Hair Loss Treatments &     Thinning Hair Remedies

HAIR LOSS TREATMENTS AND REMEDIES...and treatments... and remedies... and...

The heading is to empahasize the seemingly endless list of products on the market touted as treatments for hair loss. As a consumer with a problem that needs answers NOW, the search can be pretty confusing and suck up a lot of time, energy and unfortunately, cash.

Common sense says, that if you use a thinning hair treatment, no matter what it is, it has to be better (in most cases) than doing nothing. That's the good news. If you have tried products in the past, most likely you're keeping follicles alive. However, your hair rejuvenation goals may be very different than what some of these products can deliver. So to help you in your search, here is the "low down" on hair loss treatments and remedies for thinning hair...

THE BASICS ON HAIR LOSS TREATMENTS:

THE TOPICALS - Applied To The Scalp

The first big hair loss remedy to hit the market was the ever present ROGAINE. The main ingredient is MINOXIDIL (also called LONATEN) which was originally a doctor prescribed blood pressure medication. Researchers found that by applying minoxidil to the affected thinning areas and thus producing a flush of blood to the follicles would cause some stimulation to the follicle and produce some results in terms of prevention and in some cases slight to moderate regrowth. Since that time minoxidil has gone from prescription drug to over-the-counter availability, has had published clinical studies (it boasts a 14-29% success rate in regrowing hair) and became the #1 hair loss treatment in the U.S. Unfortunately, there are also several drawbacks from using minoxidil. Since it is a stimulant, required usage is generally two times per day for life. If stopped, all benefits achieved will reverse within a few months. Minoxidil also has potential side effects such as, but not limited to: Heart palpatations, skin rashes, itching, head aches, swelling of the limbs, unwanted hair growth, residue build-up, hair and scalp discoloring-and the list goes on. Approximately 9 years ago, the patent expired for UPJOHN, the makers of ROGAINE, and is now available to any "hair loss treatment" manufacturer. Which brings up the most notorious aspect of the hair loss industry...

Since minoxidil became a public entity in the U.S., hundreds of products have popped up claiming to be "the most effective", "the miracle cure" or "rated #1". The main active ingredient in all of these products? You probably guessed right... minoxidil. Avacor, Provillus, Hair Genesis, Revivogen, Scalp Med, Follicare and Folligard are just a few of the these "minoxidil cocktails" from a very, very long list. People will often jump from one product to the next "thinking" they are trying something new, when they are just putting a slightly different mixture of minoxidil on their heads. Minoxidil is inexpensive to manufacture; ever notice that you can purchase a bottle of generic minoxidil in your local drug store for something like $11-15 dollars, which will last you about three months? Why then are the other minoxidil based remedies priced bewteen $100 to 300 for the same period? Often, it's not revealed that the product contains minoxidil or the consumer is side tracked by the lure of the "Money Back Guarantee." "Buy it, use it and then if it doesn't work, we'll refund all your money... guaranteed." This "no lose" situation is the mantra consumers fall for over and over again. The secret of the money back guarantee lies in the math. About 50-60% of the people who buy these products will NEVER use the guarantee, which means that if 100 people spend $200 on a product that actually costs $10 ($10X 100 =$1000) the profit is $19,000. If HALF of those people return the product and receive a refund, the profit is still $9,500! Many consumers ignore the guarantee, let it expire or simply just forget, but at the time of purchase, the "full refund" bait sounds great! Keep this in mind though... a money back guarantee WILL NOT bring your hair back... that is guaranteed! Also, despite the questionable results and success rates that hair loss remedies such as these claim to have, minoxidil has a documented success rate of 14-29%! To date only three products on the market have had independent clinical studies published in medical journals: Rogaine (14-29% success rate) Propecia (66% avg. success rate) and KEVIS (89-92% success rate).

There is another long list of products usually labeled "Natural Hair Loss Treatments." For the most part this label is true for those wanting to avoid drugs or side effects. These products generally do three things in their attempt to combat hair loss: 1) Cleanse the scalp in order to remove wax, sebum, dead skin, dirt and pollutants. While this is obviously good for a healthier scalp it does very little to nothing in regards to DHT. Shampoo's and cleansers are simply not strong enough to remove DHT. 2) Deliver nutrients to the follicle and hair shaft. Again, while this is a positive approach, the problem is that the DHT BUILD UP is blocking the nutrients from getting to the follicle! Bombardment of nutrients may help a bit, but many won't make it into the follicle and DHT will continue to build. 3) Mimic minoxidil by all natural means such as niacin (a mineral) or Cayenne Pepper are currently natural remedies to improve blood flow similar, but not nearly as strong as minoxidil. Most of these types of hair loss treatments are viable options when it comes to slowing down the hair thinning process, but very few will bring any regrowth or long term solutions.

