Please Help Me With My Hair Loss

[Kenny]

Hey folks,
I'm almost 19 years old and I've noticed that over the past year or two my temples have seriously recessed. I think i have probably reached around a NW2. As foolish and vain as it sounds my hair is really important to me and worrying about it has been dominating my life for a quite a while. I could really use some advice from people who are more knowledgeable than me.

I'm trying to combat this by getting more exercise(in the form of cardio), taking vitamin D supplements, taking zinc and taking biotin. I really don't want to take anything that will mess with my hormones or have any serious side effects like Fin/min/dut/Ru etc.

I recently started using a 0.5 mm derma roller on my hairline every other day- its way too early for me to see if there's been any difference, I also bought one of those wooden bristled brushes and started brushing my scalp with it for about 10 minutes a day.

Is there anything I should add/remove to my regimen?

Thank you so much!

 

[johnwester130]

what other symptoms do you have ?

things like sleep, digestion, anxiety, body temeprature ? etc

 

[GreekDemiGod]

I'm trying to combat this by getting more exercise(in the form of cardio)

Don't do long distance cardio, keep exercise to a minimum. Do yoga, stretching, maybe some short sprinting session. Don't do running.

 

[Kenny]

what other symptoms do you have ?

things like sleep, digestion, anxiety, body temeprature ? etc

Hmm. Well I have had some serious anxiety and lack of sleep that I believe came about from fear about losing my hair at a young age.
I haven't really noticed any digestive or body temperature problems. I suppose when I'm sedentary playing video games or something my hands get really cold.

 

[Kenny]

Don't do long distance cardio, keep exercise to a minimum. Do yoga, stretching, maybe some short sprinting session. Don't do running.

Oh wow that's the opposite of what people have been telling me to do!
I was told that doing cardio would help circulation - and in turn help my follicles.
Am I safe doing weight training?

 

[HChpalley]

What are your average basal morning temps and what’s ur resting pulse/heart rate?

 

[Kenny]

What are your average basal morning temps and what’s ur resting pulse/heart rate?

I haven't taken my morning temperature. My resting heart rate is 68.

 

[GreekDemiGod]

Oh wow that's the opposite of what people have been telling me to do!
I was told that doing cardio would help circulation - and in turn help my follicles.
Am I safe doing weight training?

Lifting is great, as long as your metabolism is not broken and your caloric intake is high enough.
Walking, light hiking is enough for aerobic activity.

 

[Kenny]

For the past two months my situation has only worsened. I have been seriously depressed by my hair loss. I have noticed that I have been shedding eyebrows a ton too. I have been cutting out dairy, grains and trying to reduce pufas. I have been trying to increase fiber intake, vitamin D, as well as taking a multi vitamin.

These changes have not really done anything for me. I might supplement some magnesium since i heard blood tests for it aren't very accurate.

I was going to reincorporate milk but I believe it has a pretty inflammatory effect on my skin.

Per the recommendations i got in this thread and others I got some blood work done. Honestly it looks like everything is in order - maybe i should lay off my multi vitamin for a while to reduce selenium. Why is this happening to me somebody please help!

I think that my hair has thinned significantly all over - not just in the norwood areas - though i do have a rather clear norwood 2 patter at the moment unfortunately.

Component Your Value Standard Range
TSH 1.28 uIU/mL 0.35 - 4.94 uIU/mL

T3, Free 3.42 pg/mL 1.71 - 3.71 pg/mL

T4 Free 1.11 ng/dL 0.70 - 1.48 ng/dL

Magnesium 2.1 mg/dL 1.6 - 2.6 mg/dL

Vitamin D, 25 OH, Total 44 ng/mL 30 - 100 ng/mL

Iodine,Serum/Plasma 77 ng/mL 40 - 92 ng/mL

Vitamin D, 25 OH, Total 44 ng/mL 30 - 100 ng/mL

Selenium 159 ng/mL 70 - 150 ng/mL

Iodine,Serum/Plasma 77 ng/mL 40 - 92 ng/mL

I am desperate for any advice i can get

 

[GreekDemiGod]

I have been cutting out dairy, grains and trying to reduce pufas. I have been trying to increase fiber intake, vitamin D, as well as taking a multi vitamin.

Why cut dairy?
Gonna be difficult to eat high calories with such restrictions. Undereating will still be worse for you anyway.
Have you took Aspirin? Useful to stop the shedding.

