Gynecomastia from Saw Palmetto?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

Hi Doctor,

Thanks in advance for reading.

I have a pretty important question that I would love to receive feedback on. I’ve been on rogaine for about 5 to 7 years and I do believe it has helped maintain my hair; but unfortunately, it has not been up to the task of keeping it 100% stable. Due to my thinning, about a year ago, I decided it’s time to consider propecia. I’m in my 30s.

For various reasons (my wife was prego), I decided for about a year on propecia and try natural supplements first and other topicals first. So, I purchased a specific type of shampoo (I’m drawing a blank on the name) and soy isoflavones. I took those for about one or two months and stopped because my sister (who’s had breast cancer) told me excess soy can cause cancer.

At that point, I heard good things about saw palmetto. So, I bought a bottle of saw palmetto. I took this for roughly 3 or 4 months, although I gained some weight and had normal decline in libido (watery semen)… this really did seem to make my hair thicker. I don’t remember the dosage. But, it was purchased at a pharmacy.

At about month 4, I noticed a swelling on one side of my chest. I got it checked out mammogram, and they said it was unilateral gynecomastia. I quickly stopped the saw palmetto usage.

So, it’s now 8 months later and my hair is still thinning. My chest is now improving to the point it’s no longer really noticeable, other sides are reversing too. I’m considering waiting a few more months to see if it returns 100% back to normal completely, and considering propecia again at that point.

Am I crazy for doing so? What would you recommend?

Thanks

It seems you are self-treating and experimenting without a clear focus and understanding of what is going on. I realize saw palmetto is available over the counter, but there is still side effect potential that people tend to ignore.

I am really not in a place to recommend a specific treatment plan for you, as I don’t know enough about your hair loss history and I’m not your doctor. I would recommend you see a doctor for your hair loss issues and discuss your concerns. Together, you can come up with a Master Plan.

Although I have no direct experience with saw palmetto, I would not be surprised that breast enlargement could occur on rare occasions. I must point out that one of the rare side effects of Propecia is gynecomastia and if you switched to that, you may also have the same problem.

Tags: gynecomastia, hairloss, hair loss, propecia, finasteride, saw palmetto

Do Black Women Have Less Hair Loss Treatment Options?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /, ,

I interesting in learning what can be done for Black Women who are lossing their hair. And the physcians are saying it from the chemicals that we use. Ex. perms. they say the only treatment is rogaine and injections which will also cause complete baldness if we can no longer afford that treatment while they give the white women hormone replacement. Can you help and give better advise

Black hair permChemicals (like relaxers) can cause damage, but many black women will also see traction alopecia, which is permanent hair loss caused by the pulling of tight braids, many times from when they were very young. For women, the only FDA approved hair loss treatment is Rogaine (minoxidil). Hormone replacement likely won’t regrow your hair and I’m not sure which injections your doctor is recommending.

This isn’t an issue of race so much as gender. For men, the great majority of cases of hair loss are from genetics and there’s an oral pill for that. For women, there’s a large list of possible causes of hair loss and no truly great solutions. So it’s not that black women have less options, but rather, all women have limited treatment options.

See this page for more — Female Genetic Hair Loss Is Different From Male Genetic Hair Loss.

Tags: race, hairloss, hair loss, female hair loss, gender

In the News – Actor Jackie Chan Shills for Poison Hair Loss Shampoo?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

Snippet from the article:


Judging from billboards and television commercials in China, film star Jackie Chan has never met a product he wouldn’t endorse. Travel the country and you’ll see the Hong Kong native’s handsome visage hawking electric bikes, anti-virus software, even frozen dumplings.

But although the Chan name has translated to big bucks at the box office, not every product he touches turns to gold. In fact, when news broke last month that an anti- hair-loss shampoo he promoted allegedly contained carcinogens, Chinese cyberspace and media were buzzing about the “Jackie Chan curse.”

Jackie ChanRead the full story at LA Times: If Jackie Chan says it’s good — well, get a second opinion

The article isn’t so much about the cancer-risk-increasing hair loss shampoo that actor and martial artist Jackie Chan was putting his stamp of approval on, but more about how he takes just about every paycheck to endorse products that he can get… and he has an unusually high rate of failure.

