Hair is not Life but it's Pretty Damn Close; HRT and Pictorial Posts Prove it.

[JaneyElizabeth]

Is Beta sitosterol does increase or decrease the DHT and Test
So, if I understand well, the Beta sitosterol act as aromatase in the Body, which increase the conversion of T to Ostrogen is that statement right ?
Also, if we compare Beta sitosterol and Saw Palmetto, do they have the same mechanism of action. Is taking Saw Palmetto will make the Beta action obsolete?

Thanks

As I look through the variety of substances mentioned, it is interesting to see where hyperlinks take me:

Cholesterol - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sebaceous_gland

One thing that we haven't mentioned much is this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azelaic_acid

I continue to believe that this creature is substantially involved in some forms of hair loss and certainly inflammation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malassezia_furfur

The Globosa might be even more involved, although the wiki pages are not very in depth, possibly due to the difficulties in culturing theses yeasts:

Malassezia - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Seborrhoeic dermatitis - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Phytosterol - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Rosacea - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[partysnacks]

I continue to believe that this creature is substantially involved in some forms of hair loss and certainly inflammation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malassezia_furfur

It does indeed seem like it plays a role in aggravating Androgenetic Alopecia: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31240449/

 

[Norwoody]

My hair loss was exacerbated by not washing it enough. At one point I was washing it every 1-2 weeks (shampoo). You end up deceiving yourself that it's helping with your hair loss because you don't shed as much when you don't shampoo. That's what happens when you listen to BS hippie articles on the net that tell you washing it is causing baldness lol. My scalp was so inflamed and constantly itching 24/7 back then. My scalp and hair was healthiest before then, when I shampooed it once or even twice a day. I probably would have maintained my NW1 status if I never went down that road of neglecting it. I remember the first time I started shampooing daily again, I scrubbed my scalp with a brush in the shower as I poured Nizoral all over my scalp and it STUNG like crazy. But in a good way. I definitely had some kind of bacterial infestation.

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

It does indeed seem like it plays a role in aggravating Androgenetic Alopecia: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31240449/

Thank you for this. As I have previously mentioned, polysorbates, as emulsifiers, might dissolve waxy deposits of sebum, clearing them from the scalp. By robbing the fungi of their food source, PS's might lower colony infestation. This might drastically lower the waste by-products left on scalp tissue and reduce inflammation, and perhaps, leading to maintenance more so than regrowth.

One thing about my massive shed to all but complete horse-shoe status that intrigues me is whether such sheds might be cataclysmic for XY's not receiving HRT, meaning that recovery from such sheds might be far more difficult to effectuate without estrogens. Somehow this aspect combines to perhaps cause greater disruption of the dermal papillaries making shedding much more pernicious than it might be otherwise.

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

My hair loss was exacerbated by not washing it enough. At one point I was washing it every 1-2 weeks (shampoo). You end up deceiving yourself that it's helping with your hair loss because you don't shed as much when you don't shampoo. That's what happens when you listen to BS hippie articles on the net that tell you washing it is causing baldness lol. My scalp was so inflamed and constantly itching 24/7 back then. My scalp and hair was healthiest before then, when I shampooed it once or even twice a day. I probably would have maintained my NW1 status if I never went down that road of neglecting it. I remember the first time I started shampooing daily again, I scrubbed my scalp with a brush in the shower as I poured Nizoral all over my scalp and it STUNG like crazy. But in a good way. I definitely had some kind of bacterial infestation.

Although the fungals seem more often implicated, bacteria probably also play a role.

Hippies on the net, like @bridgeburn? He didn't wash his hair at all after HRT and I am washing progressively less. Keto seems to be exceedingly harsh now to me and after washing with keto without a conditioner, my hair looks much more dull and lifeless.

It does seem clear to me that washing is far less needed by me now in a female scalp hair context. The alcohol in Estrogel also seems to clean the hair when combed through and brushed shortly after application. A couple of times, I have woken up fearing a shed but after applying the estrogel, the hair appears thicker again without whatever build-up had been previously present.

