In regards to Omega 3's and hair?

Ok, I'll try to keep this short. I have a habit of being a bit long winded and I have a feeling this may be a long one.

Basically my question's are these
#1 do Omega 3's have any "directly" positive effects on hair growth?
#2 is Saw Palmetto completely useless if you are past your mid 20's... is everyone sure of this?

Here is why I ask.
I had taken saw palmetto (a fairly low dose) on and off for years now and I don't know if it really did any good but I took it because I just figured I might as well. Anyway I stopped taking it about 10 weeks ago after hearing repeatedly that it was useless. Around the same time I started eating walnuts everyday for Omega 3's (I know fish oil is better for this but I am vegetarian and blah, blah, blah....) as a side question are the ALA omega 3's in walnuts and flaxseed the same ALA stuff that I hear about from this site helping with insulin?
Anyway, about two weeks ago I started getting pretty greasy hair and some intermittent itching, accompanied by a pretty bad shed. I think there are a lot of oils in walnuts and thought this may have something to do with it so i started switching on and off with falxseed which i think helped and around the same time started on curcumin/resveratrol. My hair now isn't as greasy and the shed and itch has stopped (i think/hope) the hair that is left is all pretty good and healthy but it's like all the little baby hairs just bailed on me, leaving a kind of "transparent" look. Also I think my hair and nails are growing faster (which i would think is good) but I can't be sure of this.

So basically could stopping saw palmetto have caused this? should I get back on it?
Or, I guess I am hoping that the omega 3's, that where basically completely absent in my life previously have had a positive effect on my hair and caused a shed similar to what you hear about with minox/fin. Is this just wishful thinking?

Any help/advice is of course much appreciated, you guys are great.

Pilot138 - Do Omega-3's have positive effects to hair? Denatured, oxidized, heated Omega-6's can be very bad for hair. Omega-3's when handled improperly can also be bad for hair.

Most people consume way too much processed, denatured Omega-6, which increases 5-alpha reductase.

To make a short story, Omega-3 (and -6) supplies prostaglandins.

Prostaglandins occur in almost all tissues, that affect fats (lipids), which ultimately determine the homeostasis of platelets, endothelial cells, mast cells, etc.

Making a short story longer, prostaglandins (balance) determine muscular contraction, relaxation of vascular smooth muscle (vasodilation), mediation of inflammation, calcium movement, ion transport, fat burning, hormone regulation, cell growth control and temperature regulation.

Further, if prostaglandin balance is weighed towards the inflammatory side, then thromboxane is released by platelets and can cause platelet aggregation and vascular constriction. Prostacyclin is secreted by vascular endothelial cells and is antagonistic to thromboxane.

Finally, prostaglandin balance can positively affect cellular immune responses to bacterial infections.
Generally, getting a healthy intake of unrefined (not cooked) Omega-6 and quality (non-oxidized) Omega-3 in proper balance can lessen inflamation.

Nuts and seeds contain the parental Omega-3, which the body breaks down in to the longer chain fatty acids, such as DHA and then into EPA.

If you intake enough supportive nutrients to enzymatically convert the parental Omega-3 (Alpha linoleic acid) into the DHA and EPA, then it will be of benefit to consume these.

These supportive nutrients are magnesium, zinc and b6. So if you're vegan, the preferred sources of essential fatty acids are Borage oil, which supplies the "good" Omega-6 called GLA (Gamma linoleic Acid), and also consume Omega 3 in the form of raw pumpkin seeds and walnuts.

As far as Saw Palmetto goes, there are a lot of variables, it depends on the amount and whether it's whole or standardized. At any rate, if you're after blocking DHT, beta-sitosterol will do it and its the primary fraction in Saw Palmetto that does it. If you're in your Mid-20's, it will still slow things down, but not by any large margin, especially if your hair loss is aggressive.

Wouldn't waste much time on Saw Palmetto or even Beta Sitosterol for that matter.

Fantastic post CS.

Hey CS, thanks for the reply.... I have taken a multivitamin with zinc magnesium and b6 for years now, would this be an ok source.... I feel like i heard something about multivitamins not being so great.... maybe I am wrong.

Also whats the best source of unrefined (not cooked) Omega-6 or what are the bad omega 6's generally found in?

Once again thanks for all the information.

primrose oil is a good source of O-6