HEALTH, BEAUTY & FASHION
June 17th - June 23rd 2011
Health, Beauty
&
Fashion
Hair loss in women: What causes it and how to fight back
As women age all kinds of unpleasant things happen. The body bloats, skin sags and loses pigment and hair begins to fall out beyond the norm. It is a cruel trick of Mother Nature. Luckily, in today’s world there is something that can be done about each of those issues if you know where to look. In this article we are going to focus on hair loss; what causes it and what we can do about it. Everybody loses a certain amount of hair every single day. Anywhere from 50 to 100 strands of hair is considered within the “normal” zone. However, if hair loss begins to double, triple, or quadruple in number, then it is time to uncover what could be causing the problem. Hair loss due to over-processing is common. Women do a lot of things to their hair; they perm it, colour it, straighten or curl it with heat and they shampoo, shampoo, and shampoo. All of these things can cause damage to the hair when done alone - combined together they can do a real number on the
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healthiest head of hair. Some women shampoo their hair every day. Unless the hair is oily, that isn’t a good idea. Shampoo contains detergent that will strip the hair of all its natural oil; for some women, what it leaves behind is dry, brittle hair that is easy to break. Since aging hair is already fragile, adding too much shampoo into the equation can really result in major problems. Of course conditioner was invented to help replenish those oils and, for the most part it works - but only on a short term basis. The better option is to switch to a shampoo that is formulated specifically not to strip the hair, just to cleanse and condition it. Shampoo is particularly bad for colourtreated hair because it strips away the colour more quickly. That often means that women re-colour too often, resulting in yet more damage. It’s a vicious circle that can leave hair broken and beyond repair. Instead, they should switch to one of today’s new colour-
fast shampoos, which are formulated to help retain colour by keeping the detergent from stripping it away. Certain hair styles or methods of styling the hair can contribute to hair loss. For example wearing tight cornrows, pigtails, chignons, French twists or ponytails that severely pull and stress the scalp can cause what is known as traction alopecia. If those styles are continued, it can result in scalp scarring, which may result in permanent hair loss. Using chemicals in the hair, as for example during colour treatments, permanents, or simple hot oil treatments, may result in scalp inflammation, which can also result in irreversible hair loss. The application of heat to curl or straighten the hair is another major culprit because it dries the hair shaft causing it to become brittle and break. However, what a woman does to her hair isn’t the only cause behind hair loss. Other things can add to the equation, one of them being hormone changes. When a woman’s hormones spike or drop, hair loss is a common side effect; women often experience the problem during pregnancy and menopause as well as during any other artificial hormonal change environment like chemotherapy or radiation. For many, hair will re-grow once the hormone issue is solved. For a few, thinning or balding may become a permanent state of affairs. Certain types of medications can cause hair loss as well. The most common culprits are blood thinners, high blood
pressure medicines, drugs used to treat heart disease, and antidepressants. For some, birth control pills can result in hair loss due to the hormone factor. For others, taking too many or the wrong kind of vitamins can hurry along the problem. Too much vitamin A in particular is something to watch out for. Illnesses can lead to hair loss, particularly those related to the scalp like fungal infections. Others include conditions such as diabetes and lupus. Sometimes hair loss is a side effect of a surgical procedure. The good news is that once the conditions are controlled, hair often begins growing once again. For a sad few, certain types of alopecia or common baldness will occur, resulting in permanent hair loss. Even the mere act of life may cause hair loss for some. That is because of daily stress and not taking the time to eat properly or exercise. In such instances, correcting the underlying problem may also correct hair loss. There are no easy answers to what causes hair loss. Discovering its underlying cause can be frustrating and depressing. However, perhaps knowing where to begin to look is a step in the right direction to solving the problem.
Sucking Up To The Boss May Be Good For Your Health
Sucking up to the boss may do more than just improve your standing in the workplace: new research says it may also keep you healthy. A recent study published in the Journal of Management Studies suggests that politically savvy professionals who use kissing up to an employer as a way to enhance their standing in the office may avoid the psychological stress that others who aren’t as shrewd about their workplace behavior experience. Specifically, the research shows that employees who use ingratiation skills in the office often neutralize feelings of ostracism that many professionals tend to deal with. An adult form of bullying, ostracized employees describe feeling like they are being ignored and excluded by colleagues. They often experience more job tension, emotional exhaustion and depression. Other research shows that stress kills. It can raise the risk of a range of ills from high blood pressure to colds and even cancer. Ho Kwong Kwan, one of the study’s lead authors and a graduate student at Drexel University, said the key lies in how well the employee is at reading the body language and expressions of their co-workers. Those who aren’t very politically savvy, he said, can actually make things worse by sucking up. “When you can sense other people’s pet peeves and expressions, it allows you to communicate easier” Feelings of workplace ostracism have long been a problem for workers. A 2005 survey of 262 full-time employees found that over a five-year period, 66 percent of respondents felt they were systematically ignored by colleagues, while 29 percent reported that other people intentionally left the area when they entered. “Workplace ostracism can lead to many negative effects, such as psychological distress, turnover rate and poor physical health,” Kwan said. “People need to fulfil their psychological needs through social interaction and when their needs cannot be fulfilled, these negative effects occur.” It is critical, Kwan said, that businesses create a culture that discourages workplace ostracism by providing training to managers and employees that enhances self-esteem, encourages effective problem-solving techniques and promotes the development of political skills. “In training sessions, organizations can give advice to their employees about how the effects of ostracism are far more harmful than imagined, and suggest that employees solve any problems through discussion,” Kwan said.
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