 

[boris]

@Kenny Maybe subclinical hypothyroidism. The free T3/T4 values don‘t say much on their own (look up the resources section for what to test).

Pulse 68 is low. It should be in the 80s. Maybe this is a result of the cardio.

To check for hypothyroidism you get the basal (after waking up while still in bed) underarm temperature with an analog thermometer (10 minutes). And basal pulse. Then you compare those measurements with the values during the daytime 1-2 hours after breakfast or lunch.

The pulse should be lower while waking up and rise into the 80s during the day.

Temperature should be 36,5 while waking up and rise to 37 during the day.



How much do you eat? 19 years old and exercising, you should be getting at least 3000-5000 calories a day for good metabolic function.

 

[Kenny]

Why cut dairy?
Gonna be difficult to eat high calories with such restrictions. Undereating will still be worse for you anyway.
Have you took Aspirin? Useful to stop the shedding.

I'd prefer not to take heart medication as a teenager - though i have considered it

 

[JKX]

B vits are super important. Make sure you are getting enough of those especially b1, b2, b3, b6 and b7. Might be worth testing prolactin. As per another recent thread, recommendations include P5P and zinc to increase dopamine and help lower prolactin. A good quality vitamin E such as tocovit would be helpful.

Get plenty of sun, plenty of food, try not to stress over unimportant things. A little exercise is fine, preferably outside. I wouldnt push yourself so hard you feel drained afterwards.

 

[mrchibbs]

I'd prefer not to take heart medication as a teenager - though i have considered it

FYI aspirin is not "heart medication", it's a general purpose anti-inflammatory that has been in use for 120 years with an incredible record of safety.

I personally recommend it wholeheartedly for hair loss, even at 19. I know some may disagree, but it's part of the 3 basic things I tell everyone are most important for dealing with hair loss. Milk, sun and aspirin. The holy trinity if you will. That's what I would tell myself to do if I could go back 7-8 years. With so many kids taking SSRIs, accutane, and a host of toxic antibiotics, it seems (to me) at least silly to worry about aspirin, especially when it is so safe. No one is forcing you, use your best judgment.

I recommend these articles:

http://raypeat.com/articles/aging/aspirin-brain-cancer.shtml

Do Your Aspirin Drills

And this video (Danny Roddy's video essay on aspirin):



Good luck to you!

 

[Kenny]

So i have lost a good deal of ground since my last post. Where before it was concentrated at my temples, now my temples have recessed a bit further and I have thinned all over, especially on my sides above m side burns; i also noticed that i have been losing more eyebrows and lashes. Its likely that me stressing out about my hairline has induced some form of telogen effluvium - that would explain the lashes and brows anyway.

Clearly I needed to change some things up. I am considering taking @mrchibbs advice and taking some baby aspirin every day, though the articles linked . I'm still a little concerned what effect taking that long term will have on my kidneys and stomach lining, but it seems like a pretty helpful drug. Frankly I'm almost at the point where I am willing to sacrifice some health down the line if it means I can live better now.

What I have been doing:
I did a round antibiotics to get rid of some parasitic bacteria(I tested positive for) that may have been swiping some of my minerals. If this had an effect it will take time to come forward.

I eased up on my dietary restriction as I had begun to lose weight - I'm 6'0, 152 lbs. Now I eat most stuff. I generally avoid pufas and eat a bit less dairy if I can as I find it to be inflammatory. I also avoid any processed stuff/ soda/ junk food if I can.

I started taking a nettle root extract and magnesium citrate supplement. Magnesium to help with my D3 and K2 supplementation, nettle root as it is generally anti inflammatory and blocks 5ar. I am now questioning that decision. I also have been drinking much more tea (nettle tea and green tea) for the anti inflammatory properties. Sometimes I apply nettle tea topically - doubt it will be helpful but I was recommended it by a relative. B

I have been mixing Zinc sulfate with B6(P5P) in distilled water. I will probably make a batch with ethyl if I can get my hands on it. I apply it when I wake up and before I go to bed. So far no change in shedding to report.

I haven't been getting much sun these past months, though I have been keeping my D levels up with supplements - they fluctuate around 40ng/mL.

While I haven't taken blood tests for it personally based on my demographic issues I need to deal with are low SHBG, high prolactin and a lot of cortisol. I have heard coffee helps raise SHBG but I have generally avoided coffee as I have disliked the idea of needing caffeine to function like some of my peers do. I have never liked the taste and tend to mask it with cream and sugar.