The shampoo is mentioned again later in the article, though: “Few know whether Chan actually uses the shampoo, called BaWang, which its manufacturer claims keeps hair roots strong and black. BaWang Group stock has tanked since the scandal broke, even though government regulators deemed the product safe.”

Tags: jackie chan, martial arts, celebrity, hairloss, hair loss, shampoo, endorsement, bawang

Recoverup Hair Regeneration

/by William Rassman, M.D./1 /

Hi doc, there has been a company which has been on the minds of alot of people recently and for some reason no one like your self has mentioned anything up on it.

The company is “Recoverup”, please have a look at there website below and if you can find more up on this company I assure you alot of people will appreciate it.

Site: Recoverup.com

Also on hairsite.com someone got a very thorough reply, and it seemed pretty legimate, can you also please give us your thoughts on that.

Many Thanks.

There does not seem to be meat on the bone with Recoverup. In other words, there’s nothing here of substance, though there are many outlandish hair growth claims. The site is filled with stock photos and their Video Gallery is just computer animation. If there was really a hair loss solution in that website, I’d suspect the world would be paying attention. Instead, they claim there’s guaranteed growth in 2 weeks time and offer nothing to back that up. I don’t know much about the company, but based on their website it sure looks like they’re offering slick marketing more than actual results.

As for that “pretty legitimate” response on HairSite, to me it sounds like a sales pitch. Here’s what they say about photos of patient results — “In terms of providing pictures, we have found many ‘hair restoration’ websites to have such pictures enhanced with photo editing software, etc and as such we didn’t consider to put up such pictures.”

Uh huh. I’d have to assume that if this was truly a viable hair loss treatment option there would be photos made public, but instead they use the excuse that because some (unknown) hair restoration companies use Photoshopped images, they didn’t want to use any photos of results at all. So why would they use stock photos of pretty, hairy people on their site? Seems dishonest.

One last thought — I am a US-based physician and while I’m not aware of various legalities in other countries, it seems odd that a UK-based company (as Recoverup is) would only be doing this procedure in Taiwan and Malaysia. Are the laws a little more lax in those countries or is there another reason?

Tags: recoverup, hair regeneration, hairloss, hair loss, stem cell

Novophane Capsules

/by William Rassman, M.D./1 /

Dear Doctor,

I am a great fan of you.. I am suffering from Androgenic Alopacia. I am developing baldness,front area some hairs are there.. in between i am having less hairs, back side i m having more hairs.. my scalp is very oily and i am having lots of sebum balls in my scalp.. Coming to my health, if I couldn’t have my lunch at proper time I will get severe headache and some times I might do the vomiting. The same thing applies to when I smell some fragrances and have some sweet food items. I sleep very late in night like 1 am or 2 am. I heard that taking novophane capsule will help at some extent. Please suggest and help me..Thanks in advance!!

NovophaneI’m not sure that your headaches or sensitivity to smells have anything to do with your hair loss. If you’re losing hair due to genetic causes, you should talk to your doctor about finasteride (Propecia) which is a prescription medication, or you can get minoxidil without a prescription. Those are proven hair loss treatments. You’re free to try any other capsules or lotions you want, but I sincerely doubt they will help if you’re experiencing genetic hair loss.

I wasn’t familiar with Novophane, but what little I was able to find about it online is as follows — “Novophane capsules is a complete formula which provides a set of nutrients that favour the production keratin in the nails and hair. For this it contains sulphur amino acids (cistina and metionina), vitamins and trace minerals.”

That sounds like meaningless marketing jargon. It contains vitamins and minerals. Great. The Novophane caps don’t contain anything proven to treat MPB. If your loss is due to vitamin deficiency or something else entirely, that’s a different story.

Tags: novophane, capsule, hairloss, hair loss

In the News – Laser Hair Center Accused of Swindling From Clients

/by William Rassman, M.D./2 /,

Snippet from the article:

They say he assured them, his clients, that he could re-grow their hair. Out of desperation they say they paid him thousands upon thousands of dollars in the hope his promise was true.

