Hair Foundation Blog

In an interesting New York Times article, Dr. Angela Christiano brings a different perspective to alopecia. She studies it professionally (she’s an associate professor of dermatology and genetics at Columbia University Medical Center) and she is living with it.

Christiano discovered she had the condition 15 years ago after her hairdresser noticed a large bald spot in the back of her head. She immediately went to the clinic at Columbia University and learned about her condition: alopecia.

Through the years Christiano had learned the condition is genetic; there was minimal research on it and the time was right to conduct research. In 2008, she conducted a DNA study of 1,000 alopecia patients and released its findings in July. Among them, Christiano said that alopecia is linked to rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes 1 and celiac disease not the stepchild of psoriasis or vitiligo as many initially thought.

Here’s a link to the article. In addition, the Web page has additional articles on hair loss on its left side.

There’s been a lot of articles and conversations about how frequently women should wash their hair. As we age, our hair becomes dry and dull. Winter weather and over styling doesn’t help our hair either. One way to combat that is to wash hair less frequently. 

Sound like a challenge? Well, help is on the way for those in-between days: use dry shampoo. 

Back in the day, Pssst Instant Dry Shampoo was the only one in the market (yes, it’s still available at your nearby drugstore) for dry shampoo, but now there’s more and affordable ones in the marketplace to choose from.

Recently, Redbook Magazine reviewed a small selection. Here’s their recommendations:

• Oscar Blandi Pronto Invisible Volumizing Dry Shampoo Spray ($23) – A clear spray, this thickens hair between washings.

• René Furterer Dry Shampoo ($24) – This root and hair spray absorbs scalp oil. It also gives hair shine and keeps the scalp itch-free.

• Ojon Rub-Out Dry Cleansing Powder ($24) – Soapbark and conditioning Ojon oil are combined, enabling powder to disappear into the scalp and add shine to hair.

• TRESemmé Fresh Start Waterless Foam Shampoo ($5) – A mousse created for curly hair, this controls oil with witch hazel and adds the bounce back to curls. 

While not included in Redbook’s review,  TRESemmé has a sister product that is also good between hair washings:  TRESemmé Refreshing Mist. This can be used to add shine and maintain odors. 

So next time you doubt you can go a few days between hair washings, try a dry shampoo. I think you’ll be convinced it can be done. Your hairdresser will agree!

With just a few days left for holiday shopping, here’s a few ideas for great hair care gifts.

Named in Oprah’s Ultimate Favorite Things 2010, Oprah loves Andre Walker Hair Care products.  Walker has been Oprah’s hairdresser for many years and she credits her healthy hair to his care and products. This season, there’s a $65 ultimate gift set that includes keratin shampoo, keratin conditioner, shine-enhancing Q-oil and root-covering hair makeup.

ALLURE’s top 10 New Beauty Products of 2010 includes the Remington Style Therapy Frizz Therapy flatiron. What’s unique about this flatiron is the plates have a porous ceramic coating that produces a silicone-based conditioner. This coats hair strands touched by the plate, protecting hair and controlling frizz. In product testing, users found that the iron diminished frizz 65 percent more effectively than a traditional ceramic iron and kept hair straight for up to 15 hours.

This flatiron can be found at Target for $47.49.

For the traveler on your gift list, why not buy them the Bumble and Bumble Live Fully Travel Bag? The travel-size trio includes Thickening Shampoo and Conditioner that moisturizes and protects hair from winter weather while adding volume. The Thickening Hairspray gives hair weightless body while styling. 

The set runs for $24.  

Want a few more ideas? ALLURE, Real Beauty and Skincare news.com all have great hair care gift ideas.

According to a  new study by Roland Lauster, a professor at the Berlin Technical University in Berlin, Germany, he’s been able to regrow hair follicles from stem cells. Researchers are alleging that cells may be implanted onto the scalp and dead follicles can be rejuvenated. 

Unfortunately for interested parties, you’re going to have to wait. Lauster conducted studies on mice and believes that humans will have this opportunity in maybe five years. He thinks this baldness cure could help as many as 80 percent of the people who suffer from hair loss.

This isn’t the first time these findings have come to light. In an article by Fox News, it states that the University of Pennsylvania found similar findings in 2004 but it didn’t produce a cure for baldness.

In an online article in Good Housekeeping, Hair Foundation’s board of trustee Zoe Diana Draelos, M.D. and clinical associate professor of dermatology at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, offers some tips for women with thinning hair.

Draelos explains that as we age, our once thick ponytail begins to look thinner because ”the diameter of the hair shaft diminishes as we get older.” There’s no need to panic that you’re going to have hair loss but our hair grows more slowly and thins as we age. 

Our thinner hair now makes us look like we have less hair volume. 

By menopause, around 40 percent of women will experience hair loss. If you see yourself losing more than the common 100 strands a day, it could be a problem such as declining estrogen levels, stress or an iron deficiency.

So what are some easy things you can do to boost your hair’s volume? Here’s a few tips from Dr. Draelos as noted in the article:

• Use a volumizing shampoo with rice or wheat proteins
• Stop using stiff, maximum-hold hairsprays
• Avoid too-tight ponytails
• Disguise sparse areas with CRC Concealing Color
• When doing touch-ups at home, keep the dye close to your roots 

Over 50 and noticing changes in your hair? Dryness? Lack of shine? Don’t despair, here’s a few easy tips to make your hair look young again. 

• Change your hair routine. Get rid of your blow dryer and get a good haircut that will enhance your hair’s natural texture and shape. By your 50s, your hair has had enough damage from the sun, hair dryers, perms and highlights, so authenticate your hair.
• Use shampoo only once a week (without sulfates). Remember how your mother and grandmother went to the beauty shop once a week to get their hair washed? They were definitely onto something.
• On the days you don’t use shampoo, just water and conditioner is fine. 
• Color your hair? Why not consider highlights or lowlights instead of single processing? Or you can really go natural and let some gray come in. 

Over time with these simple adjustments, the health of your hair will improve and your hair will go back to where it was meant to be. 

These hair tips along with additional ones about beauty and life in your 50s, can be found in the article, “Over 50? Here’s 10 Things to Do for Your Beauty and Health”  by Barbara Hannah Grufferman.

In a recent test by the Good Housekeeping Research Institute, female volunteers between the ages of 40 and 60 tried out five new anti-aging hair products. Two products emerged as the favorites:  L’Oréal Professionnel Série Expert Age Densiforce Shampoo ($20, us.lorealprofessionnel.com) and Masque ($30). According to the testers, the products left hair soft and included the moisture-plus-body promise.

Looking for a less expensive alternative? Testers also liked Dove Pro-Age Shampoo and Conditioner ($6 each, products may be found at drugstores).

Are there any anti-aging hair products that you can recommend?