LASER TREATMENTS or a Laser comb, can be considered a topical treatment though it is not a lotion of any kind. The idea behind the laser is the same as minoxidil, meaning it is a stimulant designed to increase blood flow. Laser treatments can be done by either visiting a center, where the client sits under a "hair dryer" type device or by purchasing a special comb that can be used at home. The laser is what is called a "cool" laser, which the user won't feel and there are basically no side effects. Though the treatments are fairly expensive (the comb considerably less, but not as thorough) results vary as they would with any stimulant based product.

THE PILLS - Ingested

Currently, the most popular pill is Propecia. Propecia was originally a prostate medication called Proscar. Propecia is about 1/4 of the dosage of Proscar. The main ingredient is a drug (you'll need a doctor's prescription) called Finasteride. Basically, finasteride is designed to inhibit the testosterone from producing it's waste product di-hydro-testosterone (DHT) by about two-thirds in the human system. Once accomplished the DHT levels are reduced a significant amount and the build up on the follicle is considerably less. Growth can often be seen with Propecia, but usually only in the crown (back/top) area. The problems associated with Propecia is the drug itself. Potential side effects include dizziness, fatigue, reduced sex-drive, impotency, lowering of the immune system, breast enlargement and nipple discharge in men(!). Propecia must be taken once a day for life and if stopped, all benefits can reverse within a few months. Propecia CANNOT be taken by women and can also be cost prohibitive.

Another popular pill supplement touted as an all natural hair remedy is Saw Palmetto, which is the extract from a small, berry like fruit. Some studies have shown that regular ingestion of saw palmetto can help as a preventative to prostate problems (due to DHT build up) later in life and some claim that is has an effect on hair loss because of the DHT connection. The idea is that saw palmetto will absorb the DHT in the system and reduce levels, similar to Propecia. However,currently there is no scientific proof on these claims. If it does anything at all, it is significantly weaker than propecia. Often you will find saw palmetto under various names (serenoa repens, beta sitosteral, sabal serrulata) and in dozens of products. It's all basically the same. Prices can be reasonable to outlandish. If considering Saw Palmetto, skip the fancy "Natural Hair Loss Remedy Pills" and look for the stuff in your local super market. It's there and it's cheap! Other supplements claiming to accomplish the same as the saw palmetto are Pumpkin Seed Extract and Nettle Root. And of course there are the "hair vitamins" which are designed to deliver nutrients to the follicle via the blood stream. Now while all of these "natural" alternatives may indeed help a little in hair loss, very few have been proven to accomplish much.

TRANSPLANTS - The Last Line Of Defense

Be aware, hair transplantation is surgery. The technology behind transpalnts has improved quite a bit over the years from "plugs" to micro graffs. In a nutshell, here is the way transplants work: In general, most receptor sites (follicles where the DHT builds) are located only on the top of the head, not down the sides or the nape of the neck. A transplant surgeon, will cut a strip of skin -usually a 1 inch by 3-4 inch chunk- from the far back of the head (the donor area) and "replant" those follicles to fill in the areas of hair loss. They will also pull and stitch the scalp in the donor area closed. Mostly, these follicles will stay and grow normal hair. Occasionally, these follicles DO possess receptor sites and DHT builds up and you know the rest of the story. There are pro's & con's to transplantation and if considering the procedure, you should do extensive research on the process and the doctors you are considering. Transplantation can be a long and painful process and can be extremely expensive ($3000 to 20,000!) - Also, make sure your hair loss is the right fit for transplants. What does that mean? Example: If your hair loss is progressive, and transplants are done early-there will be a gap between your transplanted hair and your NEW receding hair line or balding area in the crown. Then you'll need another surgery... and possibly another, and you only have so much donor hair. The possible drawbacks are poor execution by a doctor, pain, infection, the donor hair does not take, continued natural hair loss and a massive hit to your wallet. On the positive side, when executed properly to the right patient, the results can be amazing. At KEVIS we reccommend using our treatment for a minimum of 1 year BEFORE undergoing transplants. Doing this will stop the hair loss at the minimum (which means you'll likely have to go under the knife only one time) and/or rejuvenate a substantial amount of natural hair which will reduce the number of transplants you'll need and save you thousands of dollars.

HAIR LOSS TREATMENTS - Tips To Help While You Search

There is a simple formula to follow when inquiring about a hair loss treatment... ask! You will find by asking these simple two questions you will be able to make a decision on whether that product is for you. 1) "What is the main active ingredient?" and 2) "What does it do?" Often you will encounter familiar answers as many of the ingredients are the same as noted. Don't be afraid to challenge a representative by asking for proof, and remember what YOUR goals are, and not be side tracked by money back guarantees.

Here at KEVIS, we are prepared to meet and discuss your hair loss goals. Backed by published clinical studies, patents and over 24 years in the natural hair loss treatment industry, KEVIS is unique, not only in the way that it presents information, but how we treat each and every person as an individual. If you have any questions about the KEVIS product line, CALL! We're happy to answer your inquiries about our product or any other product on the market. If we don't know, we'll find out for you and get back to you.