Is there a diet that can replace all of the supplements?

I was thinking about, after a few years if my hair does regrow (it already stopped thinning), will I be able to quit taking supplements and eat a low-carb diet and still maintain my hair? The diet I'm eating now is mostly raw, nonstarchy vegetables for the antioxidants, and a little bit of protein (~60g a day) from fish for the omega 3, and a lot of nuts for the fats. Would that cover most of the supplements and avoid insulin resistance?

Espio - Even with a good diet, chances are good that you'll need some help in the antioxidant department, even though you are eating dietary antioxidants. Although with each of us there are different degrees of what is needed for protection.

That said, while it's possible that a strong diet could help, supplements maybe needed. I know for certain that in my case, I need them.

You may wonder why this would be the case. One typical example is mineral storage excess. Many minerals are stored in bone, some of which are not desirable. Lead is a common example, also Mercury, excessive copper, and iron in men is very common to have an overabundance of, just to name a few.

Any of these cause free radicals, so besides normal metabolics, breathing, exercises, which on their own produce free radicals, the process of aging itself lends itself to producing less endogenous antioxidants.

Our own antioxidants produced within the body or endogenously would glutathione, superoxide dismutase, and catalase. We're simply less capable of producing these as well as we did in younger years, so the need for supplements to increase these antioxidants are important to keep hair loss at bay.

Ah, okay thank you.

Hi Espio

I'm of the view that an appropriate lifestyle can replace supplements and do a better job. So carefully getting the diet right, encouraging the right sorts of activities that favour strong hair, and keeping a balance of activity and rest/thorough stress management will help a lot.

That said, taking a specific supplement at a certain time during any changes in a lifestyle or routine will be helpful.

I arrested hairloss for over 12 years just by taking a fruity/veggy diet, and heavy hydration with relaxation/mild inversion. I didn't know about the specifics of DHT and hairloss until the drug treatment was widely accepted as a research stream.

Lux

Hi Lux. Yeah I noticed my uncle is about 60 years old and still has a full head of hair (except a little bit of recession in the front), and he's the only male in the family that eats a mostly vegetable diet, he doesn't eat much meat.

This again? So meat causes hair loss, eh?

I think its more likely that eating not enough veggies can lead to hairloss. Its not just the vitamins either. There are tons of things we don't yet know about with good leafy and rooty veg.

I love a good steak occasionally. In fact in HK I eat almost anything, from snake to frog to anything with a good sauce. And generally go all out on the good wine/spirits thing also.

No need to be a zealot about what you put in your body. Just be reasonable about your goals.

Lux

EIC, I'm not saying that eating meat causes hair loss, what I'm saying is that too much protein causes hair loss. If any protein is not used up in the body, it is converted to sugar and therefore raises insulin levels just like eating bread or drinking soda. Depending on our body size we use between 50g and 75g of protein a day, so eating outside of that range will cause insulin spikes.

Ya but you can regulate those insulin spikes with R-Lipoic Acid/NAC/ALCAR and other supplements. Higher protein amounts in the realm of 1-2g per body pound are needed for bodybuilding, for example.

I believe very strongly that if you are eating a high live food diet and grow most of your hair back you should be able to remove most of IH's supplements from your diet. That is my plan anyway. I figure I may always take 7HMR, EC, GTE, omega 3's, and on those sweet tooth days an ala/acla capsule.

The key point is that we have advanced the aging process of our bodies. By reversing this we should be able to reverse hair loss itself. I put it out there in pretty basic terms, but that is the main factor I am going after.

A higher protein does help a person body build more muscle although I have found is the 60 grams of protein recommended is plenty. What people seem to lack are the lipids, which helps with the nitrogen. Statically speaking our muscles are 70% water, 22% protein, and 7% lipids or fat. The other key element is high weight, small reps. Now that is all fine and dandy but unless you train with a certain level of intensity you just don't have it in you day after day. This is where I find maca to be very helpful. I mix a full on concoction of maca and other great things, drink it, and 15 minutes later I am set to lift. I am talking full on eye of the tiger stuff here. Heavy strenuous lifting in short workout increases the release of HGH, which in turn makes you younger.

Sorry I sort of went off, please disregard unless you find it interesting.

Espio wrote:EIC, I'm not saying that eating meat causes hair loss, what I'm saying is that too much protein causes hair loss. If any protein is not used up in the body, it is converted to sugar and therefore raises insulin levels just like eating bread or drinking soda. Depending on our body size we use between 50g and 75g of protein a day, so eating outside of that range will cause insulin spikes.

This is extremely inaccurate.

This is from a zero carb guru over at a low carb forum i frequent:

Actually, gluconogensis is only used to stabilize blood sugar. Once blood sugar is stabilized, the liver will shut down production of glucose. If this were not true, I would be very fat indeed because I only eat fat and protein. We've known since 1956 with a publication of papers by Vincent Dole at Rockefellar University; Robert Gordon at the National Institutes of Health, and Sigfrid Laurell of the University of Lund in Sweden. The muscles run from the circulating fatty acids which rises and falls in relation to the need for fuel.

