Advice - Regressing

I started the IH top 6 summer of last year (July 09) and have been using a laser helmet for a year. As it stands, I have lost ground and my hair definately looks worse off. Temples have receded further and the 'island' is developing. and hair generally isn't in great condition. I use a clay before i laser and have also started using mag oil since the new year. I also use folligen. I had a prolonged shed over the winter which has recently just stopped. Really left me quite down at the moment as my options seem to be narrowing. I know patience is key, however when you just see things gradually worsen right in front of your eyes, it gets very depressing and question if things are ever going to turn around. The only plus point is that my scalp feels really good -no hint of inflammation and generally feels supple. I really don't want to be using fin/dut or minox but just don't know what to do

I would point the finger at DHT levels like a shot! lol

Can you think of anything you are doing that might be chucking your hormone levels off? Stress, diet, lifestyle, anything at all? Gluten?

If there are no obvious triggers then if it were me.. I would cut DHT down quite sharpish lol But that's just me!

You might also wanna check your thyroid, things like that!

I know how it feels man but we are in great company on this forum and on many hair loss communities online, lots of VERY clever people

Good luck man and I'll keep watching this thread

Joey - Do you have any fillings or root canals?

The reason I ask is, if you do, it takes a very high amount of vitamin C and glutathione to rectify pro-oxidative effects caused by these.

Let me know and I'll recommend something specific.

this is somewhat i similiar case as mine. Scalp feels good, no inflammation as far as I can tell, still, thinning.

CS - Yes I had a root canal done a few years back and also have some fillings. Would be great if you can suggest something. I am also considering adding Iodine to my regimen. NrwgnKID - I have followed your posts and also picked up on the fact your case seems very similar to mine. I usually shed in the winter and i'm hoping with spring upon us, maybe things will improve a bit. Just does get to me sometimes as I have days where I feel really helpless

Adding iodine and selenium has done much for my overall energy levels I feel, I hope my hair gets better too. My hair is very up and down, variates from month to month, very frustrating. I believe this has a lot to do with the all the stress in my life. In large stress periods my hair is bad. When I manage to chill down my hair gets better. I think stress has a major impact on my hair, cause I have many of the "big" angles covered through my regimen. Maybe so is the case in ur situation too.

Discouraging to hear.. Hope you're able to turn it around somehow. I just have to say - minox and finasteride are not always the ultimate answer. My hair is getting gradually worse, even though I use them both.

I'm in the same boat. I stopped taking Fin. two years ago and got on the IH program. First 6 months were good, then started thinning at about 9 months and started to add other supplements. After that, I started to really feel confident with my hair; it looked thicker and more healthy. However, about a month ago, I started to notice that some of the thicker areas were starting to diffuse. This has now progressed so that even the thick patches on my head reveal a shiny scalp underneath. That said, my overall hairline hasn't much changed. I guess it's just really frustrating because I had been doing so well. But now, my loss seems to be progressing so fast that I'm going to have to go back to shaving my head again.

I had no diet changes, or increase in stress. The only thing I recently added was Jarro-Dophilus EPS and "lasering" 3x per week for 15 min. (100 diodes). The weird thing is that the first couple weeks I was lasering I actually had a few new sprouts. I mean, I could feel their coarse little pointy tips breaking through smooth scalp. I was really excited. But now, I don't know if it's the lasering or something else, but my hair is taking a dive. No new sprouts and thinning pretty quick. I'm really disappointed...

I'm not going to stop lasering just yet as it's only been about a month and a half. I guess I need to keep fine-tuning everything as there's no silver bullet in this. Below is my current regiment. Any advice would be appreciated:

STAPLES
- Ecklonia Cava - 400mg - 2x per day
- NOW Krill Oil - 1,000 mg - 1x per day
- NOW Kelp - 150mcg (iodine) - 1x per day
- Jarrow Glutathione (reduced) - 500mg - 1x per day
- NOW C-1000 - 1000mg - 1x per day

GROUP 1 (every other day)
- Toco-8 - 630mg
- Jarrow Curcumin 95 - 500mg
- Jarrow Resveratrol 100 - 100mg

GROUP 2 (every day not taking Group 1)
- Dr. Gillham's Natural Calm Magnesium - 350 mg
- Jarrow Jarro-Dopilus EPS - 5b
- NOW Vitamin D-3 & K-2 - 1000iu/45mcg
- Jarrow Co-Q10 - 30mg

(The reason these are split in to groups for every other day consumption is because all of these pills toghether is way too much for me to digest. In fact, I didn't have much luck with the regiment until I started taking less of things instead of more. That's just me though.)

