Hair Loss Treatments

Hair Loss Treatments

The desire to avoid hair loss is not confined to our time. In ancient Egypt, men used to rub fat from crocodiles, snakes, lions, and other animals on their head in hopes of preventing or treating hair loss. Julius Caesar and Napoleon also experienced hair loss and tried to conceal it by growing their hair long in the back and combing it forward over their heads. Today, this motivation to avoid balding is still evident.

There are many available hair loss remedies that include creams, vitamins, hormones, wigs, hairpieces, hair transplants, and scalp-reduction procedures. A report filed recently by the FDA stated that in a nine year time-span, about 300,000 hair loss treatment products claiming to help hair regrowth were investigated.

Non-surgical treatment options also include hair additions such as hair weaves, hairpieces and toupees. These devices are made of human hair, synthetic fibers or a combination of both. Constructed in a variety of ways, these hair loss aides can give you the look of having a full, natural head of hair without the expense of costly surgeries or expensive medicines.

If typical hair loss treatment products aimed to slow down or stop hair loss are ineffective and you have the time and money, there are surgical treatments for hair-loss. Hair transplant surgery is costly and sometimes painful. During surgery, healthy hair follicles are taken from the back and sides of the head and transplanted onto other areas of the scalp where they replace dead follicles. This treatment option typically takes from one to two years to be complete and can have mixed results. It is best to talk to and meet people treated by the doctor you are seeing so you can be sure the results are similar to your expectations before going through with the treatment. 

A Look at Hair Loss Remedies

A Look at Hair Loss Remedies

Hair loss causes a great deal of stress and anxiety. In society, one of the factors other people judge us by is our looks, which includes our hair. Hair loss, therefore, can have an enormous impact on self-perception, self-esteem, and social life. Although there is no cure for excessive hair loss caused by male or female pattern hair loss, there are a variety of hair loss remedies available for people suffering from hair loss.

One hair loss remedy is simply to learn to live with it. It is, after all, a common, normal process that many go through much like acne. Talking to a counselor may help you cope with any self-esteem issues you may face as the result of hair loss.

Many people that suffer from hair loss find that one good remedy can be found in hair styling and cosmetic techniques. Hair coloring, waves, and haircuts alone can make a big difference in the way you look and feel, making hair loss much less apparent.

Rogaine, the FDA approved topical treatment for female and male pattern hair loss, is a popular hair loss remedy. Though not always effective in promoting new hair growth, if used regularly, Rogaine can be effective in slowing or even stopping hair loss.

Hair attachments are another option in the search for an effective hair loss remedy. Made out of human hair and synthetic fibers, these attachments give the appearance of a fuller head of hair. They are kept on by being anchored to the existing hair, skin, or grafted on through surgical techniques.

Lastly, a hair loss remedy that can be effective but costly is hair transplant or replacement surgery. With improving results and procedures, this surgical procedure takes healthy follicles and distributes them over other areas of the scalp affected by baldness. 

Where to Find Wholesale Hair Extensions

Where to Find Wholesale Hair Extensions

Many people turn to hair extensions to change their looks and, in turn, to change their lives. This makes for big business for cosmetologists trained in hair extension application. Unfortunately, hair extensions can be expensive. Retail prices of hair extensions make them cost-prohibitive for most salons and hairdressers. Luckily, wholesale hair extensions are available for professional hairdressers. The following is a partial list of companies offering hair extensions and supplies at wholesale prices.

Sexy Hair Extensions
Sells wholesale supplies and extensions to hairdressers. For example, they sell pre-bonded 14- or 18-inch extensions in bundles of 100 strands for $147.

Roman Hair
Offers 100-percent Remy Indian hair extensions. They offer wholesale hair extensions to resellers and salons.

Hairpiece
This site offers a large variety of hair extension products, such as synthetic hair, extension kits, tubing, clip-ons, wefts, and fusion equipment. To qualify for their wholesale pricing, you must fill out a resale registration form, available on their website. The first order must be at least $2,000 to qualify for discounts.

