Posts Tagged ‘Fungal Infections Of The Scalp’
Going bald is a fact of life for millions of men. Adults lose about 10,000 scalp hairs each and every day. Hair normally lives for around five years. With male pattern baldness these hairs do not always get replaced and gradually bald areas appear. This process can however take a long time and the age at which you start to lose hair does not necessarily provide any clues as to how long it will be until you define yourself as bald. There are a number of reasons why men start to go bald, but if you are a man between the ages of about 20 to 45 and you start to lose scalp hair, then the chances are 95 per cent certain that you are experiencing male pattern baldness. As the term suggests, male pattern baldness follows a typical sequence or pattern.
The normal cycle of hair growth and loss
The normal cycle of hair growth lasts for 2 to 6 years. Each hair grows approximately 1 centimeter (less than half an inch) per month during this phase. About 90 percent of the hair on your scalp is growing at any one time. About 10 percent of the hair on your scalp, at any one time, is in a resting phase. After 2 to 3 months, the resting hair falls out and new hair starts to grow in its place.
It is normal to shed some hair each day as part of this cycle. However, some people may experience excessive (more than normal) hair loss. Hair loss of this type can affect men, women and children.
Excessive Hair Loss Reasons
A number of things can cause excessive hair loss. For example, about 3 or 4 months after an illness or a major surgery, you may suddenly lose a large amount of hair. This hair loss is related to the stress of the illness and is temporary.
Hormonal problems may cause hair loss. If your thyroid gland is overactive or underactive, your hair may fall out.
Certain infections can cause hair loss. Fungal infections of the scalp can cause hair loss in children.
Finally, hair loss may occur as part of an underlying disease, such as lupus or diabetes.
The common baldness
The term “common baldness” usually means male-pattern baldness, or permanent-pattern baldness. Male-pattern baldness is the most common cause of hair loss in men. Men who have this type of hair loss usually have inherited the trait. Men who start losing their hair at an early age tend to develop more extensive baldness. In male-pattern baldness, hair loss typically results in a receding hair line and baldness on the top of the head.
Male Pattern Baldness
The male pattern baldness form of androgenetic alopecia accounts for more than 95% of hair loss in men. By age 35, two-thirds of UK and EU men will have some degree of appreciable hair loss and by age 50 approximately 85% of men have significantly thinning hair. About 25% of men who suffer from male pattern baldness begin the painful process before they reach 21.
Most men who suffer from male pattern baldness are extremely unhappy with their situation and would do anything to change it. Hair loss affects every aspect of their life. It affects interpersonal relationships as well as their professional life. It is not uncommon for men to change their career paths because of hair loss.
The Causes of Male Pattern Baldness
Most men are genetically predisposed to male pattern baldness. It is the effect of hormones on the hair follicle that produces male pattern baldness. Testosterone, a hormone that is present in high levels in males after puberty, is converted to dihydrotestosterone (DHT) by an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase. DHT has an adverse affect on the hair follicles. Acting on a hormone receptor on the hair follicle it slows down hair production and produces weak, shorter hair, sometimes it stops hair growth from the follicle completely. This process gradually depletes your stock of hair and is normal hair loss.
Know about DHT
Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is a derivative or by-product of testosterone. Testosterone converts to DHT with the aid of the enzyme 5-alpha-reductase. While the entire genetic process of male pattern baldness is not completely understood, scientists do know that DHT shrinks hair follicles, and that when DHT is suppressed, hair follicles continue to thrive. Today, with proper treatment, this process can be slowed or even stopped if caught early enough.
Treatments for hair loss Online
Depending on your type of hair loss, treatments are available. If a medicine is causing your hair loss, your doctor may be able to prescribe a different medicine. Recognizing and treating an infection may help stop the hair loss. Correcting a hormone imbalance may prevent further hair loss.
Medicines may also help slow or prevent the development of common baldness. One medicine, finasteride (brand name: Propecia) is available with a prescription, it is a FDA-approved products have been clinically proven to stop or prevent hair loss. It comes in pills and is only for men. You can buy it online from the site propeciafinasteride.co.uk .
Propecia Hair Loss Treatment Pills
Finasteride is the generic name for the brand name drugs Propecia. Finasteride was originally developed by the pharmaceutical company Merck as a drug to treat enlarged prostate glands.
During the trials on men with prostate problems, researchers noted an intriguing side effect: hair growth. Since finasteride had already been approved by the FDA to treat enlarged prostates in men, Merck decided to pursue the possibility of developing finasteride as the first pill to treat male pattern baldness.
