Recommendations For Wellness

The traditional treatment for gallstones is to have your gallbladder removed. There are, however, a number of things you can do to reduce your risk of producing gallstones or experiencing a gallstone attack.

Reduce your consumption of saturated fats typically found in red meat and pork, while increasing amount of fresh fruits and vegetables you consume.

Start a diet and exercise program, but avoid crash dieting which can increase your risk of gallstones. Both diet and exercise can help you reduce your risk of producing gallstones.

If you are taking birth control pills or are on hormone replacement therapy, speak with your doctor regarding your risk of forming stones or have them check your gallbladder for presence of gallstones regularly.

Studies indicate that coffee increase flow of bile and may help to decrease risk of gallstones. If you decide to add a little coffee to your health plan for this reason, make sure you only consume organically grown coffee beans.

Supplement with vitamin C. Vitamin C is needed by body to convert cholesterol to bile acids in body.

Lecithin has been shown to help break down and transport fat molecules and may help dissolve gallstones. Studies indicate that it is helpful in protecting us from gallstone formation.

Safflowers can be used to thin body fluids as well as aid in digestion of oils.

Nature’s Sunshine Gall Bladder Formula can be used to help stimulate circulation, improve liver function & aid in production of digestive fluids.

Do a gallbladder flush. During a gallbladder flush, 1-2 cups of olive oil are consumed to simulate gallbladder into releasing bile. This increased demand on gallbladder to release bile works to push stones out.

If you think your liver is congested, or if you have been having minor symptoms of gallstones for a long period of time, it is important to support and cleanse your liver for a period of time before doing a gallbladder flush. Try taking herbs such as milk thistle, dandelion or a liver cleanse formula.

In brief, these hormones affect hair growth cycle as follows:

1. High levels of 5-alpha-reductase enzyme occur in some cells of hair follicle and sebaceous glands.

2. 5-alpha-reductase converts testosterone into DHT.

3. DHT causes terminal hairs to miniaturize.

4. This leaves short, soft, fluffy vellus hairs that provide inadequate scalp coverage.

5. The growth phases gradually become shorter until these hairs are lost for good.

Alopecia areata is thought to be an immune system disorder that causes follicles to stop producing hairs in patches on head. In severe cases it can advance to stage where all hair on head is lost (alopecia totalis) or even a complete absence of body hair results (alopecia universalis).

In most cases hair will reappear on its own but until then, condition can be very distressing to sufferers particularly as its cause can be difficult to determine. If you feel you may be suffering from this form of hair loss, seek advice of your physician who will carry out a physical examination and conduct blood tests to help determine cause.

Telogen effluvium is characterized by a general thinning or shedding of hair over a period of months and is most commonly found in people who have recently experienced trauma. Common causes include childbirth, major surgery, severe illness, psychological stress and chemotherapy. The good news is that abnormal growth behavior associated with telogen effluvium is temporary and reversible.

There are numerous other less common hair loss causes that need to be discounted before a course of treatment is chosen. Traction alopecia is loss of hair from constant pulling, usually as result of hair styling. Broken hairs can result in thinning, often caused by excessive styling or exposure to chemicals and sun. Finally, severe illnesses or nutritional deficiencies can cause side effects that may include degrees of hair loss.

I hope this brief article has gotten across message that diagnosing real causes of hair loss is not always a straightforward process. Once you and your physician have identified a cause, then you can work towards restoring your hair to its former glory. And good news is, most forms of hair loss can be treated successfully. The next article in this series will look at some of best hair loss treatments currently available.