I also use smaller amounts of topical minoxidil which contains alcohol as well. I think that pretty much all XY's not using hormonal treatments probably can't wash their hair too often, albeit be gentle in massaging and particularly toweling off. Try to wait until the hair is dry before combing. Up to the recent past, sulfur, tar and aspirin-based shampoos, and now keto-based ones, might have been the only thing that worked, even minimally to curtail hair loss. When polysorbates were more widely used, a separate shampoo seemed somewhat superfluous. New Generation included one that foamed minimally and they recommended using an amount about the size of a dime or thumbnail. The Helsinki Formula, at least when I used it, came without any shampoo at all.

Many of us probably remember that pre-puberty, one bath a week seemed fine for cleaning the body and scalp as pre-pubescents often lack body odor. My hair rarely appeared dirty back then.

I continue to admire the high level of knowledge and helpful discourse on here. To me, all of this is thrilling stuff. One might argue that eradicating androgenic baldness is a psychological treatment that could greatly increase the health and welfare and life outcomes of all XY's, and as we have all noted, particularly among whites, Jews and Arabs for whom pre-mature baldness and balding in general is endemic.

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

Question related to Estrogel Protocol:

Janey,

Sorry if you've mentioned this before but what is your protocol with e-gel: how much, how ofter, body part applied.
I've had moderate success with it over the last 2 years but it greatly increases my estrone levels.

My protocol is pretty much based upon trial and error. As part of the answer, let me try to elucidate first the variety of issues involved. I am not a scientist so all of the normal cautionary advice applies:

I continue to believe that using estrogens on the scalp is more effective for hair loss and hair recovery than using only non-topical estrogen applications. I have very little data-wise to support this however as I have been working at this since October of 2013 and I have used oral estrogen, at times oral spironolactone, and at times oral estrogen with topical estrogen. Studies that are systematic appear to be rare in terms of evaluating what takes place.

Topicals and other ingestion methods can be strange regardless of the medication. First of all terminology, similar to that involving the AA's, is often not rigid in terms of differentiating trans-dermal as a term from topical. Sometimes topicals seem more or much more effective; sometimes they appear equally effective and other times, either less effective or not effective at all.

There continues to be a debate over topical spironolactone. The better view from my reading of what is asserted is that topical spironolactone is unlikely to be very effective for hair loss and its efficacy is often obscured because it is used jointly with either estrogen or minoxidil or other anti-androgenic substances. Dr. Lee continues to work on topical spironolactone and continues to tout it but there seems to be increasingly less interest or excitement about topical spironolactone or azelaic acid, another thing that he has promoted the use of topically. Someone on another thread that I would have to look for, has noted that like minoxidil, spironolactone is hampered in terms of being processed in the scalp, as opposed to the liver.

We obviously know that topicals for hair and facial treatment are widely used. Among them are the retinoids, medications aimed at dermatitis and dandruff, acne treatments, minoxidil and many others. Topicals obviously work. Issues involve whether they work better than oral ingestion methods, their side effects as topicals or oral meds, cost and ease of use.

Many FtM's use topicals on their genitalia and recent studies indicate that estrogens and androgens appear to be far more efficient in terms of achieving higher blood serum levels when used upon male and female genital tissue. The absorption increase in this context, might also account for FtM's seeking virulization of their clitoris also experiencing far more increase in body hair and greater increases in androgenic alopecia as opposed to using injections or swallowed forms but again, this is from my observing FtM's outcomes on transition and other sites and not based upon studies.

Even people who don't test can verify that topicals work in terms of effectuating bodily changes. For instance a person using Biestro from Life Flo, sold on Amazon and other places, might see them cause gyno fairly rapidly. This shows that such meds are being absorbed and doing something. What is difficult to know is whether these are actually localized effects or merely effects from increasing serum levels of estrogen. My feeling is that estrogens do have localized effects, followed by systemic effects. It is difficult to disentangle, however:

"A medication's potency often is changed with its base. For example, some topical steroids will be classified one or two strengths higher when moving from cream to ointment. As a rule of thumb, an ointment base is more occlusive and will drive the medication into the skin more rapidly than a solution or cream base."

