Baldness and self esteem

Self esteem is something most of us struggle with at some stage or another, regardless of whether or not we're affected by hair loss (or the fear of hair loss). Looking back at my own experience of losing my hair, though, I'm often surprised at how calmly I accepted the loss of my mighty mane.

I wish I could say that was because I'm a strong person with a well developed sense of self esteem and losing my hair was something I could just brush off (along with the hair on my shoulders). That wouldn't be true, however. I think it's closer to the truth to say that I just didn't have much self confidence to begin with and as a result didn't have a lot to lose. I'm still trying to work out whether or not that's a good thing.

Until tomorrow then. I'm a baldy, hear me roar!

How Dangerous is a Hair Transplant?

Interesting post from Dr. William Rassman, Medical Director and Founder of the New Hair Institute, in relation to the sad passing of Kayne West’s mom:

To my knowledge, there has been only one death from a hair transplant anywhere in North America, as previously reported. This death reflects what appears to be completely incompetent medical care. The clinic where this death occurred, known for bargain basement prices, is still performing surgery and it appears that the patients that go there do not focus on risks of death or complications from a hair transplant. One might ask those who continue to even consider this place for surgery, "Why try to save a few dollars and place your life on the line?"

Until now I'd never really considered the risks associated with hair transplantation, I guess because I hadn't really thought of it as "surgery" per se. There is a history of heart disease in my family though, so Dr. Rassman's post makes interesting reading. Is a cosmetic procedure ever worth risking your life for?

What is Finasteride/Propecia (part two)?

Clinical studies indicate that anywhere from 2 out of 3 to 80% of men orally administered a 1 mg dose of Finasteride on a daily basis report some improvement from the treatment. Results vary from successfully slowing down the balding process to stopping the loss of hair or stimulating new growth around the crown and top of the head. Less success has been reported around the temples however, and ceasing the treatment will cause the process of hair loss to gradually resume until within 12 months any benefits afforded by Finasteride have been lost. It is also unlikely to confer benefits on advanced cases of hair loss. Younger men who have hair they would like to retain and are willing to make a long term commitment are likely to benefit the most from this treatment.

On the downside, possible side effects reported by a small proportion of men using Finasteride during trials have included abdominal pain, back pain, decreased libido and volume of ejaculate, impotence, dizziness, rash, swelling of the lips and face, breast tenderness and testicular pain. Problems such as these cleared up after ceasing the treatment. For many participating men who remained on Finasteride, side effects reduced or resolved during the course of their treatment. Women who are or may become pregnant should not handle Finasteride (especially crushed tablets) due to a risk that the drug may cause birth defects in a male fetus. Men using Finasteride should inform their doctor prior to taking a PSA (prostate-specific antigen) test for prostate cancer as the drug may interfere with results. The use of Finasteride is banned in many sports as its presence in the blood can mask traces of steroid abuse.

In addition to its approved FDA status, Finasteride's popularity can be attributed to the fact that it is one of the most convenient measures against hair loss on the market. Consumers will also be pleased that with the expiration of Merck's patents on Proscar and Propecia in June 2006, a range of generic Finasteride alternatives has begun to bring prices for the treatment down considerably. A three month (90 tablet) run of 5 mg doses able to be cut into quarters with a pill cutter now costs anything from $116 (generic) to $409 (branded), making the cost of a daily dose of the drug a dollar a day or lower if consumers are prepared to shop around.

What is Finasteride/Propecia (part one)?

Finasteride was originally developed to relieve symptoms associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), an enlargement of the prostate gland common in men over 50. While testing a 5 mg dose of the drug for those purposes in the early 1990s, unforeseen benefits for the retention and stimulation of hair growth on the head were observed. The 5 mg dose went on to be approved for prostate treatment by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and marketed by pharmaceuticals giant Merck as Proscar. Further trials led to a 1 mg dose for hair loss entering the market branded as Propecia, when on 22 December 1997 Finasteride was approved by the FDA as the first clinically proven systemic treatment for male pattern baldness. Finally men hoping to slow, stop or even reverse the process of balding had a successful pharmaceutical treatment at their disposal.

