Having a good look at the scalp

Over the last few weeks I have been using a handheld microscope to have a good look at my scalp. I got the idea a long time ago from JDP's posts at Regrowth. I actually bought the microscope, the Eyeclops, a long time ago but never got around to using it.

A very useful device. You can clearly see where you are inflamed and the degree to which you are inflamed. You have immediate visual feedback on whether you have eliminated the inflammation. You also can clearly see which interventions work more most effectively to eliminate the inflammation. An msms solution works wonders for me!

You also can also see exactly how much vellus hair you have and whether it is getting darker and fuller or not.

A slightly disturbing finding is the presence of microorganisms. I watched a little wormlike thing grow over the course of a few days. Very disturbing! I also discovered that lugols solution and grapefruit extract wipe these things out!

wormlike things? growing? *shudder*

how strong is your microscope?

i'd be so freaked out if i saw that

Thats very interesting!
Im convinced my hairloss has a strong link to some sort of bacteria.
The same time i really noticed my hair loss i experienced alot of crawling /tickling feeling over my face.
My hairs at its worst on the sides, just up from the ears and the left side is worse (actually the whole left side of my head) than the right-i mainly sleep on my left side.

The sides can get very itchy (especially at night) and when my head also touches the pillow-instant itch. Same if i wear a hat that touches the sides-instant itch!
At its worst my face tickling was unbearable,can rem one day when it felt as tho i was constantly scratching my face the whole day!
I do use anti fungals on my head seabuckthorn soap/scalpure/GSE and im sure since i started using those ( a year ago-obviously not the scalpure) the loss has slowed down.

The first time i ever used grapefriut seed extract on my face the itching was unbeliavable and loads of spots appeared along my forehead. That never happened again after that first time. I also get those same spots on the thinning parts on the side of my when treated with GSE.

I know CS posted as study claiming demodex was not a cause of MPB a little while ago but i wonder if it a major factor for some people.

m1234 - Not sure if that study was conclusive, however there are other lipid subsisting, phospholipase secreting microorganisms on the scalp, such as malassazia yeasts. When the lipase enzyme PLA,2 is secreted it liberates a chain of inflammatory cytokines.

thelibrarian - Thanks for posting, how much does this type of scope cost?

the eyeclops was 40 dollars Canadian money and I got it at Toys'r'Us. I was in there recently( I am in there alot these days) and they have put out a new version for 35 bucks.

I recommend it to everyone!

BTW, my eyeclops has three setting - 100x magnification, 200x and 400x. The latest version just has 100x and 200x. This is fine as I only use the 100x

Does BHT (Butylated hydroxytoluene ) dissolve the lipid coating? There were some posts about Brylcreem (with BHT) and I got to thinking that topical BHT would dissolve the lipid coating and then you could move in with GSE, Tea Tree, etc and wipe them out.

Any ideas? I know with demodex it was theory that they feed on male scalps only, is this why some topical estrogens combat hairloss or that most things that help with hair actually have estrogenic properties to them and that it's really a bug that is mostly our problem?

Thanks

Whip - BHT is anti-viral and does help dissolve lipid coating. It's a fat soluble antioxidant. DHT increases sebum and of course it is the sebum that these microorganisms live on. I'm confident that it's not the whole story, because using topical lithium for some time, it got rid of most of the sebum, but wasn't the full answer.

I agree with m1234 that bacteria is a large part, but they are affected by other factors.

CS - What is it about the change in sebum that allows the microoorganisms to flourish after a certain time/age in men? Is it DHT? Is the connection that a bacteria/microoorganism appears in most cases on men's scalps in androg/alopecia?

I've been able to reduce my sebum as well, but didn't like the look as my hair became flat and thin. The main thing is the DHT/Inflammation/Auto-Immune/Bug connection, but I'd like to get rid of the bugs.

increased androgens are the cause of excess sebum in adolescent males. Maybe the thinner the hair, the more the sebum builds up on the scalp as there is less hair to absorb the oil. Maybe it is only a perceived increase as the hair gets thinner and absorbs less and less sebum, and more is left on bare scalp?

Whip wrote:CS - What is it about the change in sebum that allows the microoorganisms to flourish after a certain time/age in men? Is it DHT? Is the connection that a bacteria/microoorganism appears in most cases on men's scalps in androg/alopecia?

I've been able to reduce my sebum as well, but didn't like the look as my hair became flat and thin. The main thing is the DHT/Inflammation/Auto-Immune/Bug connection, but I'd like to get rid of the bugs.

Whip - As mentioned earlier in this thread, PLA,2 or Phospholipase A2 is the problem, it acts like snake or bee venom. However, its secretion is not limited to Malassezia yeasts or Demodex, it is also expressed in the skin.

Here is a very recent review on transgenic mice who over expressed PLA,2 and all the factors come into play, such as sebacious gland hyperplasia and a storm of cytokines.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2708930/

So if demodex or bacteria/microos are partly to blame and are lipid coated, is there a regimen to build around it to combat it (topically)? It sounds like at a certain age, we lose the ability to fight either the auto-immune part and the hair rejects itself, or the bugs nest in the follicles and our immune system rejects the hair because of that. Seabuckthorn, Tea Tree, GSE, etc doesn't seem to remove them alone.

Does estrogen in a female scalp prevent these bugs from nesting in women and that's why women don't experience AA?

Cool, thanks for clearing that up CS. So so you think and internal or topical Phospholipase A2 inhibitor would help? And also, do you feel this is the connection in heart disease and hair loss?

Whip - Essentially what I am saying is that sebum is not the sole problem behind hair loss. GSK-3beta inhibitors such as Lithium chloride/orotate would have proved to be more useful, plus there is a bacterial component which is not addressed through sebum reduction.

Yes, there are Phospholipase A2 inhibitors, one very powerful one is Ecklonia Cava (Fibroboost), yet it goes far beyond that in aspects that cover some of the age-related factors behind hair loss.

A topic we do not really discuss all that much is plasmin, fibrinogen, hyperviscosity, hypercoaguation problems. Antiplasmin is a real problem and the foods discussed here so often increase antiplasmin. Hypercoagulation which is the same as high blood viscosity and insufficient plasmin derives poor oxygenation and/or poor circulation. It's all very much a part of atherosclerosis and heart disease.

DKK-1, TGF-beta, MMP-9 are all major players in the inflammatory process and DHT is the trigger. Rather than killing the trigger, the inflammatory molecules can be inhibited.

I wonder if this helps kill the bugs? http://www.sanhorial.com/index.php?content=showprod&id=32

I bought it a couple of years ago and it's still lasting. It's essentially eugenic acid (clove oil) and potassium iodine. I don't out the recommended dose of 10 or so sprays, but maybe I should start again.

Is sure has a smell of "scam" to it, but I think it may cure baldness that is specifically caused by micro-organisms and especially in places like Africa, where the developer came from.