Topical medication - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Half-llfe levels might differ depending upon ingestion method used and half-lives can be both significant and of very little significance in terms of outcomes. To me, half-lives appear relatively unimportant for feminization in general but very important to hair outcomes, particularly in the shorter term but this is conjecture based upon my own anecdotal results and reading about those of others in the MtF community. I think that using estrogen on the scalp though is likely to be more efficacious due to the ability to home in on and focus on the tissue most relevant and then based upon liver-pass effects which come later.

Route of administration - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Desired target effect​

Identical drugs can produce different results depending on the route of administration. For example, some drugs are not significantly absorbed into the bloodstream from the gastrointestinal tract and their action after enteral administration is therefore different from that after parenteral administration. This can be illustrated by the action of naloxone (Narcan), an antagonist of opiates such as morphine. Naloxone counteracts opiate action in the central nervous system when given intravenously and is therefore used in the treatment of opiate overdose. The same drug, when swallowed, acts exclusively on the bowels; it is here used to treat constipation under opiate pain therapy and does not affect the pain-reducing effect of the opiate.

Local​

By delivering drugs almost directly to the site of action, the risk of systemic side effects is reduced.[25]

Skin absorption (dermal absorption), for example, is to directly deliver drug to the skin and, hopefully, to the systemic circulation.[29] However, skin irritation may result, and for some forms such as creams or lotions, the dosage is difficult to control.[26] Upon contact with the skin, the drug penetrates into the dead stratum corneum and can afterwards reach the viable epidermis, the dermis, and the blood vessels

One of the reasons that I feel that what @bridgeburn did and what we are doing, is so important is the very fact that we might see anecdotally different outcomes. This is particularly true with respect to the use of AA's and whether they are even valuable in the hair loss context with or without estrogen administered concurrently. If we start getting even a nucleus of five, seven, 11 or 20-something people with similar experiences leading to substantial hair-loss and hair-regrowth improvement, then we can start chipping away at some of the differences among those whose improvement is either lagging or non-existent. This is similar to what happened with the polysorbates which were used to clean the skin of murine species during lab testing, resulting in unexpected increased hair growth.

The discovery of psychedelic substances usually tryptamines or phenethylamines, and the work of Albert Hoffman and Gordon Wasson, and Alexander Shulgin are inspiring here.

R. Gordon Wasson - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

TiHKAL - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Albert Hofmann - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

María Sabina - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Particularly, as the studies of Hoffman and Wasson took them to Mexico and Central American, they encountered Indians using seeds from the family of the Morning Glory flowers reputed to be quite similar to LSD in their effects. This was disputed, however, as westerners often ingested these seeds and saw no effects whatsoever. Wasson noted however that the Indians didn't merely swallow them. Rather they pulverized them with rocks and then ingested them. When done this way, indeed, psychedelic effects of the strongest category were produced. The active ingredient, LSA, is chemically quite similar to LSD, and the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, but even more so to rye ergot, with its effects on vasodilation, which could be dangerous, with rye ergot implicated in St. Anthony's Fire.

Still, when ingested this way, many experienced unpleasant gastric effects. Heads and stoners then found ways to extract the LSA using methods involving various solvents such as water and lighter fluid to isolate the LSA in order to avoid the vomiting and other effects that made using them so hit or miss. I still note on certain boards that people often seem to be unable to get these seeds, which are found sold everywhere to induce effects.

Hence, "What's the Story, Morning Glory?"

The extraction methods do work and I tried them for scientific reasons and entheogenic effects. The DEA has strangely not interfered but this is largely because the vasoconstrictive effects make morning glory seeds much more of a downer than LSD or psychedelic mushrooms. They just aren't a lot of fun and it's hard to abuse them for this reason and because psychedelics tend to need to be spaced at least weekly for full-blown effects. Although conjecture, meds like V***** might substantially improve the experience by curtailing the painful vasodilation effects and allowing for free movement during the experience which is otherwise uncomfortable.

