More Hair Loss Treatments
May 27, 2010 by admin
Filed under ARTICLES : Hair Loss Treatment
Herbal Treatment
Saw palmetto extract has been suggested as a potential treatment for male pattern baldness. It has been shown to inhibit both isoforms of 5-alpha-reductase without eliminating the cellular capacity to secrete PSA.
Spin labels
In animal models, the nitroxide spin labels TEMPO and TEMPOL enhance hair regrowth following radiation. National Cancer Institute-sponsored clinical trials TEMPOL is similarly effective in humans.
Diet and lifestyle
There are a number of genetic factors which determine a person’s susceptibility to androgenic alopecia including androgen receptor polymorphisms, 5-alpha-reductase levels in the scalp, androgen receptor density and distribution in the scalp, and other factors some of which may not have been discovered.
Daily, vigorous aerobic exercise (as opposed to short workout periods designed to raise androgen levels and build muscle, or more sporadic exercise) and a diet which is adequate yet more moderate in terms of fat and total calorie intake have been shown to reduce baseline insulin levels as well as baseline total and free testosterone.
Lower insulin levels and reduced stress both result in raised levels of Sex Hormone Binding Globulin (SHBG). SHBG binds to testosterone, low SHBG levels is a symptom of low testosterone levels and therefore hypogonadism. Only free testosterone improves muscle growth and insulin sensitivity, but free testosterone can also be converted to the ineffective (regarding insulin sensitivity) DHT. It is the level of free androgens and not total androgens which is relevant to the levels of DHT in the scalp and the progression of MPB. In short, aerobic exercise is capable of significantly lowering DHT.
Androgenic alopecia has been shown to correlate with metabolic syndrome because typically bald men have low testosterone levels (hypogonadism) which can easily trigger also diabetes mellitus and erectile disfunction. Medically increasing androgen levels improves this condition, demonstrating that androgens do not cause metabolic syndrome. Instead, high insulin levels (and possibly chronic inflammation) seem the likely link in the demonstrated correlation between baldness and metabolic syndrome. This reinforces the notion that behaviors which help to keep insulin levels low and reduce chronic inflammation might also help to preserve hair.
