Male Pattern Baldness Cure Discovered

The cause of male pattern baldness has not been known for many years. It is only through recent research that certain drugs have been proven to help treat certain cases of baldness. Leading to many health societies declaring baldness cure discovered. Several tests carried out on men that showed male pattern baldness produced similar results which showed the presence of dihydrotestosterone (DHT). The presence of DHT in all samples taken from men that had male pattern baldness led to a much intense research on this compound.

This lead to certain discoveries that showed that DHT is actually testosterone that has been converted in the presence of an enzyme called 5-alpha-reductase. It was also found that DHT freely circulates the body and when it reaches hair follicles it binds onto their walls. This causes the blood vessels around these hair follicles to constrict thus reducing blood flow to these hair follicles. This then causes the hair follicles to shrink and die causing hair loss. The DHT compound somehow accumulates in the frontal and vertex areas of the scalp. This is the reason why men bald in these areas. Women on the other hand do not have DHT so they do not show any balding that is centered on this region of the scalp.

Discovery of the male pattern baldness drug was somehow done by chance rather than medical expertise. This was the case with drugs like finasteride which was initially only prescribed to persons suffering from prostrate cancer. These patients however experienced certain side effects among which included undesirable hair growth. The link between finasteride and hair growth was then studied. This led to the discovery of the action of finasteride on hair follicles. It was found out that finasteride inhibited the enzyme involved in the synthesis of DHT. The removal of DHT from hair follicles allowed for increased hair growth. Now the drug is available in lower concentrations for the treatment of male pattern baldness.

Another drug that was introduced in the treatment of male pattern baldness is minoxidil. This drug was originally prescribed to patients suffering from high blood pressure. The drug was originally only available as an oral drug that would dilate blood vessels and lower blood pressure in patients suffering from hypertension. Some of these patients however experienced certain side effects which included increased hair growth. The action of minoxidil on hair follicles was then studied. It was soon found that minoxidil dilates the blood vessels that supply hair follicles thus increasing the amount of blood that reaches these hair follicles.

The drug also opens up some potassium channels on hair follicles thus allowing them to absorb oxygen and nutrients at a much faster rate. Soon the drug was made available in the form of a topical cream of 2% minoxidil concentration for the treatment of male pattern baldness. Minoxidil can also be used to treat baldness in women unlike finasteride which specifically deals with baldness caused by DHT. These are only two examples of baldness drugs which have been discovered, a much wider selection of baldness treatment drugs are available on the market

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Stem Cell Science: Hope On The Horizon For Male Pattern Baldness

Stem cell science has put forth a theory that reports that adult stem cells can be used for hair regrowth in males who are suffering from male pattern hair loss. Scientists have been focusing on capabilities of stems cells for many years regarding their role in treating male pattern baldness and other types of permanent hair loss.

Stem cell theory of hair regrowth.

It has been discovered by Professor George Cotsarelis and colleagues at University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia that in men with male pattern baldness, stem cells are present in the hair follicles of both bald and hairy regions in the scalp. Also, it is found that bald people have same number of stem cells as anyone else.

Adult stem cells have the ability to self-renew, which makes them different from other cells in the body. In this self-renewal process, a stem cell can replicate itself and make new stem cells, which are further capable of dividing and transforming into specialized cells. When these stem cells are manipulated into hair follicles, they replace the shrunk follicles and can produce new hair. With further research in the stem cell science, the thought of suffering from male pattern baldness will never again be of concern.

Impaired stem cells may cause male pattern baldness

It has been found that faulty stem cells can also be the cause of onset of male pattern baldness. A research was done on 54 men with male pattern baldness. The hair follicles were compared from bald and hairy regions of these men. Similar numbers of stem cells were found in both bald and hairy patches. But in the bald patch population of hair follicle, the progenitor cell was depleted. It was concluded that the stem cells in hair follicles of bald patches are defective in nature and are unable to mature into follicle progenitor cells that are necessary for hair regrowth.