LSA Drug: The Trippy Story Behind the Compound in Morning Glory Plants

What is LSA? LSA—also known as ergine—is a psychedelic compound found in the seeds of several common plants, including morning glory (Ipomoea violacea),

doubleblindmag.com

This has little to do with HRT except to point towards some of the interesting and thrilling aspects related to discovery of pharmaceuticals and making them work for our own purposes. I will discuss how I use Estrogel in my next post.

Goddess bless.

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

How I have been using Estrogens on the Scalp:

Because I have suffered both from the diffuse thinning and male pattern baldness-oriented types of hair loss/diminution in hair quality, I have tended to use estrogen both all over all scalp tissue and also on areas typical of male pattern baldness, meaning in the crown, on the temples and areas in front of the ears. Once or twice a day, I apply Estrogel after rubbing upon both hands, into all scalp tissue similar to the way that mousses, hair tonics and topical ketoconozole are applied. I then apply with the fingertips to the crown areas in question and the temples and areas in front of the ears.

@bridgeburn and others have questioned using this med as a hair tonic due to its relatively high cost and not wanting to waste the medication. Having gotten to know the person who maintains /r/estrogel which is not affiliated with the product, I have been informed that the product produces crystals upon drying. Following up with small amounts of minoxidil hours later might redistribute any coating hair and thereby minimize any waste but this is not something that I have verified independently. Relative cost of estrogel depends upon the resources, insurance coverage and use. Because I am testing things related to estrogen's effects on hair, topical effects on other tissues like the face and breasts and elsewhere and because I have been deliberately been pushing extremely high--pregnancy levels of estrogen--to verify hair effects, I have probably spent close to $2,000 on Estrogel and Biestro Cream the last 12 months. I have no complaints but with my last purchase of ten tubes, I will begin moderating use.

Estrogel should not be necessary perhaps but then again, we simply don't know all of the differences in terms of how estrogen taken orally affects hair. I note that DHT acts differently in terms of how it is produced and used in the body and far differently, compared to testosterone, estradiol and progesterone:

"DHT signals mainly in an intracrine and paracrine manner in the tissues in which it is produced, playing only a minor role, if any, as a circulating endocrine hormone":

Dihydrotestosterone - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Intracrine - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Paracrine signaling - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

My goal is to next proceed through the wikipedia article on DHT with respect to HRT palliatives and trying to elucidate the different reductases and relevant scalp tissues to try to simplify what is in many respects, almost overwhelming in terms of what DHT is alleged to do and cause and to further differentiate it from simple testosterone.

Goddess Bless.

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

I used bica for a while. Still have some in a drawer somewhere. sh*t turned me into a woman.
I started f*****g myself right in the pussy. Then I only wanted Chad, so I couldnt even convince myself as a girl to f*** incel me. SMH.

Did you leave Chad hanging?

I often note that in my experiences, AA's are more stereotypically feminizing than is estradiol. This of course depends upon the person and the relevant dosages. Such substances don't turn people into the opposite sex although there may be marginal movement towards what might be considered a more inter-sex aspect to male genitalia when used by XY's. Many donate unused hormonal medications and I am fairly certain that you would find people willing to pay postage for any bica that you don't intend to use. I once donated some Premarin and I have several bottles of unused spironolactone but I shan't donate that since I believe that the costs of spironolactone outweigh the benefits stochastically for virtually everyone. I and others on here are more than willing to try to help you find solutions not related to AA's. Indeed, that is one of the main reasons that I began the thread.

Goddess bless.

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

Thanks for the advice, I'll consider selling the bica. Got some RU i need to get rid of as well now that I use CB.

And you should seriously be microneedling. Anyone who isnt microneedling with a pen isnt even trying in 2021. Its literally that important. If you have male pattern baldness your scalp is fucked and needs to be overturned to get the full effect of all of these drugs.