In December 1997, the FDA approved a 1mg dose of finasteride for the treatment of androgenetic alopecia (male pattern baldness) in men. Propecia is the first drug in history to effectively treat male pattern baldness in the majority of men who use it.
Hair loss in men is caused by heredity, hormones, and age. One of the main reason is the over production of the hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT), which causes them to shrink. This “shrinkage” results in overall thinning with time. This causes thinning and baldness in men.
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Hair Loss Articles: http://www.article-buzz.com
Hair loss also known as Baldness is a big worry to many people, both male and female. Baldness is not usually caused by a disease, but is related to aging, heredity, and testosterone. Hair loss usually develops gradually and may be patchy or diffuse. Some women also develop a particular pattern of hair loss due to genetics, age, and male hormones that tend to increase in women after menopause. The pattern is different from that of men.
Female pattern baldness involves a thinning throughout the scalp while the frontal hairline generally remains intact. Excessive hair loss can occur if any of the stages of hair growth become disrupted. For example, if follicles shut down instead of growing new hairs, there will be less hair on the head. Loss of hair at a very early age has become a common disorder these days. We loose 50 to 80 strands of hair per day. Do not get alarmed, this is quite normal. Unless there is some deficiency in diet, or ill health, lost hair is quickly replaced by new ones. Each hair grows between one quarter and one half inch each month.
Some men have areas on the scalp that are very sensitive to the male sex hormones that circulate in men’s blood. The hormones make the hair follicles – from which hair grows – shrink. Another reason might be interference with the formation of new hair cells at the root during the growing phase; this occurs with some anticancer drugs. Baldness is generally regarded as natural, and not a disease. So if a person decides they wish to try to get their hair back, they will probably have to pay for the lengthy, expensive procedure themselves. This hair loss usually can be helped by treatment thyroid disease. Hair loss may occur if male or female hormones, known as androgens and estrogens, are out of balance. Correcting the hormone imbalance may stop your hair loss.
Women can also suffer hair loss, especially those with many relatives who are also prone to losing their hair. Fungal infections of the scalp can cause hair loss in children. The infection is easily treated with antifungal medicines. If a medicine is causing your hair loss, your doctor may be able to prescribe a different medicine. Treatments for alopecia areata include injecting steroids into affected patches to stimulate hair growth. This is not practical for large areas. Other treatments, such as oral steroids or ultraviolet light therapy, are either toxic or impractical. In most mild cases, patients can comb over the affected areas.
Treatment For Hair Loss:
1. Styling hair to cover the areas with the most hair loss is effective for mild cases. Washing and styling the hair will not cause further hair loss.
2. Minoxidil is a liquid that you rub into your scalp twice daily to regrow hair and to prevent further loss.
3. Finasteride: A pill taken once daily that blocks the effects of testosterone on hair growth.
4. If adequate treatment is not available for your type of hair loss, you may consider trying different hairstyles or wigs, hairpieces, hair weaves or artificial hair replacement.
5. Surgical procedures like hair transplants can be useful for some women as well as men to “fill in” thinned-out areas.
Use the following essential oils for massage of hair to reduce hair loss: 1. Jojoba oil.
2. Roman Chamomile.
3. Lavender.
4. Rosemary.
5. Grapefruit.
6. Cedarwood.
Home made remedies for reducing the hair loss:
1. For nourishing your hair, apply coconut milk all over your scalp and massage it into the hair roots.
2. Massage almond oil on scalp 2-3 times a day, daily. This will stop further hair loss.
3. Make a shampoo by mixing 100 g each of amla, reetha, and shikakai and boil in two liters of water until the liquid reduces to half. Use this shampoo for your hair for at least one month. Your hair will become thick.
4. Lettuce is useful in preventing hair loss. A mixture of lettuce and spinach juice is believed to help the growth of hair if taken to the extent to half a litre a day.
5. The juice of alfalfa, in combination with equal quantities of carot and lettuce juice, taken daily, also helps the growth of hair to a remarkable extent.
6. Onion has also been found beneficial in patchy baldness. The affected part should be rubbed with onions morning and evening till it is red. It should be rubbed with honey afterwards.
Hair loss also known as Baldness is a big worry to many people, both male and female. Baldness is not usually caused by a disease, but is related to aging, heredity, and testosterone.
Information about the Author:
Hair Loss Articles: http://www.article-buzz.com