Limitations of Hair Loss Shampoos

For most people, spending hundreds or even thousands of dollars to combat their hair loss (alopecia) is simply is not worth their time or money. Instead, most people opt to try out cheaper alternatives to hair restoration, including hair loss shampoos.

Hair loss shampoos contain essential vitamins and minerals, which supposedly can stop your receding hairline with regular usage. Most of these shampoos are priced in between $20-60 per bottle, which is why they are such an appealing choice to treat hair loss.

Plus, unlike other hair treatments, you can get shampoos in just about any retail store or online, which is convenient. However, while inexpensive shampoos may seem promising as a simple solution to male pattern balding, many of them cannot back up their claims for the most part. Additionally, many of the shampoo products on the market today contain sodium lauryl sulfate, which has been linked to a worsening of thinning hair in men.

Hair loss is a complicated situation and can be caused by any one of many things. One of the most common causes is an imbalance in hormones, which cannot be treated by shampoos. Specifically, high DHT levels are the most common cause of alopecia in men and no shampoo alone can block DHT from causing your hair to fall out if you are already experiencing it. The major problem with shampoos is that they are merely topical cleansers; they cannot penetrate the scalp or hair follicles.

They can provide some level of DHT-reduction at the surface level, but it is in minimal compared to taking an ingestible DHT blocker or topical treatment that is absorbed by the scalp. For this reason, the positive effects of what a shampoo can do to prevent further alopecia is limited.

Now while shampoos cannot completely stop hair loss, you can see minimal improvements in your hair with some of the higher quality products. For example, some clinical studies have found that one commonly-used shampoo product could provide minimal increases in hair thickness compared to regular shampoo usage. While it did not actually cause new hairs to grow, it did cover up some of the bald sections of those who were studied. Further study is needed to determine how much effect a shampoo could have when used in conjunction with a topical or pill product formulated for men.

To truly have an effect on male pattern balding, you need to target the root cause of your thinning hair, which is most likely excess DHT. DHT attacks the hair follicles and restricts the flow of nutrients to each follicle. Its negative effects are worse for men with a genetic susceptibility to it, and they often see the effects of DHT on their hairline early in adulthood. Over time, the follicles weaken and eventually begin to die, which is why they fall out. This is why blocking the enzyme that converts regular testosterone into DHT is so important to stop this primary cause of hair loss.

To do this, you can find a variety of hair loss treatments, all of which are much more effective and work much more quickly in restoring your hair than a simple daily shampoo. Many hair loss supplements like Procerin are available that can block your body from producing DHT, which will stop the root cause of your hair loss.

Michael Stanford is a freelance writer in the haircare industry. He has contributed research on many of the top hair loss shampoo ingredients used today, as well as serving as a consultant to the supplement industry for the past five years.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Stanford