H. Winter Griffith, M.D.
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 No Drug class: Hair growth stimulant
Treats hair loss on scalp from male and female pattern baldness (alopecia androgenetica).
DOSAGE & USAGE INFORMATION
How to use: Topical solution
• Apply only to dry hair and scalp. With the provided applicator, apply the amount prescribed to the scalp area being treated. Begin in center of the treated area.
• Wash hands immediately after use.
• Don't use a blow dryer.
• If you are using at bedtime, wait 30 minutes after applying before retiring.
When to use:
Twice a day or as directed.
If you forget a dose:
Use as soon as you remember. |
Andrew Pengelly
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 Clinical trials support the use of saw palmetto extracts in the treatment of benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH) while its anti-androgenic properties may also assist in acne, female hirsutism and even baldness. Serenoa improves urine flow values, residual urine values and all other symptoms of BPH to a similar degree to standard drugs such as finasteride, without side effects such as decreased libido or modification of PSA values—the marker antigen for prostate cancer (Cristoni et al. 2000). |
Gary Null
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| Since most of these people had male-pattern baldness, which is genetic, in effect we had reversed the genetic process.
It was incredible to see these fantastic improvements in people's health with basic lifestyle changes. Isn't this what genetic engineering and allopathic medicine are trying to do? But they are failing. These groups, following basic lifestyle changes, are doing it naturally! |
Sheldon Saul Hendler
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 CLAIMS Positive:
1) Produces healthy hair and prevents graying and baldness; 2) boosts athletic performance.
Negative:
1) Toxic in high closes.
III. EVIDENCE
Related to Positive Claims:
1) Produces healthy hair and prevents graying and baldness—Many hair treatment products contain biotin, which is supposed to promote healthy hair. It is unclear what effect, if any, the biotin in these products has.
Biotin deficiency in rats does cause hair loss. The same is true in humans with severe deficiencies; supplementation in those cases can promote hair growth. |
Phyllis A. Balch, CNC
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 The most prevalent form of hair loss is androgenetic alopecia (AGA), more commonly called male pattern baldness. AGA occurs in response to the body's production of androgens, or male sex hormones, although the exact mechanism is not completely understood. It generally occurs in men who have a genetic tendency for baldness. Women also can have AGA, since their bodies also produce androgens, but are less likely to lose their hair completely.
Hair loss can occur for other reasons. |
Bill Gottlieb
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 Usually, men's hair loss is genetic male pattern baldness. If you have this problem, you also have many medical options, from medications such as finasteride (Propecia) to hair transplants. If you decide to seek professional medical treatment for male pattern baldness, find a dermatologist who is willing to work with you to explore your options and help you solve the problem, rather than one who uses one treatment for all hair-loss patients, says Spencer David Kobren, a New York City-based consumer advocate for people with hair loss. |
Leslie Taylor, ND
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 More research is sure to follow, as this is a highly popular and profitable area of research.
Over the last several years, more consumers and practitioners have been learning of nettle's many uses for prostate problems, arthritis and inflammation in general, allergies, and hair loss, and it follows that more nettle products are showing up on the shelves in stores. Nettle root, nettle leaf, and whole herb (leaf, stem, and root) products in tablets, capsules, and tinctures are now widely available at most health food stores at very reasonable prices. |
Katharine Greider
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 Few physicians would send a patient off with a script that's potentially dangerous or clearly inappropriate (one doc recalls declining to prescribe a drug for male-pattern baldness to a woman). But most often the decision falls into a "gray area," says Stein-man. There might be something cheaper out there, the patient might not need this drug—but it's not going to hurt the patient and it'll probably help. Like the availability of free drug samples, consumer ads lower the threshold for prescribing whatever the drug companies happen to be promoting this year. |
the Editors of FC&A Medical Publishing
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 Believe it or not, men even scrubbed parsley onto their scalps to cure baldness.
Though parsley doesn't really help baldness or dysentery, it can improve your health. Like its cousin the carrot, parsley's packed with vitamins and minerals — beta carotene, folate, and iron, to name a few. Plus, like other tasty greens, it's brimming with flavonoids, powerful plant chemicals that may prevent cancer and fight heart disease.
4 ways parsley keeps you healthy
Holds off heart disease. |
Katharine Greider
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| Do we really want to pay for the development of baldness remedies instead of getting more important drugs at lower cost so they could help more people? If we were in charge, would we order Pfizer's rivals to get cracking on something to compete with Viagra (as a number are doing) or with cholesterol-reducing Lipitor (already in a crowded class)? Would we want researchers to pour resources into treatments for heartburn—a minor problem affecting a lot of people—or focus on cancers that tragically mar the lives of a relative few? And whom would we designate to conduct this lifesaving research? |
The Editors of Prevention Magazine Health Books
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 Whethet you sprout enough new hairs to prevent baldness depends mostly on yout patents. Genes ate the culprits in what is known as male- ot female-pattern baldness.