Protein does not raise insulin. It does make your blood sugar rise, but this is because of "glucose sparring" which conserves muscle glycogen for those periods of intense activity. During this period insulin is low and primes the muscles to burn fat only and prohibits them from burning glucose. This makes the glucose available for those tissues that need it and tops off the glycogen stores in the muscles. The liver shuts off this process once blood sugar is stabilized. It may be a little higher in a fat adapted individual than in a non-fat adapted individual, but this factor alone does not contribute to fat storage.

This process cannot be compared to the effect of carbohydrates because under those conditions, insulin is high, not low. Therefore, suggesting that protein is a source of glucose that leads to fatty acid storage is quite specious because the conditions are not similar.

I've seen a lot of studies that show the opposite, that a high-carb and high-fiber diet reduces insulin more than any other diet. Below is a study that compares the insulin and blood glucose of a high carb diet to a high protein diet. The high protein diet had DOUBLE the insulin level. And by high protein, they are talking 55% protein, so I imagine the zero-carb guru's have soaring insulin levels.

http://jn.nutrition.org/cgi/reprint/112/4/681.pdf

ABSTRACT The effect of a high protein diet on blood glucose, insulin, and glucagon
secretion was studied in the peripheral blood and isolated perfused pancreas of normal
rats. A balanced diet (protein 27%, carbohydrate 61%, fat 12%) and a high protein diet
(protein 55%, carbohydrate 30%, fat 15%) were given ad libitum to normal rats for 2
weeks. No significant difference in calorie intake or body weight changes were observed
between the two groups. Fasting blood glucose and plasma insulin concentrations in rats
fed the high protein diet were significantly higher than those in rats fed the balanced
diet. The fasting plasma glucagon concentration, however, was the same in both groups.
In the isolated perfused pancreas, the arginine-induced insulin secretion in rats fed the
high protein diet was significantly higher than that in rats fed the balanced diet, whereas
the arginine-induced glucagon secretion was not different in either group. The possible
mechanism by which a high protein diet causes hypersécrétoiofninsulin in vivo and
in vitro are discussed. J. Nutr. 112: 681-685, 1982.

Two considerations on that study, 1st was in performed 1982, and 2nd it was on rats.

The following two studies done this year, each hinting towards a healthy balance. There was a specific study I was looking for, but did not find it (kind of in a rush today).

Anyway, these were done on people. I do believe that personal metabolic differences definitely apply. For example parasympathetic and sympathetic branches of the autonomic nervous system.

See the alkaline & acid explained section here: http://www.freewebs.com/immortalhair/physiology.htm

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18654910

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/359/3/229

Having glanced at that final study, it seems that I definitely lean towards the Mediterranean diet. I'm a bit of a epicurean and that is where my talents lie in the kitchen. Poultry and fish also seem to work best for me. I can't pull off Japanese cuisine to save my life, and that's a fave, so I often eat that when out. In addition, I have a bit of a detox protocol which is plant-based, but not rooted in any cuisine--the people I work with call it "nasty."

Interesting. But what if I was a protein type, would I be doomed to buying expensive vitamins my whole life in order to keep my hair? It seems that the high green vegetable diet is more in line with the Immortal Hair regimine, because it lowers insulin levels, provides anti-oxidants, and provides more magnesium. The only thing that the high-carb diet would have to supplement would be the omega 3's, or they could just add a little fish to their diet.

Wheras if someone decided to do the high-protein diet, they would have to buy a lot more supplements to keep their hair. They'd need the lipoic acid since their insulin levels would be higher. They'd need antioxidants since meat provides none. They'd need magnesium because that's mostly in veggies.

Am I missing anything?

Vegetarian/Vegan/High vegetable diets are high in COPPER. Excess copper is intimately related to hair loss. If you have any kind of problems with this mineral a low meat (zinc), high veggie diet will destroy your hair. Of course this doesn't apply to everyone, because Sublime thrives on this diet.

Also, a low carb diet should not be characterized as "high protein" it should be "high fat, moderate protein". Protein is not a good source of fuel for your body. The goal would be switching your bodies fuel source to fat.

A diet to replace supplements like R-Lipoic and all the blood sugar regulators would have to be one that provides the lowest amount of glucose (glucose=carbohydrates including veggies!). All carbohydrates cause a secretion of insulin by the pancreas. The only way to secrete less insulin is to retrain your pancreas by feeding it less carbohydrates. I've found that even "safe" sweeteners (stevia, erythritol) cause me to secrete too much insulin. I imagine most men losing their hair are insulin sensitive.