Hair Replacement Centers
Hair Replacement Centers helps people with hair loss or balding. However, they offer an assortment of European hair extensions from such vendors as Jose Eber, Raquel Welch, Ren of Paris, Revlon, Look of Love, Flawless, and Graffiti. They offer discounts on orders of over 10 sets. They also offer a business opportunity for people interested in opening a Hair Replacement Center. Additionally, they give a discount of 70-percent for Internet orders.

For other wholesale hair extensions, you can check industry books. Hairdresser or cosmetologist trade magazines offer ads for hair extensions. You can also do a search on a search engine for “wholesale hair extensions.” Many of these companies will require proof that you are a professional hairdresser, while some are willing to extend wholesale prices to the public with a minimum purchase. 

A Look at Snoring Treatments

A Look at Snoring Treatments

If your own efforts to stop snoring do not help, consult your physician or an otolaryngologist -- or a doctor for the ear, nose, and throat. If you choose to try a dental appliance as a snoring treatment, you will need to see a dentist specializing in these devices. Some medical snoring treatments are continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), oral devices (including dental appliances and lower jaw positioners), and surgery.

Continuous Positive Airway Pressure consists of sleeping with an air mask to maintain continuous air pressure in the throat. CPAP is a treatment for sleep apnea, as well as for snoring.

A wide range of dental appliances, oral devices, and lower jaw adjusters are available to alleviate snoring. Some people experience significant improvement with these oral appliances, which bring the lower jaw forward during sleep. Most of the products fit inside the mouth, but some products on the market are worn around the head and chin to adjust the position of the lower jaw.

As far as surgery goes, Thermal Ablation Palatoplasty (TAP) treats snoring and various types of Obstructive Sleep Apnea. The types of TAP include: laser-assisted uvula palatoplasty (LAUP) and radiofrequency ablation (or “somnoplasty”). Laser-assisted uvula palatoplasty (LAUP) vaporizes the uvula and a portion of the palate with a laser in the doctor's office under local anesthesia. LAUP effectively removes obstructions to the airway, which may be causing snoring or sleep apnea.

Laser-Assisted Uvula Palatoplasty has a higher success rate than Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty for sleep apnea (UPPP), but it requires a surgeon with expertise in laser procedures. Radiofrequency ablation, or somnoplasty, shrinks excess tissue in the upper airway with a needle electrode. For snoring, the soft palate and uvula are reduced. For Obstructive Sleep Apnea, the base of the tongue is reduced. For chronic nasal obstruction, nasal turbinates are reduced. Somnoplasty does not require general anesthesia.

According to many experts, while other snoring treatments may help in cases of milder snoring problems, for heavy snoring, surgically correcting obstructive conditions in the nose, pharynx, or uvula may be the only solution. 

An Introduction to Snoring

An Introduction to Snoring

Someone who snores can often become the butt of jokes. But jokes aside, snoring is no laughing matter. Nearly 90 million Americans snore, most of them men, and very often snoring affects those over the age of 60.

A recent survey found that snoring is the cause of one in seven domestic disputes, and 95 percent of those questioned say they are woken by their partner's heavy snoring at least once a week, with 39 percent being woken up every night! Another poll revealed that 80 percent of couples end up sleeping in different rooms, all because one partner can no longer tolerate sleeping next to someone that sounds like a landing strip. Besides the social ramifications of snoring, it can also have serious health effects.

Snoring consists of noisy breathing through the mouth or nose during sleep. If you are a quiet sleeper, air passes from your nose and throat to your lungs silently and unhindered. However, for millions of others, something disrupts the flow of air. Maybe it's a blocked nose; perhaps the base of the tongue is restricting breathing. More commonly, it's the soft tissue in your upper palate or throat that gets in the way and starts vibrating.