I have been microneedling going back to July of 2019 and I recommend it to everyone and highly. I am less certain of the benefits of the derma-pen, not that it doesn't work but more so related to the fact that the pens are more expensive and a bit less straightforward in terms of usage, and I already have essentially every needle depth of derma-roller. My feeling is that such devices might be used less and less as a form of maintenance under HRT. I currently use a 2.0 mm derma-roller primarily and I find it easier to use with long hair and less inclined to draw blood. I have recently requested that anyone using derma-processes alert us to their luck in using them and that folks chime in related to how often to use these treatments. They appear to work even when done as little as once monthly. I have been using them two to three times a week recently particularly if my scalp itches. I particularly have had great success in completely realigning scar tissue on my scalp from a hair transplant that was done less than expertly and in which in general, only a couple of hairs took root from the six to seven hair plugs, which left both physical and psychic scar tissue difficult to deal with. All of this hurts, not only me but the entire cohort.

The good news is that such restored scalp tissue is likely to be able to present functioning follicles again, as also indicated by the murine plucking studies.

I also incorporate light massage and pulling forward of the scalp in front and the hair from behind and in front of the ears. I used to use heavier scalp massage techniques but since I had a shed while doing these, I leave them to others without comment as to their efficacy. I have also utilized the botox methods alleged to loosen scalp tissue and promote hair loss diminution. I learned about both of these things from Rob at perfecthairhealth and although I believe the massages are over-touted, otherwise he is a great as an evaluator of the scores and scores of things that folks try to regrow hair. It was only after digesting his piece from the fall of 2017, on HRT, castration and hair loss that I plunged forward.

I experiment upon myself anecdotally and freely share those results. Baldness is a fraternity and nobody wants it for anyone. I have a high intellect but bore easily hence I rush to provide what I can to others before my next life challenge comes before me, scientific or otherwise.

I appreciate your advice and anyone interested in those meds which aren't the easiest to obtain, can they PM you?


Goddess bless.

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

Thanks for your advice too.

Yeah Sure. I'll sell them for pretty cheap. I just went and looked and I have 4 unopened boxes of bica, the binarex brand. 28 pills per box (purchased from inhouse pharmacy).

And I have 15 5mg containers of RU in my fridge (purchased at science. bio). I probably would only sell 12 of those. Want to keep a few for myself incase I ever decide to switch back.

Stay with us. There are some really nice people who interact here and I continue looking for folks on reddit sites like Tressless. Even a few months a go, I was less sanguine on non-HRT methods but oral minoxidil is an exciting treatment hampered most by the lackluster results that many of us got from using it topically. I am 56 and I continue to try to show folks that even for non-Mtf XY's, treatment options are varied and present, unlike the 80's where Hair in a Spray Can and polysorbates where about all that we had unless we had a clandestine source of estrogen. I tried even back then to get estrogen and nothing doing and my doctor refused to prescribe. Then in about 2013, I heard something about menopausal creams and it's been a rush since thing seeing different aspects of the HRT bring on increasing hair restoration.

 

[Obsessive]

How I have been using Estrogens on the Scalp:

Because I have suffered both from the diffuse thinning and male pattern baldness-oriented types of hair loss/diminution in hair quality, I have tended to use estrogen both all over all scalp tissue and also on areas typical of male pattern baldness, meaning in the crown, on the temples and areas in front of the ears. Once or twice a day, I apply Estrogel after rubbing upon both hands, into all scalp tissue similar to the way that mousses, hair tonics and topical ketoconozole are applied. I then apply with the fingertips to the crown areas in question and the temples and areas in front of the ears.