FOX Chicago News has been investigating an accused con artist to find out how he’s managed to stay in business in Chicago for at least five years, despite repeated lawsuits claiming he’s a bald-faced liar.

His name is Steve Bennis.

Bennis advertises his hair clinic in several promotional videos on his web sites. In one, he talks about the lasers he uses for treatment. “It’s the best laser machine in the market,” Bennis said.

Scam AlertRead the full story at FOX Chicago — Hair Regrowth Center Accused of Swindling Clients out of Thousands

This is a follow-up to a post from late last year about a laser hair clinic in Chicago being sued for fraud… and as it turns out, the story is much more complex.

Desperate men were handing over tens of thousands of dollars after hearing promises of hair regrowth that are just not possible with any hair laser. When complaints were filed, he simply changed the company name. The investigation showed, “Bennis’ business has changed from Natural Hair Growth Institute to Omega Hair Group to Quantum Hair Sciences to Chicago Hair Growth Centers to American Hair Growth Centers“.

Much has been written about Steve Bennis online, and you can find a good starting point at Women’s Hair Loss Project.

Tags: laser, hair laser, fraud, chicago, hairloss, hair loss

Nizoral and Dutasteride Together?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

Hi Dr. Rassman,

Just wanted to say a very big thanks on how informative and up to date this website is.

My question is in relation to using both Nizoral and Dutasteride together. I have read in a few places the active ingredient in Nizoral has some sort of interaction with Dutasteride which reduces the effectiveness of Dutasteride in the body. Is this true and if so, is the effectiveness of Dutasteride reduced dramatically.

Thanks in advance.

NizoralI do not know of any interaction between Nizoral (ketoconazole) and Avodart (dutasteride), and while I attempted to research it, I came up empty. Where did you read that there was an effectiveness reduction? Perhaps I’m the wrong person to ask, as I don’t usually recommend either treatments (Nizoral never, Avodart rarely). If you’re taking dutasteride, you should discuss drug interactions with your prescribing doctor.

Nizoral is an antifungal shampoo, and although some people insist it helps to treat hair loss, this has yet to be proven. I honestly don’t think it works much better than any other shampoo.

There is some suggestion that dutasteride is more effective at treating hair loss than Propecia (finasteride), but this hasn’t been proven yet. Dutasteride has some history of sterility problems that concerns me (which is why I’m reluctant to prescribe it), whereas Propecia has no significant sterility problem history. Plus, Propecia is FDA approved to treat hair loss and dutasteride isn’t.

Tags: nizoral, ketoconazole, avodart, dutasteride, propecia, finasteride, hairloss, hair loss, shampoo

Zinc Shampoo for Treating Hair Loss?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

What I believe to be a reputable private practice hair transplant specialist here in San Francisco advised that I exclusively use a 2% zinc shampoo, a recommendation he apparently makes routinely for hair loss.

I however have read conflicting information about the value of topical zinc for men experiencing hair loss, and even that it may accelerate the process. Do you have any thoughts on this issue?

BTW I have not yet undergone any transplant procedure.

Thanks, and with regards

Zinc will not help with treating genetic hair loss. There may be such things as zinc deficiency that can cause hair loss, but that is diet related (which has nothing to do with zinc shampoo). Your reputable private practitioner seems like a good entrepreneur, as well. Sometimes I think about going into the shampoo business…

There was a small study published 7 years ago that said there was a modest improvement in hair growth in those that used a 1% pyrithione zinc shampoo, but it also said that the benefits were only apparent to the investigator and not the patients using the product. Some marketers will use that weak study as a sales point for zinc shampoo.

Tags: zinc, shampoo, hairloss, hair loss

I Burned My Daughter’s Scalp and Years Later the Hair Grows Slowly

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

I burned a very small area of my daughter’s scalp while straigtening her hair with a hot comb around 2 years ago. Ever since then this area of her hair grows very very slowly in comparison to the rest of her hair. Its only grown to around 1 to 4 inches while the rest of her hair is flourishing. Also, I use chamical straightners in her hair and this patch tends not to straighten at all. If there is a re-growth in this area when its being straightened, within days the regrowth breaks off and the hair is back down to 1 – 2 inches long.