MIX IN A COUPLE OF TIMES A WEEK
- NOW Bilberry Complex - Various
- Life Extension Super Zeaxanthin - 3.75mg
- NOW Ascorbyl Palmitate - 500mg
- Jarrow Vision Optimizer - Various

TOPICAL
- Non-SLS Aubrey and Morrocco Method shampoos
- Alternate mixing in NOW Potassium Chloride (food-grade) and NOW L-lysine to my lather
- Swanson Magnesium Chloride Brine on non-laser days (15-20 min.)

LASER
- Laser Messiah helmet (100 diode) 3x per week (15 min.)

Now don't get me wrong, in many ways I feel great. Better than I've felt in years, and so I'm going to continue along this path. However, since the focus here is hair growth, I'd like to be further along with that area than I am. With all of the effort and reading and money I've put in, I could have saved time and got myself a hair transplant. Granted, I may die from a heart attack 10-20 years from now, but at least I'd have luxurious hair...

Kidding. Anyway, would love some advice, because my best efforts seem to have landed me just below some real and measurable growth. I should also post my most recent labs. Nothing major out-of-order according to the doctor, though I was little high in SHBG (testosterone) and Iron, and low in Vitamin E, Magnesium, and Glutathione. Actually cut back on the V-E and Mag. after that because I was consuming a lot at the time and thought my body might have been purging the excess. I have since added Glutathione. Anyway, labs to be posted soon. Thanks as always.

joey - When over five thousand teeth were examined that contained root canals, 99.99% of them contained extremely noxious bacteria so powerful that potent inflammation is absolutely certain.

To deal with this there are two excellent ways to counteract this (unless the mouth is overly filled with these).

Normally, IV (intravenous) ascorbic acid (vitamin C) in the 30 gram level along with IV-Glutathione would be necessary, since the pro-oxidative damage from these metals is so great that the body's enzymatic process to remove toxins is burdened beyond its capacity.

The good news is that there is a way to acquire the equivalent intercellular levels of vitamin C and glutathione that actually trump IV therapy!

The answer is Lypo-Spheric Vitamin C and Lypo-Spheric GSH (Glutathione).

Why would this be actually better than IV I'm sure most would wonder? Well, clinically it has been observed that when given IV-ascorbic acid, the body still has to convert it into the antioxidant form, from the pro-oxidative form. The same with glutathione. This action is required before entering the cell to protect the mitochondria.

However, the Lypo-Spheric form is bound to phospholipids which escort it into the cell without the need to reduce pro-oxidant vitamin C, or in the case of GSH, the IV form seperates into its tri-peptides (glutamine, cysteine and glycine) before it reforms, yet in Lypo-Spheric from just goes right in the cell without having to reform into GSH.

Mitochondrial decay is at the "heart" of hair loss. DHT is nothing when there is no mitochondrial decay.

NewReg wrote:The reason these are split in to groups for every other day consumption is because all of these pills toghether is way too much for me to digest. In fact, I didn't have much luck with the regiment until I started taking less of things instead of more. That's just me though...Anyway, would love some advice, because my best efforts seem to have landed me just below some real and measurable growth.

NewReg, I am curious as to why you have chosen Ecklonia Cava, NOW Krill Oil, NOW Kelp, Jarrow Glutathione, and NOW C as your staples. Have you had some success with them in the past?

TN

Simply amazing video, CS.

Caustic,

I've been hearing a lot about root canals, but is there also a problem with the removal of your wisdom teeth?

LittleFighter - Yes, this is possible and in such cases, it is when there are presently existing microbial activity within the empty sockets. These anaerobic bacteria can fester through the meridian channels and circulate through that particular pathway. Two ways to resolve this, either an IV of ascorbic acid or lypospheric vitamin C and sometimes an injection of procaine (an analgesic) into the socket sites which helps normalize the autonomic nervous system (AIS) circuit.

CausticSymmetry wrote:LittleFighter - Yes, this is possible and in such cases, it is when there are presently existing microbial activity within the empty sockets. These anaerobic bacteria can fester through the meridian channels and circulate through that particular pathway. Two ways to resolve this, either an IV of ascorbic acid or lypospheric vitamin C and sometimes an injection of procaine (an analgesic) into the socket sites which helps normalize the autonomic nervous system (AIS) circuit.

Thank you CS.

So this IV/Lipo Vitamin C treatment resolves it completly and forever?

Is important to know this, after all, I had all my 4 wisdom teeth removed in one sitting...

LittleFighter - Theoretically yes, however there still is a possibility of an imbalance in the AIS. If so, it will show up as some kind of problem in a joint or other area that is connected through the particular meridian.

CS,

I found this:

Homemade Liposomal C
Making Homemade Liposomal Vitamin C

http://www.pdazzler.com/archives/62

More info:

http://curezone.com/forums/fm.asp?i=1480584#i

Thanks for posting the video CS! The other 3 parts on youtube are also very good for those looking for additional info.