Meat is very nutritious. Animal foods contain all of the essential amino acids and they do so in the ratios that maximize their utility to humans. They also contain 12 of the thirteen essential vitamins in large quantities. Meat is a particularly concentrated source of vitamins A, E, and the entire complex of B vitamins (provided the meat isn't charred to a crisp). Vitamins D and B12 are only found in animals products besides the sun. Vitamin C is the only missing link but, glucose and vitamin C take the same pathway for absorption. If glucose is present, the body will not absorb the vitamin C.

IMO, all of us should be growing our own wheat grass and juicing that every day. Just a shot or two a day will do the trick.

nidhogge wrote:IMO, all of us should be growing our own wheat grass and juicing that every day. Just a shot or two a day will do the trick.

Is there any compelling data on the benefits of wheatgrass juice?

Joejoebaggins - Great explanation.

I got into the Wheatgrass thing a lot time ago, and one of my attempts to save my hair. In the 1994 I was completely head over heals into the world of juicing. I drank approx 80% vegetable juice and 20% fruit juice. For me, since I do rely on protein, I would have a single protein (meat meal) at lunch time.

Anyway I did buy my own slow turning wheat grass juicer (which I no longer own today). Bottom line, I'm just lazy and when I discovered that powdered foods are available there was my time to get fully acquainted with conveniences.

Sublime had a good suggestion for me the last time we talked about this, which is I could go to a juice bar, they're everywhere these days.

If you make your own wheatgrass juice, it should be consumed in less than 30 seconds. The SOD in there will literally dissipate in no time.

My own personal opinion on the green juices is that Spirulina and Chlorea are the ultimate green super foods.

On what JJB says, I pay attention to what I eat. That means ensuring I eat enough hemp and pumpkin seeds to supply my zinc needs as copper truly is a concern.

There is a book out by Anne Wigmore on the benefits of wheatgrass which are numerous to say the least. Everything from increased oxygen transport, to turning your hair back to its natural color (yes she did do this after 7 years), to balancing your PH levels, to increasing your mineral intake as wheatgrass is the only food that can absorb and deliver 92 minerals/traceminerals.

The question comes up about meat glucose and protein levels. A study performed by the Max Plank Institute demonstrates that when meat is cooked it looses half its protein content. This is why people who consume live foods need to be careful about over consumption of protein as the current protein count is designed with that protein loss in mind. I do not know if protein raises glucose levels but per studies by Dr Gabriel Cousens on diabetes patients he shows that red meat does raise glucose levels. The exact mechanisms of why are not clearly explained but the numbers do not lie. His work with diabetes is simply amazing and to be able to get someone off of insulin and stabilize their blood sugar levels in 21 days speaks for itself.

As noted before my diet is very carefully planned and thought out and after all, food is simply a delivery mechanism for vitamins, minerals, enzymes, anti-oxidants, trace-minerals, etc. Meat is a very easy to get a lot of those things from as well as an easy way to get carcinogens and set off leukocytosis, as is any cooked food. Kouchakoff performed studies on food and it was demonstrated that when cooked food was consumed the body set off an immune response and raised white blood cell count. This strange phenomenon did not occur with raw food, which is interesting to say the least.

Meat vs non-meat, it is what it is. Let's try to be practical without being dogmatic and truthful without being hurtful. As others have noted different diets work for different people.

LoL IH, you're the classic Californian. "Eh I did it for a while but I stopped because I'm too lazy."

Seriously though, wheat grass just is fantastic at absorbing and retaining tons of trace minerals and is a good addition to any diet IMO. Spirulina and the other one IH mentioned as well are fantastic options.

The problem with meat is that the cooking process destroys a good deal of the protein, and chicken is about 70-something% utilized. Your best bet is eggs which are 90-something% bioavailable.

Regarding green juices:

http://www.e3live.com/

I have used it in the past, and think it is a very good product. I didn't use it long enough to provide a solid testimonial, but I think it is worth considering if shopping for a green juice.

FRESH JUICED Wheatgrass probably does more for detox. E3 live has less of a gag factor, yet a gag reaction is present, which is probably good.

For a little while I was on a salmon kick: I ate at least one decent serving of fresh salmon daily. This lasted for about a month. I did this after meeting two elderly women who had defied age: their secret: salmon, the oiliest nastiest parts--I watched them marry the pieces to a bagel in disgust. In any case, in the short time that I ate salmon daily, I noticed a marked improvement in my hair and skin, a reduction in inflammation, and I am pretty sure better sugar tolerance. To date, I have not been able to replicate the effect with salmon oil pills--I take about twelve a day. Currently, i am using Natural Factors Wild Salmon Oil, which I think is superior to Carlson's.

http://www.iherb.com/ProductDetails.aspx?c=1&pid=2711&at=0

It may very well just be quantity: 4 oz of salmon may equal 30 capsules. I'm not sure. But I think you cannot go wrong eating a good piece of salmon. Unfortunately, the result of my experiment left me with gag-reflex to the fish cooked; however, I can palate it in sushi form with ginger and wasabi.