Could you tell me please whether it is likely that this area is permanently damaged or what we can do to solve the problem.

Many thanks

It sounds like you accidentally created permanent damage to your daughter’s hair. Without an examination I couldn’t get into detail about regrowth possibilities… but generally speaking, if after multiple years the hair is still barely growing in the burned area, I would have to assume the damage is permanent.

If you haven’t taken your daughter to a dermatologist for an examination of her scalp, you should consider doing so.

Tags: scalp burn, chemical burn, hot comb, hairloss, hair loss, chemical straightener, chemical damage

Revivogen’s Study

/by William Rassman, M.D./2 /

Dear doctor,

Please go through the clinical study URL given below. I want your comments on this:

Revivogen clinical trials

Regards

RevivogenAs the article says, the study was conducted on reconstructed tissue samples. In other words, the study was done in a petri dish (not on live humans), in order to “assess the effects of the test compound on the metabolism of testosterone in reconstructed human epidermis.” Nothing about growing hair, stopping hair loss, etc.

The study doesn’t show anything about actual hair loss treatment results on living humans, so if the Revivogen makers are using it as a sales point, I hope people actually take a moment to look at the study first and judge for themselves. I’d expect most consumers would want the treatment they purchased to actually have proof that it works as advertised on living people… not just in theory based on lab results. Also, the study was not peer-reviewed, which means it wasn’t checked for errors or reliability.

I’ve already made it clear about the hair loss treatments I’ll give a thumbs up to (FDA approved finasteride and minoxidil), but if you want to try unproven treatments then please, by all means, do so. Revivogen ingredients include saw palmetto and numerous vitamins in a topical treatment and they claim no side effects. While that could be true, if this was the magic bullet to hair loss treatment it would be universally recommended. Instead, the product is just another in a long line of “all natural” treatments that I wouldn’t expect to provide much help aside from lightening your wallet and dashing your hopes.

Tags: revivogen, clinical trial, study, hairloss, hair loss

Is Toppik Causing My Hair Loss to Speed Up?

/by William Rassman, M.D./3 /, ,

I have used the “cover-up” product, Toppik, for a couple of years with pretty good results. I have recently read — albeit online, so of course I am quite guarded in my reaction — that there is aluminum in this keratin fiber product which may actually clog pores and cause or speed up hair loss/miniaturization. While I have continued to thin in the front and temples where I use the product, I atrributed that to the progress of MPB, not this product. Do you have thoughts on this? Do you ever suggest these types of products, of course, in conjunction with other treatments (HT, finasteride, etc)?

Also, can one use a product like Toppik in the recipient and donor areas after an HT to camouflage the scabbing/markings until healing — particularly in FUE procedures?

Dr, thanks for providing this service. You are setting yourself far apart with this type of service to those with hair loss issues.

I also welcome other readers to post their thoughts if they have used Toppik or other similar products. Thank you.

ToppikTopical “cover-up” products like Toppik or DermMatch do not cause hair loss, nor would it cause an increase in loss. Male pattern hair loss is from genes. You’re using these products so it’s likely you’ve got genetic hair loss… and that loss is progressing.

Some patients use Toppik or DermMatch after a hair transplant surgery to cover the scabs during the healing process. When removing it, you must not scrub the scalp harshly or you can pull out your existing hair. You can use either of them in conjunction with finasteride.

If any reader would like to contribute information about personal experiences with these camoflauging agents, please feel free to post a comment…

Tags: dermmatch, toppik, hair loss, hairloss

My Aunt Got a Chemical Burn a Year Ago and Still Has a Bald Spot

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /, ,

Hi there it has been 1 year since my aunt has burnt my scalp with a relaxer it was red then healed but now there is a bald spot will my hair grow back and i am 14. what can i do to help it grow back? how fast will it grow? please help!

Honestly, I do not know. Your aunt’s hair may never grow back if the damage is significant and the burn went down to the root of the hair. If it was to grow back, I’d expect it might have grown back by now (since it’s been a year) or at least some regrowth should’ve occurred.

She should have the burned area examined by a dermatologist.

