Things to get tested for because of hair loss

[misterE]

SHBG and IGFBP-3 are the most important markers of baldness.

The pathology of baldness is the same as acne. Free-IGF-1 increases the proliferation of keratinocytes. The Keratinocytes mature into corneocytes and are then supposed to be shed off. The sloughing off of the corneocytes is promoted by IGFBP-3 (a hormone which induces apoptosis; cell death) and retinoids (which are found in vegetables). However in cases of acne and baldness, free-IGF-1 is increased and IGFBP-3 is decreased, the result is hyperkeratinization, or skin-cells blocking or capping the hair-follicles, preventing the hair from sprouting out of the scalp.

Also when free-IGF-1 is increased, SHBG is decreased. Free-IGF-1 is the main regulator of SHBG and has been consistently shown to be inversely related to SHBG in the scientific-literature. SHBG binds to testosterone and prevents it from converting to DHT. DHT stimulates the production of sebum from the sebaceous-glands. When the hair-follicle is blocked by excess skin, the sebum accumulates beneath the skin giving rise to P.Acnes; a fungus that eats the sebum and generates inflammation.

So to recap:

Excess free-IGF-1 stimulates excess skin production. The excess skin blocks the hair-follicle. Low levels of SHBG allow testosterone to convert into DHT. DHT stimulates sebum production. Sebum trapped beneath the excess skin, feeds and breeds P.Acnes, which your body attacks using inflammation. This is the pathology of both acne and baldness.

The McDougall-diet, especially the McDougall-diet-for-maximum-weight-loss (which I consider the optimal-diet) is the best way to increase both SHBG and IGFBP-3 (along with exercise, fasting and sunshine), which will stop the progression of baldness hormonally. However in order to reverse baldness and get the hair back again, you must remove the huge amounts of dead skin cells that have accumulated on the scalp over time. The most effective way I have found to do this, is with Alpha-hydroxy-acids used topically, along with brushing the scalp with a nylon-bristle-brush.

[simoncat]

Mr. E., thank you for your explanation. I have also found that combing my hair and putting lavender oil on it has helped. I now believe I have new growth coming in. I know this diet as well as not having much sugar (if at all) and no gluten, has really healed me. I also take a good quality vitamin. I can thank Dr. M. for this too and if people would only believe what the "China Study" says as well as "Forks Over Knives", they would realize, good food is the answer.

[GeoffreyLevens]

And here I thought there were a number of mechanisms that can cause baldness or loss of hair...

[simoncat]

And here I thought there were a number of mechanisms that can cause baldness or loss of hair...

Geoffrey, I wasn't referring to "male-pattern baldness", but baldness caused by disease (not stress), such as hypothyroidism, which is very common especially among women.

[MmmCarbs]

Biotin deficiency can cause hair loss. People consuming a vegan diet may have trouble getting enough without supplementation or fortified foods.
Here is a link if you want to read about it.

http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/vitamins/biotin/

I read this article and it reassured me that I don't need to worry about biotin or take supplements for any reason. It says biotin deficiency symptoms are only seen in cases of prolonged IV feeding or prolonged (many weeks to years) consumption of raw egg whites. It also says there is no evidence that supplementing biotin helps hair loss.

[MmmCarbs]

SHBG and IGFBP-3 are the most important markers of baldness.

I thought I was pretty familiar with the theories about hair loss but I'd never heard of this one at all. I tried googling "shbg hair" and found these results
- #1 is an article on a site dedicated to selling baldness remedies. The article has some verbage that appears copied from abstracts of medical publications, yet the usual identifying information for scientific articles (journal names and dates) is missing
- #2 and #4 go to misterE posting about this theory on hair loss forums.
- #3 goes to one line in the wikipedia article on Androgenetic alopecia, in the hormonal factors section. This line is the only line in that section that has no references.
- a boatload of more threads on hair loss forums tossing this idea around.

I then tried a pubmed search on the same phrase.
- First study is on only 37 men and says the frequency of subnormal SHBG is high in the balding men. Hmm. Ok let's go to 2nd study
- Bigger study--51 men. But it found that the men with higher SHBG are less likely to have dense chest hair. Seems to contradict the idea that SHBG helps hair.

At this point I concluded this theory has amazing life on hair loss forums, and little to no existence outside them.

[GeoffreyLevens]

Geoffrey, I wasn't referring to "male-pattern baldness", but baldness caused by disease (not stress), such as hypothyroidism, which is very common especially among women... ...in cases of acne and baldness, free-IGF-1 is increased and IGFBP-3 is decreased...

...However in cases of acne and baldness, free-IGF-1 is increased...

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9689829

Thyroid hormones are involved in the regulation of the GH/IGF axis. Hypothyroidism is associated with a reduction in GH pulsatility and in GH-response to stimulatory tests. In hypothyroidism, serum levels of IGF-I and IGFBP-3 fall and these changes are reserved after short-term replacement with L-T4.

[simoncat]

I'm so glad I found this thread. I have been suffering from hair loss and I didn't think it was this serious. I thought it was just cause by a wrong brand of shampoo but there's more it that I didn't know until now. I think I'll try having this check by a physician if it is this serious and maybe try taking those supplements and change my diet too.

dcheng, please see the 2 books that I posted about on page 1 of this. They will really help you as well as doing this diet. I found doctors and naturopaths did not help me. I found that I cannot eat dairy, meat, eggs, soy and gluten. You may find you have other food issues, but I think these are the most common allergens. Corn is one too, but I find I can eat it. Everyone is different, but give this a try. All doctors can do is give you drugs and topical creams that don't really help. But don't wait too long, or you can't reverse the problem. Other people at this site have skin problems as well and have seen them go away with the diet.