hair loss

New drug restores hair growth in human trials: study

New drug restores hair growth in human trials

 

Researchers from the Columbia University have restored hair in patients suffering from alopecia areata – a common autoimmune disease that causes hair loss. They identified the immune cells responsible for destroying hair follicles in people with alopecia areata.
They tested an FDA-approved drug that eliminated these immune cells and restored hair growth in some patients. Each patient experienced total hair re-growth within five months of the start of treatment.

“If the drug continues to be successful and safe, it will have a dramatic positive impact on the lives of people with this disease,” said lead researcher Raphael Clynes from the Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC).

In the current study, the team first studied mice with the disease and identified the specific set of T cells responsible for attacking the hair follicles. Further investigation revealed how the T cells are instructed to attack and identified several key immune pathways that could be targeted by a new class of drugs, known as JAK inhibitors.

Two FDA-approved JAK inhibitors ruxolitinib and tofacitinib were able to block these immune pathways and stop the attack on the hair follicles. Together with Julian Mackay-Wiggan, director of the clinical research unit in department of dermatology at CUMC, researchers initiated a small clinical trial of ruxolitinib in patients with moderate-to-severe alopecia areata.

In three of the trial’s early participants, ruxolitinib completely restored hair growth within four to five months of starting treatment and the attacking T cells disappeared from the scalp. Alopecia areata can occur at any age and affects men and women equally.
The results appeared online in the journal Nature Medicine.

Source: first post

Ayurvedic Remedies for Hair Loss

There are certain problems that pester you so much that you finally tend to give up on them. Many skin and hair problems are such. For example, excessive hair fall is one issue that many have given up thinking about. This is basically because no chemicals or combinations of modern treatments have shown to actually work!

That is chiefly the reason why more and more people around the world are now turning to the ancient Indian ayurveda for various health issues. Especially for nagging problems, where conventional medicine with its chemical formulations, often does not give a comprehensive cure, the much safer option of ayurveda is proving to be the ray of hope for many.

For those struggling with the frustrating problem of hair fall, ayurveda has a wholesome approach to the issue.

Undertanding the ayurvedic approach

Ayurveda believes that the bodily constitution of an individual and the genetic traits affect the quality of hair and initiation of hair loss. The most common causes of hair fall, found among women, are nutritional deficiencies and hormonal problems. Sometimes, hair loss can also occur due to a chronic illness or taking strong medications, like steroids.

Ayurveda seeks to cure hair loss in a more holistic manner. The therapy is based on addressing the causes behind hair loss directly. So, metabolic disturbances among various biochemicals, including hormones, which lead to hair loss, are corrected.

Pitta body type and its dietary soothers

According to ayurvedic texts, individuals with the Pitta body type often experience more hair fall. According to this science, these people are of moderate body size, short-tempered, irritable and aggressive. Pitta elements in the circulation are aggravated by wrong dietary and lifestyle choices. Therefore, excessive consumption of hot, sour, salty and spicy foods, along with excessive intake of beverages like tea and coffee, fuel the Pitta. This in turn contributes towards hair loss, according to the principles of ayurveda. A Pitta constitution means a robust digestive system, often leading to overating. This can lead to indigestion and acidity, generating a lot of bodily heat, which needs to be controlled.

Consuming meat and alcohol can also induce hair loss among some people. The intake of greasy, oily and fried foods that are heat-generating, acidic and tend to aggravate the Pitta, should be avoided. Thus, ayurveda healers recommend including cooling foods like asparagus, mint (pudina), coriander (dhaniya) leaves, cucumbers, sweet potatoes, bitter gourd (karela), green leafy vegetables, pineapple, cherries, yogurt and warm milk. Ice cold drinks should be avoided for healthier and better digestion.

Cleaning, massaging of the scalp

Hair should not be cleaned with chemical formulations like commercially available shampoos. Ayurveda recommends using natural cleansers like Indian gooseberry (amla) and shikakai for washing hair. This should be supported with regular massaging of the scalp with natural oils like coconut oil and amla oil.  Read Also: http://www.texilaconnect.com/health-benefits-of-natural-wonders-amla/

Sometimes, ayurveda health practioners even recommend medicated oils to be mixed with your regular coconut oil. This includes oils like kunthala and neelibhringadi oil. These oils help to strengthen the roots of the hair, preventing further hair loss. Massaging with warm ayurvedic oils helps to boost the blood circulation to the scalp, which stimulates hair growth in dormant hair follicles.