Tags: chemical burn, chemical relaxer, hairloss, hair loss, damage

Press Release – New Laser Cleared by FDA for Female Hair Loss

/by William Rassman, M.D./1 /,

Snippet from the press release:

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has just cleared a new laser proven to regrow hair in women. The FDA ruling was based on a study performed by Dr. Grant Koher which showed that low level laser light, specifically with a precise wavelength, provides a medically significant treatment for women’s hair loss. Dr. Koher is the first physician to conduct a study resulting in 510k FDA clearance for a medical device for the treatment of female pattern baldness.

Dr. Koher conducted a three phased medical study to confirm that females with androgenetic alopecia, when exposed to scheduled applications of low level laser light, would have a reduction in hair loss and promotion in hair growth. This study was conducted over 18 months with 82 qualified participants. Each participant was scheduled to receive 52 treatments of 20 minute duration, over a period of 26 weeks. All study procedures included clinical protocol, clinical tracking, and clinical analysis approved by the Western Institutional Review Board (WIRB).

LaserRead the full PR — New Laser Cleared by Food and Drug Administration for the Treatment of Female Pattern Hair Loss

The study that is referenced was done by Dr. Koher in North Carolina, but I can’t find any information about it outside of this press release (not even on the doctor’s website). He apparently presented the study, “Effect of Laser Biostimulation In The Treatment of Female Pattern Hair Loss“, at last year’s ISHRS (International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery) meeting, but I can’t find any evidence that it was published anywhere.

Note that it is not FDA approved, but it is “cleared”. When the FDA clears something like this technology, it means that it is safe… not necessarily effective. For more information on 510(k) clearance, see here.

Tags: fda, female hair loss, hair loss, hairloss, lllt, laser, hair laser

Rogaine Worked Great but I Stopped Due to Loss of Libido

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

Hey thanks for your time. I had been using rogaine 5% solution for about 2 years. I only used it once a day.. but I used a lot more than the recommended dosage(all over my head). I have had a lot of regrowth even on the hair line. I quit using rogaine about a month ago due to face bloating and loss of libido.

I started taking procerin about a week after I quit using rogaine and I started using nioxin about 2 weeks ago. I am still experience a lot of regrowth. I even buzzed my hair the other day and I still see slow improvement like always. Do you think it is my new regimen? or is it still the rogaine that is causing my hair to still improve?

People attribute all sorts of problems to specific medications, but I doubt the Rogaine (minoxidil) caused the libido effects. You used the medication for 2 years before you saw any issues, so it is strange that you’d suddenly develop a loss of libido.

I would’ve tried using less of the Rogaine (or in your case, just using the recommended dosage) before stopping it completely, but that was your call to make. I don’t know what to attribute your continued hair improvement to, but if you only stopped Rogaine a month ago you’ll likely see the benefits disappear over the next few months. Those new products you’re using won’t maintain what Rogaine regrew, since they don’t contain minoxidil.

Procerin’s main ingredient is saw palmetto which is a popular yet unproven hair loss treatment, but Nioxin is definitely not something I’d recommend if you’re serious about treating your hair loss.

Tags: rogaine, minoxidil, procerin, saw palmetto, hairloss, hair loss, nioxin, shampoo

Shampoo for Thinning Hair?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

What is the best shampoo for thinning hair ?

I saw this shampoo called Nano on the internet which is made by a doctor ,what do you think about it ? Thank you for your time !

Just because its made or promoted by a doctor doesn’t mean it’s going to work.

There are no shampoos that are proven to regrow hair, but some suggest Nizoral (ketoconazole) works for some men. I’m not recommending everyone run out and by Nizoral to treat hair loss, and to be honest, I’m skeptical that it even works. There aren’t proper studies that show ketoconazole is good for hair regrowth, though it is a good anti-fungal shampoo. With that said, I suppose it’s worth a shot if you’re only considering using shampoo to treat your hair loss (which is a bad idea).

The best way to go about this is to talk to a doctor about Propecia, which is a proven treatment for hair loss and is just one pill daily.

Tags: shampoo, hairloss, hair loss, nizoral, ketoconazole