Thinning Hair - Whittier,CA

You mention diet - I would do a little more research on diet and hair loss. I will say, since going gluten free two years ago, my hair has gotten much thicker and healthier - I was losing handfuls before that. It was one of the many positive changes that happened after that dietary change. Even my hairdresser commented at my last haircut how thick my hair is.

I don't think wheat causes hair loss, but wheat allergies are common in my family, and food allergies can cause inflammation that prevents proper absorption of nutrients, which I think was happening in my case. Wheat may not be the problem for you, but a food sensitivity or allergy could be.

My friend had a scalp biopsy that showed she had unfortunately inherited male patterned baldness.

Other than Rogaine I am not sure of any products that actually work.

I had a similar problem, although it seemed to be all over the head, not just in one area. My check ups were also good, although I did have an underactive thyroid. My hairdresser also found that my hair didn't take any kinds of treatments evenly (perms, back in the day, or color, whether semipermanent or permanent) - some hairs would absorb the dye or perm, others would not. Even when I stopped trying those techniques, nothing made a difference - for years.

I assume you know that there's no product you can apply topically that will make a difference. It's an internal problem.

Like you, I ate "well" (back when I thought it was actually possible to get all the nutrients we need through our diets). Then I read the AMA recommendation from 2002 that said, no way, not with our food supply anymore. So I took every vitamin you could think of, from the usual brand name stuff to the pricier stuff from the "health food store" (most of them from the same producers, unfortunately), and then the really expensive stuff from various alternative health practitioners. All I lost was money, and I didn't gain any hair. I got shorter cuts, thinking it would at least look fuller with less weight pulling it down.

About 7 years ago I found a much better supplement regimen - comprehensive instead of a mere multivitamin or a bunch of individual nutrients. I learn through many seminars and professional development/training programs that you really need dozens of nutrients at the same time for them to be absorbed and utilized by the body. My hair has grown back in, and I now wear a much longer style again, as I did in my 20s. I do color the roots (because I'm vain about the gray anyway, and because the gray didn't grow in uniformly but in patches so it didn't look nice the way a lot of salt-and-pepper hair does). But the color "takes" really well, which it didn't in the past. I do have to do it at about 5 weeks instead of 6 because my hair now grows so much faster. It also breaks less. So I've been really thrilled (and so is my long-hair-loving husband!).

I think it's great you are finding more time to take care of yourself - a lot of women don't give themselves that gift!

I tried biotin, special shampoos and hair treatments, nothing helped. My MIL suggested Hair Essentials so I decided to give it a try. One month in and I can see new growth. I just take the pills (3 a day) and not the hair tonics. It's not cheap, $99 for a 90 day supply, but it really works. I think you can only order online. Make sure you check retailmenot, I found a 10% off coupon there.

Make sure your thyroid levels are good. Sometimes people can experience hair loss with dramatic weight loss.

Hair Essentials sounds worth a try: http://www.naturalwellbeing.com/products/hair-growth#ingr...

But even with proper vitamins, some women have hair loss. Rogaine helps, but it's not a magic cure. My husband uses Rogaine, and it's stopped him from going completely bald, but his hair isn't thick by any means. I wouldn't worry about chemicals from Rogaine.

If it ever gets really bad despite your efforts, and you have enough hair on the back of your head, hair transplants are really good these days, although expensive.

Take biotin. The shampoo I would recomenf is " Its a 10"

Back off the Rogaine or anything else until you know more. Besides having your thyroid checked as others note, consider seeing a dermatologist.

One question, too: Do you wear your hair back in a ponytail or bun or chignon or just otherwise pulled off your face with barrettes etc. much or most of the time? Daily, or many days in a week?

Wearing the hair pulled back all the time can actually cause a form of alopecia that is directly related to having the hair pulled back too much of the time. Dancers get it -- they wear their hair pulled back so much that they can develop permanent "bald spots" along the hairline (the bangs area that you mention). The hairline actually recedes and it can be a permanent change, and while letting the hair rest from being pulled back can help, you might need more serious intervention.

So -- if you do wear your hair back a lot, even if it's not super-tight, I'd start wearing it down, or in a loose side ponytail, etc.

My daughter dances and tends to have to have tight buns for several hours most days in the week and also wears a ponytail daily for school (just her choice). But recently we read in a dance magazine about this condition of the receding hairline/hair loss related to pulled-back hair. Then she went to a new hairdresser who said she herself has seen her own hairline moving back and hair falling out due to wearing ponytails and buns etc. all the time when she was younger, so she started letting her hair "rest" from those styles. The hairdresser recommended moving ponytails around to different locations on the head (a low, loose side pony instead of one right at the back of the head, for instance), doing softer styles if the hair just has to be pulled back, etc.

If that's not your issue and you don't wear your hair back much or at all -- no worries! It's just something I wanted to mention, since it sounds like the thinning is right in your hairline or bangs area, and that is exactly where this hairstyle-related thinning can take place.

My mother swears rinsing with apple cider vinegar has helped her hair loss. She's in her 80's...

As you get older your hair will get a bit thinner. I have noticed more skin showing above my ears, even though I have long hair I can still see skin in the temple area a bit.

I think it's one of those things that I'm not going to worry about.

I do have 2 friends, they are cousins in that matters, and one has gone bald this past year and the other has lost about 1/3 of her hair mass.

The docs have no explanation for why the one's hair fell out and the other just lives with it.

I would consider Rogaine as the last option.
As others mentioned have your thyroid checked plus your ferritin levels (long-term iron stores). It could also be other nutritional deficiencies e.g. low zinc or not enough protein in your diet. I would recommend seeing a naturopathic doctor to look for the cause of hair loss. Best of luck!