Researchers have found, however, that certain nutrients often seem to be determining factots in hair regrowth in women.
Iron and the Maiden
When a woman loses iron because of something such as trauma, poor diet or heavy menstruation, several things happen. Among them: Her body literally stops ptoducing hait until she gets more iron. |
Phyllis A. Balch, CNC
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| In European folk medicine, it was used both internally and externally, for ills including nervous disorders, upset stomach, headaches, baldness, arthritis, pain, strains, and bruises. More recently, it has been investigated as a cancer therapy.
Benefits of rosemary for specific health conditions include the following:
• Alzheimer's disease. Rosemary contains compounds that prevent the breakdown of acetylcholine, a brain chemical that allows the nerve cells responsible for memory and reasoning to communicate with one another. Rosemary also improves circulation to the brain.
• Cancer. |
Michael Tierra, L.Ac, O.M.D.
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 Alopecia, or hair loss, when it is not inherited pattern baldness, is the result of wind arising because of blood deficiency. It occurs in some women after childbirth. It is treated with blood tonics, such as Dang Gui Four (Si Wu Tang), and local shallow tapping over the affected area with a disinfected needle. This procedure is repeated daily. The kidneys also govern head hair, while the lungs govern body hair. A lack of body hair can be an indication of lung weakness. Prematurely gray hair is a sign of kidney-adrenal deficiency. |
Phyllis A. Balch, CNC
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| It generally occurs in men who have a genetic tendency for baldness. Women also can have AGA, since their bodies also produce androgens, but are less likely to lose their hair completely.
Hair loss can occur for other reasons. Severe fungal or bacterial infections can cause hair follicles to be replaced by scar tissue, as can injuries, burns, radiation therapy, and a number of diseases. Thyroid disorders can cause hair loss, especially in women. |
| Thickens existing hair and prevents further baldness.
Drynaria
Tincture or scalp lotion, prepared by compounding pharmacist or TCM practitioner.
Stimulates hair growth on portions of scalp affected by AGA.
Ginkgo
Ginkgolide tablets. Take 40-60 mg 2-3 times daily.
Improves circulation in the scalp.
Cinnamon Twig, Licorice, Dragon Bone, and Oyster Shell Decoction
Seven-Treasure Pill for Beautiful Whiskers1
A traditional Chinese herbal formula that treats hair loss in men and women. Especially appropriate if hair loss is accompanied by dizziness, insomnia, and/or palpitations. |
Attaining Medical Self SufficiencyDuncan Long
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| Transplants
Hair transplants and other surgical procedures have been done to get rid of baldness. Some of these results can be successful if a skilled doctor is doing the work. But the results can be uneven when the practitioner doesn't know what he's doing. When the results go awry, there can be scarring on the scalp that makes shaving the head no longer an option for many. Consequently this solution should be approached with caution. 1
Hair transplantation is unlike most other transplants since the tissue being donated comes from the same person on the receiving end. |
| Normally the work is done by a
208 "Does the new pill to treat baldness really work?" What About? Mayo Clinic Health Letter, May 1998.
209 Ibid dermatologist who removes tiny plugs of skin from an area having hair (usually the back or side of the head). Each of these plugs has several hairs which are then seeded into bald sections of scalp.
This procedure is repeated after the first plugs become secure and everything heals — usually about 4 months. |
| Hair Hype: Some treatments for baldness are better than others," Mayo Health 0@sis, http://www.mayohealth.org/mayo/9607/htm/hair_rep.htm, July 16 1996 .
Because of the adverse cosmetic results that could happen with a poorly done skin reduction operation, it is essential that those undergoing these procedures select a highly skilled dermatologist, plastic surgeon, or cosmetic surgeon to handle the work. (Be sure to check the sections in this manual that explain how to do this if you opt for such work.)
Wrinkles In Time
In time, most of us wrinkle. |
Bill Gottlieb
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| FATTY ACIDS: For Better Texture and Density
"Fatty acids found in flaxseed oil, sunflower oil, black currant oil, evening primrose oil, and soy oil are effective against the processes that contribute to male pattern baldness," Kobren says. He advises men to take 1 teaspoon a day of any one of those oils.
He also recommends taking a 500-milligram capsule of black currant oil twice a day since it's particularly rich in gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), which is a must for healthy hair. |
Phyllis A. Balch, CNC
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| The treatments may produce immediate results, but baldness may recur if side effects require a reduction in steroid dosage. (For information on using steroids and herbs together, see Side Effects of Cancer Treatment under CANCER in Part Two.)
Ll Hair loss can result from hypothyroidism. (See HYPOTHYROIDISM in Part Two.)
Halitosis (Bad Breath)
Halitosis, or disagreeable breath odor, happens to nearly everyone at one time or another. The most common cause is a specific food, especially cabbage, garlic, or onions. |
Bill Gottlieb
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| If you decide to seek professional medical treatment for male pattern baldness, find a dermatologist who is willing to work with you to explore your options and help you solve the problem, rather than one who uses one treatment for all hair-loss patients, says Spencer David Kobren, a New York City-based consumer advocate for people with hair loss.