Cleansing the body from within

Ayurveda practioners recommend that bowel movement should be regular to ensure that toxins are not retained within the body. These toxins are responsible for aggravating hair loss. Thus, bowel cleansers are commonly recommended. Among these, triphala is the most recommended of all ayurvedic herbs. In case you suffer from chronic constipation, it should be discussed in detail with the health professional.

Some easy solutions

Apart from those that experts suggest, there are some more easy and safe solutions that ayurveda recommends for those suffering from hair fall:

  • Apply a paste of coriander leaves to alleviate itchiness and dryness of the scalp.
  • Use a paste of fenugreek (methi) seeds and cooked, green gram on the scalp two times a week.
  • Soak methi seeds in coconut oil, and keep in a glass container, in sunlight. Allow the concoction to gain potency over a period of five days. Then apply it directly to the scalp.
  • For stimulating hair growth, drink a combination of spinach, carrot and lettuce juice.
  • Exercise regularly for balancing the bodily constitution.

Source: yahoo life style

Hair Transplants Not for the Young, Expert Warns

25-year-old Manchester United footballer Wayne Rooney surprised the world when he tweeted a picture of himself (with his new locks) immediately following a hair transplant procedure.

He posted on his Twitter account, “Just to confirm to all my followers, I have had a hair transplant. I was going bald at 25 why not. I’m delighted with the result.”

Rooney underwent Follicular Unit Extraction, also known as FUE, the most advanced hair restoration method available today. Three months later, the results are looking great, but one hair transplant expert warns that it might not last forever.

Dr. Bessam Farjo, one of the world’s leading hair transplant doctors and founder of the Farjo Medical Centre, told BBC News that young men like Rooney should wait until they are around the age of 30 to undergo hair transplant surgery.

And while Rooney’s surgery brought awareness to male pattern baldness and hair restoration, Dr. Farjo thinks it’s sending the wrong message to other guys in their 20’s.

“When a celebrity comes out with it, you only hear the good things. You don’t hear the cautions or the potential complications,” he told BBC.

Although he’s seen interest from more young men since Rooney’s surgery, the complications are apparently so great, that Dr. Farjo doesn’t recommend any hair transplant procedure for patients under 25 years of age.

This might not be good news for the thousands of young men who start to experience hair loss in their late teens and early 20’s, but Dr. Farjo makes a good point.

He explained to BBC that if a patient receives a hair transplant too young, his body still may be going through the hair loss process, and this could mean a very awkward-looking long-term result.

He said, “If you have the surgery too early and you go bald, you don’t have enough hair to keep chasing the hair loss. You can end up with isolated patches of hair. You could end up with hairy temples and a bald forehead, which isn’t pretty, but is also hard to fix.”

Hairy temples and a bald forehead?

Most guys would probably agree that waiting a few years would be completely worth avoiding a mess like that.

The good news is there are other things that can be done to prevent hair loss at a young age. Before diving straight into surgery, Dr. Farjo does everything in his power to preserve a patient’s already existing hair.

He explained, “I ask them questions about their family history, record the hair loss, and monitor it over a period of time. I also offer them medication to see if their hair stops falling out. I am then able to have a much fuller picture of how much hair they will lose.”

Predicting an individual’s total hair loss, he said, is the key to achieving excellent hair transplant surgery results.

Unfortunately, however, there are no age limits or regulations in place to inform or protect younger patients from undergoing hair restoration surgery. Dr. Farjo says some hair transplant clinics are more concerned with making money, rather than the health and happiness of their patients.

As an alternative, he suggests that surgeons work to inform colleagues and patients about the risks associated with age, as a form of self-quality control within the community of hair transplant specialists.

For younger men currently experiencing hair loss, you may want to take advantage of FUE or FUT technology and nip baldness in the bud, but take Dr. Farjo’s advice and wait it out.

Source: Where is my doctor