Available only with a doctor's prescription, Finasteride counters hair loss by chemically preventing the metabolism of testosterone into dihydrotestosterone (DHT) within the body. It achieves this by targeting and inhibiting type II 5-alpha-reductase, one of two types of an enzyme able to facilitate such a conversion. By interfering with this process Finasteride greatly reduces the amount of DHT present in, among other tissue in the body, the scalp. The detrimental effect that DHT has on the vitality of the individual follicles and hairs of susceptible individuals can thus be negated, or more accurately, deferred.

More tomorrow...

What are Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) Inhibitors?

If you're serious about preventing hair loss and encouraging new growth, you need to take action to prevent the damaging effect that the male hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT) has on the follicles of your scalp. There are several main ways to go about this.

Depending on your gender, stage of hair loss and other factors, your available options may include taking a daily Finasteride or Dutasteride tablet or capsule to reduce the levels of DHT circulating throughout your entire body. Or, if you don't like the idea of such "system wide" approaches, or cannot use them for other reasons, you might benefit from natural and topical solutions, lotions and creams applied directly to the scalp to combat various phases of the production of DHT and its attempts to combine with your follicles' androgen receptors.

In addition, some of these products are frequently used in combination with each other. Tomorrow I'll take a look at some of the market leading and most popular DHT inhibitors.

Why Hair Loss Heaven?

A friend of mine asked me the other day why I'd bothered to set up the Hair Loss Heaven web site. It's a good question but I'm not sure I gave her a good answer at the time - I muttered something vague about it being "good to talk" and we moved on. Having given it some more thought, though, what I *really* want to build is this:

1. A welcoming, supportive community where people can talk about their experience of hair loss without fear of ridicule.

AND

2. A resource people can use to find impartial, accurate information about hair loss and all the various hair preservation and restoration options.

From my own experiences of searching the Internet for helpful hair loss resources I know there are a lot of places which certainly don't fulfill those criteria and I guess that was the driving factor behind my initial motivation. I hope that if you're reading this you'll want to join me and help build our community - why not register at the site and say hello in the forums? You'll be made very welcome!

The 5 best things about being bald

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you - in reverse order - the 5 best things about being bald:

5. Losing a comb is no big deal. If you still have a little at the back and on the sides, a toothbrush will suffice.

4. Having hair on your back actually becomes a source of pride: "Whoah, look at them thick roots!"

3. If you injure your head and need stitches, you look about as hard as it's possible for any human being to look.

2. People will automatically credit you with wisdom and maturity beyond your years. This is great until you encounter a situation which actually calls for wisdom and maturity.

And, at number one:

1. You never have to worry about losing your hair.

The Women’s Hair Loss Project

The Women’s Hair Loss Project is a really great blog for women looking for information and support about their hair loss experience. It deals with some tough emotional issues but hopes to alleviate some of the pain of hair loss by sharing those emotions. From what we can see, it's doing a good job of achieving that goal. Recommended.

Bloody hell, it's chilly!

Oh great, it's that time of year again. You know, the time when it's actually even more uncomfortable than normal to be bald because the temperature's dropping and going outside feels like stepping into a cold shower. Brrrrrrrrrrrr...

Of course, on the bright side, we now have a good excuse to wear a hat! What a great device hats are, they keep us warm and (personally speaking, at least) improve our looks at the same time...

Maybe this time of year's not so bad after all.

In the footsteps of phantoms

I haven't seen Nicoholas Cage in a movie for a while now, so it came as somewhat of a surprise to me to see him looking all sleek and sexy in the trailers for his new action movie - the screen-adaptation of the Marvel comic book classic: Ghostrider. At the time I remember thinking to myself: “This guy looks different somehow,” but I couldn't quite put my finger on what had changed so drastically since last I'd seen him. Was it botox? Did he have a facelift? And then it hit me - the man has a brand-new bloody hairline. Go rent a copy of Leaving Las Vegas or Face/Off and you’ll see what I mean. Now allow me to be the first to say that he looks great, he really does; he looks ten years younger at the very least.

My only question is: Will this be a sustainable solution, or will he go down the Michael Jackson top-up procedure every other day route that leads to freakdom? Has this ghostrider embarked on a journey of folly that will provide the rest of us with unfounded hope, or is this a real breakthrough? Ok fine, it's two questions - but you get the picture: he's blazing a trail. But where that leads is just about anybody's guess.