The reasons for snoring are many. They include poor muscle tone in the tongue and throat, sometimes due to alcohol or drugs; weight gain -- extra weight around the neck can lead to snoring; colds -- having a stuffy noses means you're likely to snore; and some kind of obstruction, such as a polyp, cyst or even enlarged tonsils.

How can one stop snoring? There is no universal answer, but there are hundreds of potential solutions that may help you. There are numerous fixes for snoring, from folk traditions to home remedies and over-the-counter medications, to what might be called a face-lift for your throat. Most methods attempt to open the compressed airway, either by tightening the collapsing tissue or preventing the obstruction. 

Why You Should Stop Snoring

Why You Should Stop Snoring

If you or your sleeping partner snores, you may think of snoring as merely an irritant. But, snoring can have serious social and health consequences. So, there is every reason why one should attempt to stop snoring.

Snoring can cause severe problems in relationships because of the disrupted sleep of the sleeping partner. Research shows that sleep partners of people who snore heavily are wakened over 20 times per hour, which severely cuts into the quality and quantity of their sleep.

Many partners of those who snore decide to sleep in separate rooms, and relationships become strained. The resulting lack of bedtime chatting and physical intimacy can lead to the end of a relationship. Snoring leads to no one wanting to sleep with the person who snores, and in turn the he or she can become isolated. The social ramifications are enough for snorers to search for ways to stop.

In addition to problems stemming from sleep deprivation, snoring can cause more serious health effects. Snoring is often a symptom of obstructive Sleep Apnea, a sleep disorder that is potentially life-threatening. As you get older, and put on weight and lose muscle tone, your snoring can lead to periods of not breathing at night, which is sleep apnea.

Apnea sufferers are often diagnosed as depressed, when really they are simply exhausted and cannot function properly. Sleep apnea raises your blood pressure, reduces the flow of oxygen to your brain and can lead to stroke, heart attack and death. Research also shows that snoring is not only a symptom of apnea, but can actually cause it.

Other studies indicate that snoring may also lead to diabetes. The theory is that snoring reduces your intake of oxygen, triggering your body to produce more catecholamines, which in turn may lead to insulin resistance, a known precursor of diabetes. The evidence is piling up that even those who snore, but are not bothersome to others should be treated.
 

A Review of Recommended Snoring Cures

A Review of Recommended Snoring Cures

There are probably as many cures for snoring as there are people complaining about someone snoring. Over 300 anti-snoring devices and cures have been registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Offices. They include the familiar remedy -– a tennis ball in a sock sewed on the back of your pajamas, which supposedly keeps you from rolling over on your back and snoring. Sticky strips to hold your nostrils open, mouthwashes and nasal sprays are other commonly advised cures.

Snoring cures recommended include avoiding alcoholic beverages, tranquilizers, sleeping pills, and antihistamines before retiring. Exercising the throat, the tongue, and the jaw muscles so that the breathing passage widens and stays open while sleeping is also recommended. Sleeping prone, on one's side or raising the head of the bed may also help.

The various devices promoted as snoring cures usually work well only in mild cases and do not relieve sleep apnea. Nasal infections and allergies should be treated. A Continuous Positive Airway Pressure machine, also known as a CPAP mask is a device you wear on the nose while sleeping to decrease snoring and sleep apnea. Dental appliances can also be used to prevent the tongue from falling back. For heavy snoring, surgically correcting obstructive conditions in the nose, pharynx, or uvula by laser-assisted uvulopalatoplasty may be the only solution.

In order to know which snoring cure is right for you, an interview with the doctor, and possibly an interview with your spouse or anyone else in the household who has tolerated your snoring, is usually enough for a diagnosis of the severity of snoring. A medical history, which includes questions about alcohol or tranquilizer use; past ear, nose, and throat problems; and the pattern and degree of snoring will be completed and a physical examination will then be performed to determine the cause of the problem. Thereafter, a snoring cure is recommended.