The rate of hair growth is influenced by such things as age, race, sex, season, nutrition status as well as hormonal status. Hair tends to grow faster during the warm spring and summer months. That said, the average rate of growth is 1/2″ per month. However, I have met people whose hair grows much faster and others with hair that grows so slowly it becomes damaged because it is not renewed quickly enough. An interesting phenomenon that I have observed is that hair and nails seem to grow fastest in tropical climates where it is both warm and humid.
If your hair is thinning, you may be interested in learning about some dynamics that promote hair loss listed below.
• poor circulation
• acute illness
• surgery
• radiation
• skin disease
• sudden weight loss
• iron deficiency
• diabetes
• thyroid disease
• drugs such as those used in chemotherapy
• stress
• dietary deficiencies
• pregnancy
• hormones
• scalp oils
• Demodex mite
Nutrition
Mineral deficiencies affect hair quality, confirming the importance of nutrition in the case of hair loss. Copper is required as a cofactor in the enzyme reaction that creates melanin, the pigment that gives hair its color. A copper deficiency may result in white, silver or gray hair, though loss of pigment may be due to the natural decline in pigment cells as we hit our forties, or later. Insufficient tin can lead to thinning hair, as can a deficiency of zinc and silica. Sulfur is sometimes referred to as nature’s beauty mineral because it is reputed to keep the hair glossy. Adequate iodine and iodide are essential for proper function of the thyroid gland, which figures greatly in healthy hair growth.
B-complex vitamin supplementation is helpful to reduce the loss of these nutrients during times of stress to the body, which often results in hair loss. Such stressors may be happy stress, like moving, a new job, an upcoming wedding, or a new baby in the home. And equally potent in causing hair loss are the difficult stresses such as divorce, job loss, surgeries, accidents and injuries as well as diseases and the medications or surgeries involved in treating the illness.
Hormones
Many people who suffer “male pattern baldness” believe that the actual baldness is inherited, and therefore, nothing can be done to correct it. Research does not prove this belief to be correct. People who experience hair loss have been shown to have hair follicles that are sensitive to androgens (male hormones) which are noxious to those particular hair follicles (found primarily on the top half of the head). This issue affects women as well as men.
When the thyroid gland malfunctions and either over-produces or under-produces thyroid hormone, hair loss may be a result.
Women who do not ovulate with their periods and women who do not have periods due to hysterectomy or extremely lean bodies or other health challenges may have near zero progesterone levels. When progesterone levels fall, the body responds by increasing its production of the adrenal cortical steroid, androstenedione, and a precursor for the production of other adrenal cortical hormones.
Androstenedione conveys some androgenic (male-like) properties, in this case, male pattern hair loss. By using natural progesterone supplements, the androstenedione level will gradually fall and normal hair growth will eventually resume. [Synthetic progestins do not operate in the same manner as natural progesterone and have many harmful side effects.] Since hair growth is a slow process, it may take four to six months for the effects to become apparent.
Scientific research links rising estrogen levels in men and women with increased hair loss. Women are losing hair at an earlier age than ever before. Male hair loss is at the highest peak between ages 17 and 23, when testosterone levels are at the highest, resulting in more conversion of testosterone to DHT (dihydrotestosterone) and estrogen. The presence of DHT on the scalp causes as much as 95% of hair loss. The next hair loss cycle is triggered between ages 35 and 45. At this time aromatization of testosterone begins and more commonly takes the pathway leading to estrogen. Studies show an increase in estrogen with each succeeding decade.
Aromatization of hormones is indiscriminate which means:
• Testosterone can aromatize to DHT
• Testosterone can aromatize to estrogen
• Estrogen can aromatize to testosterone and DHT
• DHT effects men and women
Our environment is filled with highly charged estrogen-like chemicals called pseudo-estrogens. These substances have a more profound effect on men and women than previously realized. Female hair loss can result from pseudo-estrogens filling receptor sites otherwise destined for estrogen, causing an artificially engineered estrogen deficiency, which results in hair loss.