Hair loss in women is often difficult to diagnose and can be caused by many factors, including alopecia areata, hormone imbalances, menopause, dietary protein and amino acid deficiency, intestinal parasites, damage from hair treatments, and stress. |
James F. Balch, M.D.
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 Minoxidil, the treatment for baldness, was written up as a miracle cure when it only worked on 33 percent of the men tested. Ninety-one percent is phenomenal!
The Basic Mechanics of the Human Heart
Mechanically speaking, heart failure usually occurs when the muscle responsible for pulling the blood into the heart's main chamber is not doing its job. Pulling the blood into the heart takes a lot more energy than pushing it out, so it is this muscle that is most likely to poop out if the mitochondria cannot make enough energy. |
Bill Gottlieb
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| In short, says Kobren, it may help stop and even reverse baldness.
Based on studies of the herb, Kobren advises men with hair loss to take a 160-milligram dose of saw palmetto every morning and another every evening. Look for a product that is "concentrated and purified" and has 85 to 95 percent fatty acids and sterols, which ensure its potency.
NETTLE AND PYGEUM: Two More Helpful Herbs
The herb pygeum also blocks 5-alpha-reductase, and nettle is known to enhance the effects of pygeum. |
Simon Mills and Kerry Bone
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 OTHER APPLICATIONS
As a topical application for male-pattern baldness.
PREPARATIONS
Decoction of dried berries, tablets or liquid extract for internal use.
The liposterolic extract is mentioned often in this monograph. According to the Commission E, this can be prepared by extraction of dried saw palmetto berries with either hexane or 90% ethanol. More recently, extracts prepared using supercritical carbon dioxide have become available. |
Attaining Medical Self SufficiencyDuncan Long
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| With the discovery that some men taking the pill had hair re-growth, it became another way to fight baldness. The difference between the medication in its bald-fighting form is that it contains only 1 milligram of finasteride (as compared to the 5 milligrams in the prostate formula).
Finasteride is more effective than minoxidil in causing hair re-growth and preventing loss. Studies show that about 80 percent of those who take it will have a reduction of hair loss with most seeing slight to moderate new growth as well. The catch is that finasteride costs more and has greater side effects. |
Gabriel Cousens, M.D.
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 Early baldness or the hair changing to white or gray at an early age is an indication of pitta. Nails are strong and rubbery with a pink hue because of their warm blood under the skin. Pitta eyes may be hazel, green, reddish brown, or light blue. There may be a charismatic fire in their eyes that radiates out in all directions. Pittas have medium-size mouths with teeth that are prone to cavities and gums that tend to bleed. Pitta tongues and mouths are prone to canker sores. Body heat may manifest so strongly that the tongue may be deep pink to red or even bleed at various times. |
Kathi Keville
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 This is the case with "male pattern baldness," which is especially common when hair growth begins to slow, around age 50 or 60. It is the male hormone testosterone, helped along by certain genes, that encourages hair roots to shut down. Genetic researcher and dermatologist Mary Sawaya, M.D., headed a team from the University of Florida in Miami that discovered certain enzymes in balding scalps that double testosterone's potency and thus discourage hair growth. Because of this enzyme-testosterone connection, this harmless but distressing problem afflicts mostly men—and a lot of them. |
The Editors of Prevention Magazine Health Books
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| Genes ate the culprits in what is known as male- ot female-pattern baldness.
Researchers have found, however, that certain nutrients often seem to be determining factots in hair regrowth in women.
Iron and the Maiden
When a woman loses iron because of something such as trauma, poor diet or heavy menstruation, several things happen. Among them: Her body literally stops ptoducing hait until she gets more iron. |
the Editors of FC&A Medical Publishing
See book keywords and concepts |
| Though parsley doesn't really help baldness or dysentery, it can improve your health. Like its cousin the carrot, parsley's packed with vitamins and minerals — beta carotene, folate, and iron, to name a few. Plus, like other tasty greens, it's brimming with flavonoids, powerful plant chemicals that may prevent cancer and fight heart disease.
4 ways parsley keeps you healthy
Holds off heart disease. Experts say you might be at a greater risk of dying from heart disease if you don't eat enough flavonoids, those natural antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables. |
Glenn W. Geelhoed, M.D. and Jean Barilla, M.S.
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 ONION There are many intriguing folk remedies for baldness that make use of the onion — for example, rub a little onion juice on your head and lie out in the sun.
Russian barbers sometimes recommend this hair-nourishing recipe to their balding customers: Mix 1 tablespoon of honey, 1 shot of vodka, and the juice of one onion. Rub into the scalp every night, cover, and then rinse off in the morning.
Vitamin B Many Europeans — particularly the English, French and Germans — use organ meats in their cuisines. They also eat tongue and foods made with yeast. |
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