Findings were made using a human organ model, a living human tissue interaction system under physiologically relevant in situ conditions as normal skin and hair would normally be. When irradiated with UVB light, one of two common types of Ultra Violet light, reduction of the hair shaft elongation, premature catagen entry and reduced hair matrix keratinocyte proliferation were the major damages observed.

Also, if using low or high amounts of radiation, apoptotic cell death and necrotic cell death either prevailed or was a completely dominant effect. Both university investigators concluded that UVR does play an intricate role in modifying hair growth and cycle, can promote cell death and encourages regulatory events in human hair follicles in vitro. This data collected from the human organ model encourages its use for general investigation of UV-induced effects as well as for testing possible agents for their UV-protective agents.

We at our Orange County Hair Transplant Clinic follow a strict no sun exposure policy for 6 months after hair transplant surgery for all our patients. We highly recommend to all our patients and visitors to also practice sun block application or minimize overexposure to the sun on unprotected parts of their body and scalp area. These findings have made it clear that UVR is a damaging natural occurrence and urge our patients to take precautionary steps to further prevent hair loss.

Saw Palmetto also known as Serenoa repens is a topical palm like small plant mostly found in North America. Extract derived from fruits or berries of saw palmetto as well as the whole berry itself is highly enriched with fatty acids (lauric acid, lauric acid, oleic acid, myristic acid, and palmitic acid), polysaccharides) and phytosterols(plant sterols. It’s extract is widely sold as an aphrodisiac for men and women. An aphrodisiac is an agent which is used in the belief that it increases sexual desire.

Uses of Saw Palmetto

Saw palmetto has also been used in treatment of a wide range of conditions including treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) a condition marked by enlarged prostrate, other urinary tract problems, skin conditions, thyroid defeciences, genital, impotence, hormonal imbalance, bladder inflammation etc. Among other advantages it can also be taken to revitalize skin, improve urinary flow in men, breast enlargement in women and clear chest congestion caused due to cough, asthma and bronchitis.

Role of Saw Palmetto in hair loss prevention

Lately it has been widely accepted as a very effective herbal treatment to reverse hair loss and treat conditions like alopecia. It is considered to be one of the best organin hair loss treatment available today. Scientific evidence suggests that Saw Palmetto bio active ingredients prevent conversion of testosterone into DHT and additionally prevents DHT from binding to androgen receptors hence helping control male hair loss . DHT In order to under the role of saw palmetto in preventing hair fall due to its essential to understand the root cause.

It thus helps revive hair follicles, improve hair strength, body and shine, make scalp less sensitive to stress and irritation. So if you are looking for safe products for hair loss Saw Palmetto is one option you should consider first. Although it is not known to help sudden hair shedding but if taken over a period of time it certainly would help prevent alopecia and atleast prolong a condition where a lot of people may go for surgical option such as transplant for restoration of their crown. Taking it alongside some essential vitamins and minerals would help further.

Is there any side effect associated to the use of Saw Palmetto?

There is no known or documented side effect associated with the use of Saw Palmetto both externally and internally.

However, if you have any concerns its always best to consult your physician.

How is Saw Palmetto used?

Internally:

Recommended dosage for Saw Palmetto is between160 mg/day to 320 mg/day if taken orally.

Externally:

Saw Palmetto can be purchased as an oil extract or as an ointment which can be gently massaged into the hair roots. Since it’s components are lipophilic in nature they are well extracted into the oil base, and are easily absorbed by the skin, therefore providing a more productive treatment. If applied before hair wash, let at least half an hour (better 1-2 hours) to absorb. For better absorption warm up in warm water or microwave (5 – 10 sec) before the application. Preferably, it should be applied at night before you go to sleep and left overnight which leads to best results due to better absorption.

Back in May 2005 I got my hair permed. It didn’t look good and it was bad for my hair so I’ve been letting it grow out. I recently got tired of having to straighten it or go out with ugly looking curls so I cut about 6 or 7 inches off and my hair is now around my shoulders. I just got an extra inch cut off a couple of weeks ago and I’ve noticed that I have some split ends. I only straighten my hair once a week and usually I let it air dry. But I’ve also heard that you shouldn’t wash it everyday. My problem is that my hair is very fine and can be oily and if I don’t wash my hair everyday it looks very greasy. Does anyone have advice on how to stop my hair from looking greasy the second day, or products I could use? Thanks.

They applied 85% ethanol extract of S. Nigra (Schisandra Nigra) to rat vibrissa follicles. The most common effect was vibrissa follicles showed a significant increase in hair fiber length as well as the induction of the hair shaft’s anagen (growth phase) progression. The expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen in the bulb matrix region as well as the proliferation of immortalized vibrissa dermal papilla cells also increased with signs of more activity in the hair follicle cells when S. Nigra EtOH (ethanol) extract was applied.

Researchers examined S. Nigra’s relationship with the TGF-beta2 complex to help determine what mechanism helps induce hair growth. TGF-beta2 is a signal pathway known to regulate catagen induction of the phase that begins when the hair’s growth cycle ends.

After applying S. Nigra to rat hair for 7 days, the results show that the expression of TGF-beta2 was significantly lower in the bulb matrix region in comparison to that of the control follicles expected to be in the anagen-catagen phase. The results suggest that S. Nigra extract potentially promotes hair growth through down regulation of TGF-beta2 and the proliferation of dermal papilla.

In simpler terms, the S. Nigra plant extract stops hair follicles from going into their resting phase. With hair follicles not going into their resting phase, more hair will be seen at the same time. These findings only apply to rat hair at the moment and have not been confirmed to be effective on human hair growth.

We currently do not recommend the use of herbal hair loss products for treatment of male or female patterned hair loss due to the lack of substantial evidence of their effectiveness. We will, however, continue to review and monitor any new findings or updates made around the world and keep our readers up-to-date on their hair restoration questions and needs.

This topic can also be read on http://ushairrestoration.com/blog keyword HERBAL