Researchers concluded that there is a wide prospect of reversing baldness as there are normal numbers of stem cells in bald patch of the scalp. They hope to develop a treatment to reactivate the stem cells in the hair follicle and restore the normal function of hair follicles. This can lead to increased levels of progenitor cells and normal hair growth.

Propecia – The hair loss medication for men

Propecia finasteride is an FDA-approved prescription medication that is used to treat male pattern baldness or alopecia. It offers the best hair loss treatment for men suffering from male pattern hair loss. Propecia pill works by preventing the conversion of a male hormone, testosterone into DHT (dihydrotestosterone), which is known to cause alopecia. You should have your condition diagnosed with a doctor to get a prescription for Propecia as it has some mild side-effects in about 1%-2% men. But, even considering its mild-to-moderate side effects, its effectiveness has made it widely accepted treatment for male pattern baldness.

Male Pattern Baldness: Is There an Effective Treatment?

The statistics are quite staggering, by the time they reach the age of 50, 50% of the worlds' male population are affected by male pattern baldness. Many men just accept this and get on with life, but more men are learning about the newly affordable male pattern baldness treatments and want to keep their crowning glory. These new treatments started becoming available over fifteen years ago, but unless you were quite well off cost was always a major prohibiting factor (John Travolta was reported as spending around $1000 a month for his treatment). Now prices are down to a level where most people can afford high quality treatments and if started early enough there is no reason why you should ever go bald. Having said that it should be made clear that there are still no miracle cures, if you are now completely bald there is still very little that can be done apart from wearing a hairpiece. But treatments can be very effective in re-growing hair for some people. It is a matter of learning what is possible and setting your expectations accordingly. There are a few things you should know before seeking a particular type of treatment. It is firstly important to understand why male pattern baldness occurs and how it develops before deciding which of the currently available treatments is right for you.

Why Hair Loss Occurs
Male pattern hair loss, also known as androgenetic alopecia is a genetically predetermined condition. The main contributing factor for causing it is the male hormone testosterone, hence this is why few females suffer from the condition and why castrated males never go bald. But testosterone does not directly cause hair loss, it interacts with an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase to produce the real culprit, a derived hormone called dihydrotestosterone (DHT). DHT is widely acknowledged to be the main cause of hair loss in men. Men lucky enough not to go bald have hair that is resistant to the effects of DHT.

Topical Application
Now that it is known what causes male pattern baldness many hair loss shampoos have been developed specifically to remove DHT from the scalp. These types of products are deep cleansing agents known as DHT blockers and have been used effectively to stop further hair loss and provide the optimum conditions to stimulate new hair growth. You may have heard of Minoxidil male pattern baldness treatment, this is not a DHT blocker, it is thought to work by directly stimulating cell growth in the hair follicle thereby giving it a resistance to DHT. The results though are the same and because they work differently, Minoxidil and DHT blockers can be used together for an even more effective hair loss treatment.

Internal Drugs
One of the most effective oral medications for treating hair loss was discovered accidentally when developing a cure for enlarged prostate gland in men. This drug was finasteride and it was found that in low doses finasteride was effective in preventing of male pattern baldness. It is now one of very few drugs with FDA approval for the prevention and treatment of male pattern baldness and only available on prescription.

As a natural alternative to Finasteride, a herb called Saw Palmetto is often claimed to be able to reduce DHT and therefore prevent male pattern balding. There are now many natural male pattern baldness treatments that contain saw palmetto and while only small scale clinical trials have been conducted results have been positive.

Transplants
As a last resort hair transplantation may be the only option for men with a bald patch greater than about ten centimetres (4 inches). This generally involves removing a doner strip of scalp from the neck area and grafting doner follicles to the bald patch. Scalp reduction is another surgical procedure where the bald scalp area is removed altogether with the remaining scalp skin pulled together. While this may seem quite drastic it can be a quite effective procedure in removing small bald patches

Conclusions
For many men baldness is accepted as part of the aging process and they adapt gracefully to their new look. But with many new male pattern baldness treatment  available, men now have a choice in preventing hair loss altogether if they act early enough. The treatment is often needed for life but for many men that could be one of the best investments they ever make!

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