Me being a little b**** about hair loss and stressing about it 24/7 certainly has not helped my case. Its probably sent my cortisol through the roof. My next semester starts soon hopefully my studies will be a good distraction.

Honestly I think my idea of proper thyroid function might be incorrect. I don't feel any thyroid symptoms but my understanding of it has gotten really shaky. My morning oral temperature was 97.6 F(36.44 C) degrees today. Lower than it should be right?

Really appreciate any advice, and I apologize for spamming this forum so much.

 

[mrchibbs]

Your temperature is good. Could be a little higher, say 98F is the ideal waking temp, but 97.8 would be great. 97.6F is pretty good.

You need to dig into the threads and Ray's articles, and Danny's and stop focusing on your hair as an end in itself, and more as it relates to the rest of your health.
Not getting sunshine is a big problem. Not having activities to destress is a problem. Going to bed too late is a problem.

There are threads about this, but aspirin dissolved in hot water, with a little baking soda, will absolutely not cause any damage and in fact aspirin is protective against every GI tract cancer you can think of. So there's more risks in not taking it. Effect Of Sodium Bicarbonate On Aspirin-Induced Damage And Potential Difference Changes In Human Gastric Mucosa on JSTOR

 

[Kenny]

Your temperature is good. Could be a little higher, say 98F is the ideal waking temp, but 97.8 would be great. 97.6F is pretty good.

You need to dig into the threads and Ray's articles, and Danny's and stop focusing on your hair as an end in itself, and more as it relates to the rest of your health.
Not getting sunshine is a big problem. Not having activities to destress is a problem. Going to bed too late is a problem.

There are threads about this, but aspirin dissolved in hot water, with a little baking soda, will absolutely not cause any damage and in fact aspirin is protective against every GI tract cancer you can think of. So there's more risks in not taking it. Effect Of Sodium Bicarbonate On Aspirin-Induced Damage And Potential Difference Changes In Human Gastric Mucosa on JSTOR

How much sunshine would you recommend I try to block out in a day? It will be a little tougher to find the time while I'm at school but for now I can basically spend the entire day outside.

What do you think a good dosage of aspirin would be for me? A baby aspirin a day?

I truly appreciate the help by the way.

 

[mrchibbs]

How much sunshine would you recommend I try to block out in a day? It will be a little tougher to find the time while I'm at school but for now I can basically spend the entire day outside.

What do you think a good dosage of aspirin would be for me? A baby aspirin a day?

I truly appreciate the help by the way.

If you read stories of hair loss invariably guys don't get enough sunshine. Vice versa stories of recoveries guys make the point to get as much sun as possible. Take your shirt off, go hiking, go play volleyball or basketball or whatever with friends. Basically as much as possible.

There's really no upper limit to aspirin, it depends on your symptom. But yeah, sure, a baby aspirin daily is a good start. Better to get the actual aspirin powder to dissolve, but a baby aspirin will do it. Or buy gericare aspirin, it has less excipients.

If you dissolve some aspirin in hot water and baking soda and then apply it on your scalp that will help too. It will stop the prostaglandins associated with micro-inflammation.

 

[Kenny]

If you read stories of hair loss invariably guys don't get enough sunshine. Vice versa stories of recoveries guys make the point to get as much sun as possible. Take your shirt off, go hiking, go play volleyball or basketball or whatever with friends. Basically as much as possible.

There's really no upper limit to aspirin, it depends on your symptom. But yeah, sure, a baby aspirin daily is a good start. Better to get the actual aspirin powder to dissolve, but a baby aspirin will do it. Or buy gericare aspirin, it has less excipients.

If you dissolve some aspirin in hot water and baking soda and then apply it on your scalp that will help too. It will stop the prostaglandins associated with micro-inflammation.

noted.

thank you so much.

 

[Attakai]

I was pretty much in the same boat as you, I tried almost everything and although I was able to become much healthier I still was unable to grow back my hair.
We have people on here who do everything right and are still balding. You can follow chibbs advice because at the very least it will improve you health, though it probably won't cure your balding.

Bottom line for me is this: When I was in my teens and started balding I avoided all the meds after reading the side-effects and focused on the natural stuff.
Now I'm 30 and I am probably the healthiest I have been since 15, nonetheless I am balding.

If I had to do it again I would say **** the side-effects and take dutasteride and probably incorporate scalp massages on top of the healthy lifestyle. Losing my hair young robbed me of so much during my youth that knowing what I know now I would have risked the side-effects.