Environmental pseudo-estrogens exist in progressive concentrations. The obvious concentrations are in birth control pills and Hormone Replacement Therapy. Meat animals are fattened with estrogens before slaughter. Chemicals containing pseudo-estrogenic compounds are sprayed on conventionally grown crops that you buy at the grocery store. These estrogenic compounds wash into the soil and contaminate our drinking water. High levels of pseudo-estrogens are in the plastic lining of canned foods and soft drinks. Many plastics contain estrogenic compounds that get into food when heated, as with using plastic containers or coverings to cook in the microwave.
Parasites
The common mite has been known since the 1840’s to cause mange in animals and is invariably present in the hair follicles of human beings who are losing their hair. This mite actually feeds on the sebum that our oil glands produce. Sebum is the natural oil formed in hair follicles and it lubricates the hair and skin. Called Demodex Follicularum, as many as a dozen of these mites burrow head-down in every hair follicle. The first uninvited guests arrive during a person’s adolescence, and by late middle age all people harbor them.
There is speculation that the difference between people who eventually lose their hair and those who do not likely depends on whether the scalp produces an inflammatory reaction in an attempt to reject the mite. Your body may react to the mites, or it may not. The mites are not the problem as much as the inflammation that irritates the hair follicle.
What This Means to You
#1 – Good basic nutrition, in the form of an organically raised diet and relying on plants over meats, is recommended. If you eat animal flesh, be sure the animals were raised without added hormones or antibiotics, and were fed organically raised feed. Be sure all that you eat was raised without toxic pesticides or chemical fertilizers.
Enhance your nutritional picture by adding high quality food supplements. Be sure to purify your water to remove contaminants before consuming. Unfortunately, most water filters are not able to remove hormone like compounds. Note the following and ask your health care practitioner if any are appropriate in your case:
• B-complex compensates for the effects of stress on hair health
• Essential Fatty Acids improve hair texture
• Vit. C aids in improving scalp circulation
• Vit. E improves circulation to scalp
• Iodine/iodide supports the thyroid gland, which has a direct effect on hair quality and quantity
• Zinc stabilizes DHT, stimulates hair growth
• Copper works with zinc to aid in hair growth and plays a role in hair color
• Silica keeps hair looking shiny
• Sulfur builds keratin protein {get MSM}
• Saw Palmetto blocks testosterone from becoming DHT
• Calcium d-glucarate blocks testosterone from becoming estrogen
#2 – Try to eliminate your exposure to pseudo-estrogens by avoiding the plastics that contain these chemicals. For menopausal women, try natural phyto-estrogens and natural progesterone sold over the counter instead of the synthetic chemicals offered by your doctor. An oral progesterone that is identical to your biological progesterone is called Prometrium ® and requires a prescription. Purchase meat and dairy products that have been raised in a hormone free and chemical free environment.
#3 – Ask your hair stylist for a recommendation for professional products designed to eliminate the sebum build-up in the hair follicles as well as the build-up of DHT. Always shampoo after a sweaty workout to reduce these toxins from your scalp.
Some professional product manufacturers also provide scalp treatments that dilate the capillaries of the scalp in order to bring more blood circulation to the follicles. This brings nourishment to the hair follicles and carries away toxins. Two products with which I am familiar are: “Nutri-Ox 3C” and “Medicueticals Numinox Follicle Revitalizer.”
#4 – Get more blood to your head by hanging upside down, or at least getting your feet above your head. Massage to the scalp is NOT RECOMMENDED, as it can sometimes pull out hair that is not ready to fall out, reducing the odds that it will grow back.
#5 – Practice stress-reduction in whatever manner works for you. Stress uses up your stores of nutrients and causes your muscles to tighten, reducing vital circulation.
# 6 – Try over the counter products designed for hair regrowth. Some have had good results with Rogaine ® and other brands using the active ingredient, Minoxidil ®.
Newsflash:
Check this out…more information about growing hair:
Hair Growth Clinic in Parker, Colorado (720) 646-5329
www.HairGrowth.clinic
Recommended technique to get hair growing back:
Call or Text: 719-675-0169
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5110 Whip Trail, Colorado Springs
Off N. Carefree between Powers & Oro Blanco
Wed. & Thurs. 11 am – 7 pm
Fri. & Sat. 10 am – 4 pm
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