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Reflections November 2012

Aid for Age

Going Bald? Some Possibilities for Hope and Help

By Tait Trussell

Current theory about hair loss seems to focus on hormones. A kind of hormone of which testosterone is included, may well be the villain. Testosterone declines as men age. Another possible cause for balding is connected with heart disease. Another possibility is an enlarged prostate, which usually occur in men as we get old.

With some men, losing their hair is nearly as important as losing their job.

But, face the facts, fellows, scientific studies indicate that after age 50, more than half of men lose some of their hair. Some men who have lost much or most of the hair on their heads grow mustaches or beards, seemingly to prove they can grow hair somewhere.

The sensitivity about baldness is the reason why $2 billion a year is doled out for surgical treatment for hair loss. That treatment involves taking hair from the back of the head and planting it in bald spots.

You’ve seen the promising TV commercials. “It’s your real hair. You can wash it. Your significant other can run her hands through it.”

In these cases of hair replacement, typically, the operation has to be continually repeated. Hair follicles die.

Researchers are trying to find out how to make hair follicles — the tiny organs where hair lives — arise from the dead, like the Bible says Jesus raised Lazarus (John:38-53). But the researchers have only suspicions at this stage about waking these follicles.

In recent years, scientists have figured out what the life cycle of hair is. Follicles that produce hair do so for several years. Then the single hair falls out. After some weeks or months, another hair grows out. But, for the balding, the follicle remains inactive.

Scientists who deal in hair’s mysteries think it’s a combination of cells and hormones. Or Vitamin D could be an important factor.

Research by Mark Hausller, professor of physiology and biochemistry at Arizona State University is directed toward “molecular understanding of the biological functions of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily of transcription factors, specifically the vitamin D receptor (VDR) and its partner (vitamin A).” And this binary receptor complex controls a number of genes, such as those for which the products “mediate bone and mineral metabolism, epithelial cell differentiation, endocrine gland function, and mammalian hair cycling within the context of normal skin development.”

That said, 35 million men are victims of “male-pattern baldness.” Some women also have hair loss from time to time. But it usually grows back.

Current theory about hair loss seems to focus on hormones. A kind of hormone of which testosterone is included, may well be the villain. Testosterone declines as men age. Another possible cause for balding is connected with heart disease. Another possibility is an enlarged prostate, which usually occur in men as we get old.

Present treatments to slow the loss of hair include Rogaine and Propecia. Rogaine is an FDA-approved treatment for hair loss. Rogaine is the brand name for minoxidil and is believed to revitalize shrunken follicles so they increase in size. How it works is said to be unproven. When used twice a day, the follicles may increase in size and the growing phase for the hair becomes longer. It is also believed that Rogaine increases the blood flow to the areas near the balding section, stimulating hair growth.

A 16-week study on men showed that 85 percent of patients experienced hair growth. A 48-week study on women showed that 60 percent of the women experienced hair growth after 32 weeks into the program. Research suggests side effects are mild — scalp itching and irritation.

As for Propecia, you need a prescription to buy it. Clinical studies showed 20 percent of men who took a one milligram dose of Propecia daily grew moderate to heavy growths of new hair after one year. Another 30 percent had some growth. Both drugs seem to work best for men who are losing their hair on the top of their head rather than the receding hairline loss in the front of your head.

Finally, there’s a special comb called HairMax. It works by enhancing the natural hair growth cycle through a process known as Photo-Bio Stimulation. The light energy delivered by the HairMax purportedly "awakens" individual hair follicles. The end result is said to be thicker hair. But you have to have something hairy on your head at the start.

I have one son who has been completely bald since he was about age 35. His older brother still has practically all of his hair. I still have some of my hair in my 80s. But none of us is concerned. We have more important things to worry about.

 

Tait Trussell is an old guy and fourth-generation professional journalist who writes extensively about aging issues among a myriad of diverse topics.

Meet Tait