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Why has my pubic hair thinned so much
after menopause? Answers, by Dr. Joseph
Collins Question: The
thinning and loss of hair, whether head or pubic, can occur for a number of
reasons. Hormonal deficiencies, nutritional deficiencies and medications
(such as some forms of HRT) should all be considered as possible causes.
Nutritional deficiencies brought on by increased stress (such as the stress
of menopause) or severe dieting may contribute to hair loss. Because
individual vitamins and minerals have interactive roles on tissue health,
including hair follicles, the best course of action when addressing hair loss
should be a grade multiple vitamin-mineral. I have found this first step -
nutritional support - to be effective in a number of cases involving hair
loss in women. Answer: A
number of drugs may also be responsible for hair loss (1), (2). To find out
if hair loss may be due to a medication ask your physician or pharmacist or
go to RxList.com to learn more about your
medications. Always talk to your physician or pharmacist if you suspect any
medication is causing side effects - including hair loss. After
ensuring good nutrition and reviewing medications that may cause hair loss,
the effect of hormonal deficiencies on hair loss must be assessed. The
changes that we categorized as normal for aging, such as decreased hair
growth, may specifically be due to the decline in the concentration of,
testosterone or other androgens that occur with aging (3). Though a drop of
testosterone does not occur in every menopause type, those menopause types
that do experience such a drop may experience decreased pubic hair. Since
estrogens also play a role in secondary sexual characteristics, such as pubic
hair, menopause types with a drop in estradiol may also experience hair loss.
But
testosterone and estradiol are not the only hormones to consider. The hormone
IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor 1) is a growth hormone that is believed to
work with androgens to initiate and maintain hair growth. Working with
androgens, IGF-1 may induce hair growth factors (4) (5). Researchers also suspect
that IGF-1 may be able to stimulate the growth hair follicle cells directly
(6) (7) and may regulate hair growth and the hair growth cycle on its own (8)
(9). So the role of IGF-1 (also known as Somatomedin-C)
in hair health cannot be ignored. Summary: Nutritional support in the
form of a high grade multiple vitamin mineral should
be considered. Review
medications you are taking for possible side effects. Assess hormone levels. (1) - Tosi
A, Misciali C, Piraccini
BM, Peluso AM, Bardazzi
F. Drug-induced hair loss and hair growth. Incidence, management and
avoidance. Drug Saf 1994 Apr;10(4):310-7 [PubMed] (2) - Gollnick H, Blume U, Orfanos CE. [Adverse drug reactions on hair].Z Hautkr. 1990 Dec;65(12):1128-34.
Review. German.[ PubMed ] (3) - Bolognia
JL. Aging skin. Am J Med 1995 Jan 16;98(1A):99S-103S [PubMed] (4) Itami
S, Kurata S, Takayasu S.
Androgen induction of follicular epithelial cell growth is mediated via
insulin-like growth factor-I from dermal papilla cells. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 1995 Jul
26;212(3):988-94 [PubMed] (5) - Blok
GJ, de Boer H, Gooren LJ, van der
Veen EA. Growth hormone substitution in adult
growth hormone-deficient men augments androgen effects on the skin. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf) 1997 Jul;47(1):29-36 [PubMed] (6) - Su HY, Hickford JG, Bickerstaffe R,
Palmer BR. Insulin-like growth factor 1 and hair growth. Dermatol Online J 1999 Nov;5(2):1 [PubMed] (7) - Philpott
MP, Sanders DA, Kealey T. Effects of insulin and
insulin-like growth factors on cultured human hair follicles: IGF-I at
physiologic concentrations is an important regulator of hair follicle growth
in vitro. J Invest Dermatol 1994
Jun;102(6):857-61 [PubMed] (8) - Philpott
MP, Sanders D, Westgate GE, Kealey T. Human hair
growth in vitro: a model for the study of hair follicle biology. J Dermatol Sci 1994 Jul;7
Suppl:S55-72 [PubMed] (9) - Hembree
JR, Harmon CS, Nevins TD, Eckert RL. Regulation of
human dermal papilla cell production of insulin-like growth factor binding
protein-3 by retinoic acid, glucocorticoids, and insulin-like growth
factor-1. J Cell Physiol 1996
Jun;167(3):556-61 [PubMed] Dr.Joseph J. Collins
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