re looking to promote hair growth and prevent hair loss, however, silica will need to be on your menu.

The body uses silica to help it absorb vitamins and minerals; if you’re not consuming silica, eating your vitamins might not be helping much. Silica can be found in bean sprouts and the skin of cucumbers, red and green peppers, and potatoes.

Remember, when you eat these foods raw, as opposed to cooked, you’re getting more nutritional value out of them.

Seafood

Many men who suffer from hair loss are found to have zinc deficiencies. Zinc plays a key role in many of the body’s functions, from cell reproduction to hormonal balance, and all these functions affect hair growth. Perhaps most importantly, zinc manages the glands that attach to your hair follicles.

When you’re low on zinc, these follicles become weak, causing strands to break off or fall out. To combat this problem, eat zinc-heavy foods such as red meats, poultry, mussels, shrimp, nuts, and oysters.

Excessive amounts of zinc can eventually lead to hair loss, so it’s best to stick to a zinc-heavy diet rather than eat these foods and take a zinc supplement.

Full Hair Loss Article

Cases of hair thinning on the rise among young women

It is with great sympathy to see today’s modern women neglecting their hair issues all because they perceive hair loss as a problem faced only by middle-age men - which is not true. If not treated in time, hair loss can be a major issue that strips women off their permanent beauty.

BEIJING 101 has noted an increase in cases of women reporting hair loss and seeking treatment.

They are usually professional women ranging from their mid-twenties who are high achievers and leading very stressful lives.

Upon further investigation, the hair issues faced by these young professional women arise not only from their stressful lifestyle, but also from hormonal changes; the less than desirable standard of proper haircare and nutrition; putting their hair through exorbitant chemical stress such as excessive hair-colouring, rebonding, and perming; and crash diet, leading to potential hair loss.

BEIJING 101’s newly appointed female spokesperson – Michelle Chong

Michelle Chong denotes the charisma of today’s modern woman: intelligent, stylish, and most importantly, she is concerned with her overall well-being.

As an achiever in her field of work, Michelle also embodies the drive, capability and ambition of women in the 21st century.

At the same time, Michelle shares the common problem faced by modern women today – hair thinning. During the preparations for a variety show, Michelle discovered about her thinning hair problem.

After being diagnosed by a BEIJING 101 hair consultant that her hair was thinning along her parting and crown of her head, Michelle exclaims, “The prospect of permanently losing my hair is a very real one indeed for media personalities who need to stand in front of the camera all the time.”

Full Hair Loss Article