new thread
Hi everyone,
I've seen saw palmetto mentioned in a couple of earier posts as being good for hair. I know that it is used in Europe to prevent prostate problems. Does it have a similar effect to Propecia? How is it taken? Are there specific resources that report on its affect on hair growth/loss?
Thanks,
Arnold
Hi Arnold,
I started taking Saw Palmetto as well as vitamins about a month ago, due to a post from Absalom saying that he uses it among other things. It is available as oral tablets and is not that expensive. It is supposed to have a similar effect (although I suspect to a lesser degree) to Propecia. Mainly I use it hoping to keep MPB at bay or to slow down MPB, as my Dad had MPB and also died of prostate cancer. It's too soon to tell what effect it has had at this point. Hope this helps.
David
hey Dave,
I remember someone posted (I think it was Hans) saying that the genes from your mom's side determine if you'll have MPB...and that you should look to the hair history of your grandpa on your mothers side...I don't know how this works but it's probably true :)
This is a highly debatable topic. :)
It's really a genetic roll of the dice. Both of my grandfathers had terrible hair. Both of my parents had good/great hair and me, well, so far so good.
oh it is? I thought it was something rock solid...thanks for clearing that up..:)
I note your sarcasm. However, your initial remark:
you should look to the hair history of your grandpa on your mothers side...I don't know how this works but it's probably true
seems to indicate you are pretty sold on this hypothesis. I was merely presenting a differing opinion.
no..I'm not being sarcastic at all!!I thought that this was something that was proved to be true...(it's easy to misinterpret something over the internet..I should have probably worded my sentence differently! :P sorry about that )
Sorry, man, read you wrong!
There are many theories out there on genetics in general and hair specifically. I personally believe one's hair genes can come from either side and are often an amalgam of the two. In my own case, my hair texture is about a 60/40 blend of my parents'. My mother had extremely course, wavy hair while my father had very fine, straight hair. I'm slightly more inclined to my dad's texture but my mother's influence is also evident.
hmm..that's interesting..I didn't know there were so many theories...I'm definitely gonna do some research on this..I'm kinda curious..:)
do both your parents have long hair?unfortunately...I can't compare myself to my father..as he never had long hair to begin with (even though,at the age of 66, he doesn't seem to have any MLB...that's a relief!! :P)..and from what I remember..my mom had fine black hair!
Ironically, neither of my parents were into long hair - at all! My mother had it as a teenager and that's about it.
My dad died at 79 with still a lot of hair (slight recession at the temples) and my mother retained her thick hair till her death at 69.
He's in his early 60s here and she's in her early 50s.
hmm..I would say your hair is thicker than your mother's in that pic..
Her hair was frizzy in that first pic.
her hair was thick indeed..too bad she wasn't into long hair!!(and in general,women in their 50's and 60's cut their hair short...this phenomenon baffles me)..and your hair has a different texture than the in the pic you posted previously...were you growing your hair out at the time..or were you not into long hair at that time? :P
It's funny how little kids seem to have the glossiest of hair. I guess most of us grow out of that.
Oh, I've always wanted long hair but my parents would have none of it.
I don't want to be the heavy, but I want to say a word about genetics. Looking at your relatives of previous generations is going to give you a clue, but not an answer. Genetics in most human traits is not a simple mechanical inheritance pattern like Mendel found in peas. (Maybe eye color, but if this, not much else.)
You are not a pea.
In human gentics we are dealing with multiple determinates, and we are also dealing with the possibly random throw of the dice which determines gene expresssion -- that is since you have more than on gene which tells you to grow beautiful hair, which on is turned on? You have more than you need. They cannot all be turned on at the same time.
Consider the odds: two or three potentially different traits, or alleles, on the same gene, even, yet. This leaves room for lots of variation.
I am sure I have oversimplified this, for I know many of you know more geneticsw than I. However, I do want to emphasize that it is also very complex and not totally deterministic.
