HAIR to STAY

Both men and women are asking questions about treatments for hair thinning. This is a topic that has been in the media recently and is driven partly by hair loss that can occur in those who lose weight rapidly in the months leading up to summer.

Lifestyle Factors

It’s not only significant weight loss that can lead to a phase of increased hair loss. Any major stress to your body, such as illness, anxiety, depression or a change in diet, can result in changes to the quantity and quality of your hair. Hair can become brittle, dry and even lose its colour, made worse by nutritional deficiencies and hormonal changes. Many of the key vitamins needed for hair growth come from food: vitamins A, B, C, D and E, iron, zinc and selenium. A good place to start is to increase your intake of nutrient-rich food, with targeted supplements, including taking Vitamin D during the winter months.

Home Remedies

Rosemary oil is the social media hair product of the moment, with claims that it helps promote growth and improve scalp health. It been used for centuries for hair health, and both rosemary and tea oil have anti-fungal properties which help to reduce yeast overgrowth and oil build-ups that can lead to itching and a flaky scalp. Be careful to apply an adequately dilute formulation designed for use on the scalp.

More Advanced Treatments

The most common cause of hair loss in men is androgenic alopecia (known as malepattern baldness). This can also happen in women, albeit with a di erent pattern of hair loss, and there are many other causes of thinning too. If you have patches of thinning in the middle of an area of healthy hair, loss of your eyebrows, or concerns about the condition of your scalp, you should have this looked at by your doctor. A skin scrape or blood test can help to rule out other factors such as iron deficiency or an underactive thyroid. Medications for hair loss may be appropriate.

There is an increasing body of evidence for the benefits of some of these treatment modalities. Low Level Laser therapy (LLLT) – particularly in women – and scalp microneedling treatments, with and without the incorporation of growth factors in the form of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) are increasingly being used in specialist hair loss clinics world-wide.

In androgenic alopecia, hair follicles become progressively smaller over time resulting in thinner, more brittle hair. If the hair follicle can be restored before it disappears completely, the process can be reversed allowing the hair to growth back thicker and less prone to breakage. Microneedling the scalp induces a healing cascade in the scalp that stimulates production of growth factors and tissue recovery, with the intention of rejuvenating hair follicles in areas of thinning.

Dr Kim Prescott

practices Aesthetic Medicine in Cobham and Knightsbridge, as well as lecturing, training and working in clinical research. You are welcome to send your questions to drkim@psmd.co.uk.

Drkpclinic.co.uk 01372 810850