@bridgeburn and others have questioned using this med as a hair tonic due to its relatively high cost and not wanting to waste the medication. Having gotten to know the person who maintains /r/estrogel which is not affiliated with the product, I have been informed that the product produces crystals upon drying. Following up with small amounts of minoxidil hours later might redistribute any coating hair and thereby minimize any waste but this is not something that I have verified independently. Relative cost of estrogel depends upon the resources, insurance coverage and use. Because I am testing things related to estrogen's effects on hair, topical effects on other tissues like the face and breasts and elsewhere and because I have been deliberately been pushing extremely high--pregnancy levels of estrogen--to verify hair effects, I have probably spent close to $2,000 on Estrogel and Biestro Cream the last 12 months. I have no complaints but with my last purchase of ten tubes, I will begin moderating use.

Estrogel should not be necessary perhaps but then again, we simply don't know all of the differences in terms of how estrogen taken orally affects hair. I note that DHT acts differently in terms of how it is produced and used in the body and far differently, compared to testosterone, estradiol and progesterone:

"DHT signals mainly in an intracrine and paracrine manner in the tissues in which it is produced, playing only a minor role, if any, as a circulating endocrine hormone":

Dihydrotestosterone - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Intracrine - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Paracrine signaling - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

My goal is to next proceed through the wikipedia article on DHT with respect to HRT palliatives and trying to elucidate the different reductases and relevant scalp tissues to try to simplify what is in many respects, almost overwhelming in terms of what DHT is alleged to do and cause and to further differentiate it from simple testosterone.

Goddess Bless.

Thanks for both of your posts. I can certainly appreciate the reference to Alexander Shulgin
I also use e-gel on scalp, sometime in pure form and other times dissolved in solvent for better coverage. I think it helps.
Two side effects I wanted to ask you about are estrogen's effects on 1) skin and 2) veins.
Every time i get a modest/high level of systemic estrogen (I can actually 'feel' it and have verified with blood tests), my skin gets a crepey, thin, and wrinkly look to it. This contrasts all literature which indicates estrogen increases collagen production and skin thickness. This also happens when I use oral min, but at least that can be supported by the huge number of anecdotes and at least one in vitro study. I'm at a loss here.
2) My veins become extremely dilated within a minute or two of using topical estrogen and stay this way for hours. If I don't take breaks from estrogen, I can see what looks like the beginning of spider/varicose veins starting to form. Luckly, these disappear after taking a break from estrogen. It's known that men with high E:T ratios are more prone to varicose veins. Also, estrogen modulates VEGF which probably explains the issue around brain prominence.

At any rate, I'd appreciate any insights you might have about the estrogen/ skin issue i described.

 

[Norwoody]

Some people disagree, but I think sebum does play a role. Or, at the very least, it's just an indication of androgenic activity. Particularly if there is a lot of sebum and if your hair becomes greasy just a few hours after washing it. There are some who have stated that dutasteride blocks the 5AR type I enzyme which is responsible for sebum production. So if you're on some hormonal treatments then you probably won't have as much sebum, thus allowing you to wash less frequently, creating a healthier scalp. But in my situation, at this stage I'd rather wash too much than not enough, knowing that I'm not inhibiting any serum DHT.

Like the poster mentions above, there are some who might get really dry skin because of what I just mentioned. Though it should be stated that antiandrogens and estrogens are probably going to do it via another pathway as they are not inhibiting enzymes, but rather binding to receptors in the tissue. Ultimately, I think that you want just the right amount of sebum and it seems to be something that each individual needs to find a way to calibrate to.

 

[maballack]

Some people disagree, but I think sebum does play a role. Or, at the very least, it's just an indication of androgenic activity. Particularly if there is a lot of sebum and if your hair becomes greasy just a few hours after washing it. There are some who have stated that dutasteride blocks the 5AR type I enzyme which is responsible for sebum production. So if you're on some hormonal treatments then you probably won't have as much sebum, thus allowing you to wash less frequently, creating a healthier scalp. But in my situation, at this stage I'd rather wash too much than not enough, knowing that I'm not inhibiting any serum DHT.

Like the poster mentions above, there are some who might get really dry skin because of what I just mentioned. Though it should be stated that antiandrogens and estrogens are probably going to do it via another pathway as they are not inhibiting enzymes, but rather binding to receptors in the tissue. Ultimately, I think that you want just the right amount of sebum and it seems to be something that each individual needs to find a way to calibrate to.