Unfortunately, I don't know how anything about my grandfather's hair(on my Mom's side), as he passed away (I believe in 1939) before I was born. I know my Mom had extremely thick hair. My Mom was from Britain and met my Dad during the war, then they moved to Canada after they were married in 1945. My Dad had fairly decent hair until he was 50, then MPB set in after that--when he passed away at age 79 he was not bald but his hair had receded badly at the temples and was very thin. (So I guess I have been using my Dad as a reference--It may be good news if I DON'T inherit MPB from him) My grandfather on my Dad's side had a full head of hair when he passed away at age 85. Both my Dad and Grandfather died of prostate cancer so naturally I am terrified of it--maybe part of the reason for the Saw Palmetto. Obviously if it is NOT good I should stop taking it. (It was Absalom who mentioned it in a post about a month ago--and if anyone should know what he's doing, it would be Absalom) If you have any recommendations as to whether I shoud not be taking it, please let me know. Thanks.
David
hehe..I don'y know anything about neither of my grandpas' hair either!!so...having said that...I would rather have my father's hair genes than my grandpas' ( my grandpa's hair could have been terrible for all I know...on the other hand..my father still has a thick head of hair at the age of 66! :P)
yeah...I know how it feels to lose loved ones from diseases like that...I lost my mother to ovarian cancer when I was 13,lost my uncle from a stroke a few years ago,lost my grandpa and another uncle to diabetes,lost my aunt to cancer,and the list goes on...
about the saw palmeto..I have no clue...maybe some other member may be of some help to you...
It is probably true in about 25% of the cases. There is basically a 50% chance of having a bald maternal grandfather, and a 50% chance of your being bald. Therefore the chance is 25% that both you and your maternal grandfather will be bald.
Genetics plays a major role, but it is a complicated one. If MPB is a recessive trait, and your father has both genes for MPB, and your mother has neither, you will have a 25% chance for MPB. If it is the dominant trait, you would have a 75% chance for the same. If both parents carry the MPB genes, you have a almost 100% chance of MPB, and if both parents do not have the MPB genes you stand a good chance of having hair throughout your time here.
However, hair genetics is more involved. It is called polygenic traits, meaning more than one pair of genes has an influence. Therefore a combination of many minor influences can impact the dominant or recessive traits as expressed, and change their appearance. If anyone is interested, here is a link to a basic explanation of genetic principals:
http://biology.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=biology&cdn=education&tm=4&f=00&su=p284.2.420.ip_&tt=2&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//anthro.palomar.edu/mendel/default.htm
Hope this helps.
George
By the way how much of SP do you use David? I use 450mg every day ... its from "Nature's Made" or something like that I guess.
Srini.
Hi Srini,
I currently take 1000 mg "Saw Palmetto berries", 1/day--I don't know what the actual amount is. The ones that I got on special yesterday that I have't opened yet are called simply "Sw Palmetto"--500 mg.
David
If in case you dont have any hair loss problem or BPH or androgenic alopecia you should stay away from it. It alters your harmonal levels and it may not be a god idea to play with it unless it is really required for preventing hair loss as in my case. I take 450mg capsules each day for 2 days coupled with 1mg propecia the 3rd day.
Read all the possible side effects of it before you take it. It is not like a B vitamin suppliment.
Further it has been noted on few websites that research shows that inheriting hair pattern from mother's father is of higher probability than father or father's father. But there is no given formula as to whether you will go bald/loose hair or when you may loose hair. However if your father or grand father went bald very early in life like when in 20-30 years of age then you may need to take extra precaution as you may be prone to but not necessarily go bald.
DO NOT TAKE PROPECIA / SAW PALMETTO without knowing its side effects if you are less than 45 years of age.
Srini.
I take it. I justify any potential 'risk' with the fact that my father died of prostate cancer. I love its potential hair benefits but I have a solid medical reason to take it as well.