I could be wrong and probably am but I believe Dr. Levy missed an important area besides fillings and root canals and that's the reversal of fluid flow through the teeth.

Here is a quote from the daily blog for what it's worth.

Low phosphorus levels create a dysregulation of calcium. There is a normal, healthy fluid flow that goes through the tooth, from the pulp chamber, through the dentin, through the enamel and finally through the mouth. This will occur when the phosphorus level is close to 4.0

However, if the phosphorus level drops below 3.5, then the endocrine system that governs the fluid flow can reverse its direction through the mouth, through the enamel, into the dentin, into the pulp chamber and finally sucking the bacteria into the tooth.

CS - Many thanks for the info. I'm going to look into both Lypo-Spheric Vitamin C and Lypo-Spheric GSH. Is there any specific brand you can recommend?

LittleFighter - Thanks for that info on making your own Liposomal Vitamin C!

Joey - Here's one source of probably many on where to obtain the Lypo-Spheric Vitamin C as well as the GSH.

http://www.amazon.com/LivOn-Laboratories-Lypo-Spheric-Vitamin-C/dp/B000CD9XGC

Hey CS, I don't see Vit C on your daily regimen, how much are you taking and what's your source?

I currently take just a supermarket brand vit c that tastes like fake orange, (has aspartame etc... in) Is aspartame that bad, or should I try get some without the taste?

I keep seeing that root canals could be detrimental to the body. Luckily I don't have any of those - but what about reuglar fillings?

sdguy - I've been using Vitamin C (as ascorbic acid & ascorbyl palmitate), which I've been receiving from taking this antioxidant blend below, which contains some other ingredients that I like to have, such as tocotrienols, quercetin, N-Acetyl Cysteine, GliSODin and others.

So essentially, I'm taking a vitamin C that is both water and fat soluble.

http://www.iherb.com/Source-Naturals-Renewal-Antioxidants-60-Tablets/4540?at=0

Vitamin C is one of those antioxidants that produces a broader range of effects than many other types.

Gubter_87 - The battle probably will not be as hard if you have no root canals, however fillings are not too good either, because of the constant flow of mercury vapor that comes each during the chewing of food. Chewing gum releases some 15,000 times the EPA limits on 'safe' mercury levels. Unfortunately, there really isn't any safe level of mercury, because one atom of mercury will kill one cell.

tooyoung - You're better off avoiding the aspartame completely. As far as the best sort of C, there is liposomal (lypo-spheric vitamin C), check out how to make your own, courtesy of Littlefighter. Or you can try opting for ascorbyl palmitate or vitamin C ester (not to be confused with ester-C, which is different).

CS -

Interesting video. How much water-soluble Vitamin C are you taking every day?

The Natural -

I've been taking Ecklonia Cava for two years and definitely attribute it to my hair health and reduced loss. It was one of the first supplements I took. I have phased out most others, including 7HMR Lignans and Sensoril, but kept EC.

I just started Krill a few months back (I had been vegetarian for a couple of years and was taking non-animal Omega 3s), and I noticed a difference in hair and skin quality within 2 weeks.

Kelp is my source for iodine. Since iodine isn't as prevalent in our diets as in yesteryears, I wanted to add it in. However, the Lugol's solution never felt right for my body. While it did improve my circulation, it made me jittery. I'm also not completely clear on the debate between whether Potassium Iodine is good or bad for you. I know many on this board are supporters, but there are others out there who are staunch critics. I haven't loved NOW Kelp to be honest. I need to find a better source of iodine, but want it to be natural. Any suggestions would be great.

I recently had some bloodwork done and the doctor said that I was low in Glutathione so I added it in. I haven't seen incredible results from it, but being that I need it, I put it in as a staple. That said, I'm going to switch to N-A-C after I'm through my current bottle of Glutathione to see if I get better results.

I wouldn't say Vitamin C is really a staple. I just take it everyday, because it's easy and almost everyone you speak to agrees that you need it (you know, being a primate and all). But I don't love the form I'm taking in NOW C-1000. I'm considering this when my current bottle of C is done: http://www.iherb.com/Now-Foods-AlphaSorb-C-500-180-Vcaps/9381?at=0

As a footnote, I had been taking decent (though recommended) amounts of Vitamin E and Magnesium everyday and when I got my bloodwork, my doctor said I was low in both. It makes me wonder if I had been overdoing it, so I cut back to every other day. However, I think I'm going to go back to Vitamin E everyday. I can feel and see the difference in the quality of my hair. I'm back on Toco-8 after experimenting with Jarrow TocoSorb and Jarrow Famil-E. What are you on now?