Hi,
My biggest concern is the sebum production.

My scalp tend to become oily after 24 hours. I wash it every day. My forhead becomes oily too.

Now, I only loose from 1 or 2 terminal hairs and maybe like 5 small miniaturized hairs.

Would list any natural way to block 5AR type I enzyme Thus reducing the Oil Sebum production.

Do you have experience with Corticosteroids been a down regulator for Sebasous glands and Androgen receptor.

Thanks for all your feedbacks

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

It's interesting to note that beta sitosterol is a precursor to the AAS known as boldenone aka equipoise.

How about telling us about your experiences with castor oil. I have been guilty of being dismissive of this treatment. I am impressed that you linked beta sitosterol to boldenone. I am starting to enjoy looking at chemical structures.

 

[Norwoody]

Castor oil just seems to make the hair quality better, in my experience. Certainly not something that's going to be a big catalyst for regrowth for most people, unless they have the very beginning of loss and caught it quickly maybe. It seems to have an effect of making hair a little bit thicker and stronger though.

I got the idea mainly from a guy named SwissTemples. If you search him up you'll find stuff about him all over the net. He basically looked at hair regrowth from the PGE2/PGD2 aspect. The smart people can really break it down in detail, but one of the main things he used was ricinoleic acid, which is found in castor oil. Supposedly it's something along the lines of: (because of androgens) PGD2 is expressed and is what ultimately causes the hair follicle to fall out. And I guess PGE2 protects and promotes a sort of "healing process" within the follicle. I guess it's just a different way of attacking the issue.

The Prostaglandin protocol

swissTemples blog about hairloss. Recovering from baldness and ways to treat it.

swisstemples.blogspot.com

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

Some people disagree, but I think sebum does play a role. Or, at the very least, it's just an indication of androgenic activity. Particularly if there is a lot of sebum and if your hair becomes greasy just a few hours after washing it. There are some who have stated that dutasteride blocks the 5AR type I enzyme which is responsible for sebum production. So if you're on some hormonal treatments then you probably won't have as much sebum, thus allowing you to wash less frequently, creating a healthier scalp. But in my situation, at this stage I'd rather wash too much than not enough, knowing that I'm not inhibiting any serum DHT.

Like the poster mentions above, there are some who might get really dry skin because of what I just mentioned. Though it should be stated that antiandrogens and estrogens are probably going to do it via another pathway as they are not inhibiting enzymes, but rather binding to receptors in the tissue. Ultimately, I think that you want just the right amount of sebum and it seems to be something that each individual needs to find a way to calibrate to.

Yes. Sebum is a requirement, I believe, for healthy hair and healthy-looking hair. It's interesting in terms of categorizing the yeasts in hair and whether they are actually required for healthy hair or whether we more or less exist to provide sustenance to such yeasts. Is this a mutually-beneficial relationship until colonies grow out of control?

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

Castor oil just seems to make the hair quality better, in my experience. Certainly not something that's going to be a big catalyst for regrowth for most people, unless they have the very beginning of loss and caught it quickly maybe. It seems to have an effect of making hair a little bit thicker and stronger though.

I got the idea mainly from a guy named SwissTemples. If you search him up you'll find stuff about him all over the net. He basically looked at hair regrowth from the PGE2/PGD2 aspect. The smart people can really break it down in detail, but one of the main things he used was ricinoleic acid, which is found in castor oil. Supposedly it's something along the lines of: (because of androgens) PGD2 is expressed and is what ultimately causes the hair follicle to fall out. And I guess PGE2 protects and promotes a sort of "healing process" within the follicle. I guess it's just a different way of attacking the issue.

The Prostaglandin protocol

swissTemples blog about hairloss. Recovering from baldness and ways to treat it.

swisstemples.blogspot.com

Are we talking about eating castor oil or just using it on the scalp? Folks older than I used to be fed castor oil daily as part of nutrition. That pre-dates me but it is reputed to taste nasty.

