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A Good Scare… and Your Hair

I wish I had thought of this one before Halloween: can a fright actually turn your hair grey or white in an instant? Literature and even history has tales of folks whose hair went white overnight. The earliest account comes from 83 AD, and describes a seventeen-year-old student whose hair went white overnight. Experts of the day determined that his strenuous studying was to blame. Marie Antoinette’s hair supposedly woke up with white hair on the morning of her encounter with the guillotine. Western legend Annie Oakley’s hair is said to have turned white after a train accident. The shock … Continue reading →

Fashion Trends: Hair Restoration for Women

I don’t have long, luxurious locks like Denise Richards or Jennifer Lopez. And to be completely honest, I’m glad I don’t because I stink when it comes to maintaining the perfect do. I simply don’t have time (see: don’t want to make time) to spend hours in the bathroom washing, rinsing, repeating, blow drying, crimping, curling, brushing or braiding hair. (It’s all I can do to maintain my short, low-maintenance do.) That being said I am still very grateful that I have been blessed with a full head of hair. Hair loss is a devastating dilemma for a millions of … Continue reading →

Hair Facts

How much do you know about your hair? Test your hair trivia with these questions… then see if you can stump your friends and family! Q: Hair grows everywhere on the human body — except for two places. Do you know what they are? A: Hair does not grow on the palms of the hands and on the soles of the feet. Other parts of the body may seem hairless, but actually have hair so fine it’s nearly invisible. Q: What is hair made of? A: Hair is made of keratin — the same protein in fingernails and toenails. Q: … Continue reading →

Different Kinds of Hair Loss

There are many different kinds of alopecia, also known as hair loss. Involutional alopecia is the gradual thinning of hair with age. This is a natural condition! As you age, more and more hair follicles go into their resting phase. The hairs that remain are shorter and fewer in number. Androgenic alopecia is a genetic condition that can affect both men and women — you may know it as male pattern baldness or female pattern baldness. In men, hair loss can start in the teens or early twenties, and comes with a receding hairline and gradual hair loss from the … Continue reading →

Bald and Beautiful Barbie

There is a lobbying campaign that is asking toy maker Mattel to create a new type of doll. The would like to see a Barbie doll that is completely bald. This doll could help raise the self-esteem of girls who have lost their hair due to chemotherapy, (or for other medical reasons). Lots of little girls, (and some little boys), play with Barbie dolls. Since the doll was first created, Barbie has been considered to be an example of what it means to be beautiful. Sure, Barbie’s proportions are not something that match up to what real women actually look … Continue reading →

Genetic Research Connects Alopecia With Autoimmune Diseases

Genetic research has revealed something surprising about alopecia. Not very much was known about this disease that causes hair loss, until recently. It turns out that alopecia is actually a form of heritable autoimmune disease. This finding may lead to new kinds of treatment for alopecia. Alopecia areata, the full name of the disease, causes the body to attack hair follicles. This autoimmune attack results in having hair fall out. It may fall out in small round patches, or could potentially continue until all of the hair on a person’s head falls out, and does not immediately grow back. In … Continue reading →

Hypothyroidism

What is your thyroid, anyway? The thyroid is a pretty important gland — it influences metabolism. That means your thyroid is in charge of calorie burning, your heartbeat, and even your breath. Hypothyroidism — when your thyroid is underactive — is the most common thyroid disorder. Millions of people may have undiagnosed thyroid disease, according to experts at the New York Thyroid Center at Columbia University. If your thyroid is underactive, your body produces more thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) in an attempt to make your thyroid work properly. A blood test can measure the levels of TSH in your body … Continue reading →