Now the name Swedish Temples is coming back to me and I think he was mentioned by @bridgeburn. I love the idea of having hair loss pioneers and of course, much of this is two steps forward and one step back and sometimes things might conceivably work for one person due to differences in genetic make-up or nutritional difficiencies. I have been somewhat dismissive of non-hormonal treatments because they often seem to be highly complicated and esoteric in terms of connecting all of the dots. I will take a look at this now.

Is Mr. Temples still active?

 

[Norwoody]

Are we talking about eating castor oil or just using it on the scalp? Folks older than I used to be fed castor oil daily as part of nutrition. That pre-dates me but it is reputed to taste nasty.

Now the name Swedish Temples is coming back to me and I think he was mentioned by @bridgeburn. I love the idea of having hair loss pioneers and of course, much of this is two steps forward and one step back and sometimes things might conceivably work for one person due to differences in genetic make-up or nutritional difficiencies. I have been somewhat dismissive of non-hormonal treatments because they often seem to be highly complicated and esoteric in terms of connecting all of the dots. I will take a look at this now.

Is Mr. Temples still active?

I'm just taking it orally now, about a teaspoon a day. It works well topically, but the oil is just so thick that it's hard to wash out and ended up clogging my pores and causing some acne. I think it does work better topically, because you can only take so much orally before it becomes a stimulative laxative. The other problem topically is that it could impede other topicals if not sequenced properly, so I'd rather just ingest it.

I generally agree that it's difficult to find efficacy in treatments that don't involve messing with sex hormones. However, keep in mind oral minoxidil and needling are some of the most effective treatments. But like you said, it is so important to try to "connect all the dots" as you say; the way I think of it is to attack the problem from multiple angles. This is the strategy that Derek from moreplatesmoredates promotes. I've seen people get results via stimulating, blocking, damaging & healing, anti-inflammatories, and etc.

Haven't followed up on ST. I was big into reading into his stuff a few years back.

 

[JaneyElizabeth]

I'm just taking it orally now, about a teaspoon a day. It works well topically, but the oil is just so thick that it's hard to wash out and ended up clogging my pores and causing some acne. I think it does work better topically, because you can only take so much orally before it becomes a stimulative laxative. The other problem topically is that it could impede other topicals if not sequenced properly, so I'd rather just ingest it.

I generally agree that it's difficult to find efficacy in treatments that don't involve messing with sex hormones. However, keep in mind oral minoxidil and needling are some of the most effective treatments. But like you said, it is so important to try to "connect all the dots" as you say; the way I think of it is to attack the problem from multiple angles. This is the strategy that Derek from moreplatesmoredates promotes. I've seen people get results via stimulating, blocking, damaging & healing, anti-inflammatories, and etc.

Haven't followed up on ST. I was big into reading into his stuff a few years back.

Given that it appears to not be very expensive and good for us, maybe this is a no-brainer supplement. It appears to have some similarities to flax seed and hemp oils and maybe fish oil which sustains the Inuit and they never go bald:

Amazon.com : castor oil

Does anyone have any thoughts related to flax seed and hemp oils for hair improvement?

 

[Obsessive]

Given that it appears to not be very expensive and good for us, maybe this is a no-brainer supplement. It appears to have some similarities to flax seed and hemp oils and maybe fish oil which sustains the Inuit and they never go bald:

Amazon.com : castor oil

Does anyone have any thoughts related to flax seed and hemp oils for hair improvement?

I use ground flax seeds daily as flax lignans might be beneficial for hair. As for oral castor oil, it does improve hair thickness and quality for me, but at the cost of PGE-mediated skin effects. I seem to be hyper sensitive to skin effects so others likely won't have this issue. Definitely one of the easiest and most overlooked components of a pro-hair protocol. Also, there is no way topical castor oil penetrates the scalp-you need ricinoleic acid in a solvent for any chance of skin permeation.