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Our Recommendations for Male Hair Regrowth
Our recommendations, based on 20 years of successful research on skin and hair and copious feedback from many men over the years, are:
Start with Copper Peptides
Copper Peptides (CPs) have both skin repair and hair growth enhancement effects.
The copper-peptide concept of tissue renewal is based on 25 years of research. Dr. Pickart invented the Copper Peptides.
We recommend using CPs four to five times a week as a light coating applied before bedtime.
Many men tell us that Copper Peptides:
(1) Markedly reduce hair loss in about three weeks
(2) Improve their scalp health and reduce irritation
(3) Result in a thicker head of hair in about four months
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Emu Oil Can Help
Other individuals have also reported that the combination of CPs and emu oil often produce drastic reductions in hair loss and increased hair growth.
Recently, Dr. Michael Holick (Boston University Medical Center) reported a clinical study that found emu oil accelerated skin regeneration and also stimulated hair growth.
He wrote: "The hair follicles were more robust, the skin thickness was remarkably increased...Also, we discovered in the same test that over 80 percent of hair follicles that had been 'asleep' were awakened, and began growing hair".
For More Hair Growth Add in Minoxidil (2% or 5%)
For more hair stimulation, add in 2% Minoxidil. This can be progressively increased to 5% Minoxidil. Sometimes minoxidil produces scalp irritation.
If this happens, stop the minoxidil and use only Copper Peptides until your scalp health is restored. Then reuse the 2% minoxidil and the 5% minoxidil if your scalp remains healthy.
Professor Hideo Uno, one of the world's top scientists on hair growth (and who wrote the textbook on Rogaine), found CPs and Minoxidil work together to produce increased hair growth.
Note: Please thoroughly research all precautions on Minoxidil before purchasing this product.
Lowering Testosterone Can Benefit Hair Growth
Many hair growth therapies focus on either reducing testosterone or DHT effects in the body. Many men worry about the potential effects of of reducing testosterone effects. There is actually very little to worry over.
| Occupation | Blood Testosterone Level and Standard Deviation (nanograms/deciliter) |
| Unemployed | 720 +/- 12 |
| Production Workers and Assembly Line | 705 +/- 8 |
| Operator and Laborer | 695 +/- 11 |
| Service Industries | 690 +/- 21 |
| Technical and Sales | 668 +/- 9 |
| Professional or Manager | 640 +/- 10 |
| Farmer | 626 +/- 22 |
An excellent book on testosterone and behavior is James McBride Dabbs "Heroes, Rogues, and Lovers: Testosterone and Behavior" (McGraw Hill, 2000). The above data is from Hill's studies.
In modern advanced cultures, somewhat lower testosterone appear to be of great benefit. Men with highest testosterone levels have lower incomes, lower social status, more unstable relationships, and more difficulty in life.
For our ancestors 20,000 years ago, individual strength and aggression were critical to survival.
But obtaining rewards in modern cultures usually require patience, cunning, and interpersonal skills.
The use of anti-androgens and DHT blockers may improve male health. Testosterone has often been suspected as a cause of the increased heart disease in men.
Studies of men who were castrated in the 1920's in the USA found that they lived an average of 13.6 years longer than comparable men. In contrast, smoking one pack of cigarettes daily reduces one's life span by an average of 4.9 years. (Hamilton & Mesler 1969)
| Level of Testosterone | Negatives | Positives |
| High Testosterone | Higher Unemployment. More prone to violence. Fewer stable relationships. More Interpersonal conflict. Lower social status. More arrests and imprisonment. | Better at armed combat. More muscular. Better at concentrating on single project. More direct approach to problems. Better as trial lawyers. Would have an advantage in a more primitive, less civilized society |
| Moderate | In modern, advanced societies there are few negatives | Higher income. More stable relationships. More social status. Higher education. Better verbal skills. Better as corporate lawyers. |
| Very Low | Little interest in sex. Little interest in domination of others. | No male pattern baldness. Live 13.6 years longer than average men |
Testosterone and DHT
Testosterone and DHT, a metabolic product of testosterone, are required in males for normal development in the womb and for development in adolescence of libido or sex drive.
They are important in the development of secondary sexual characteristics such as pubic and facial hair, and the maturation of male muscle mass and skeletal integrity.
Testosterone is the male sex hormone associated with sexual drive, fertility, muscle growth, and male psychosocial attitudes.
DHT, is more essential for the fetal development of the male reproductive system and the male genitalia. If in males, the enzyme which converts testosterone into DHT is lacking during fetal development, then the female-appearing genitalia system will be formed although these men will be genetically males.
These males appear physically as rather thin-hipped and small-breasted but highly attractive females.
Normally, personality difficulties emerge since these men possess many male attitudes. At this point, genetic testing often reveals their basic male identity and hormonal therapy is often used to switch their body into a more male growth pattern.
However, later in life, a higher than normal blood DHT level appears to cause premature aging of the male reproductive system, male pattern baldness, and the prostate condition known as benign prostate hyperplasia which is a non-cancerous enlargement of the prostate gland.
An enlargement of the prostate gland makes urination increasingly difficult in men as they age. The production of DHT in older men is not well controlled by biochemical feedback mechanisms and compounds such a saw palmetto oil or the Merck drug Proscar (finasteride) are used to reduce the body's level of DHT.
DHT Inhibition and Immune Cell Damage
The most current idea on androgenic scalp hair loss is that it is a two step process:
(1) DHT acts on sensitive hair follicles to inhibit their growth and shrink their size.
This is followed by (2) a decay in the health and vitality of the follicle and the surrounding skin.
This causes immune system cells to damage the hair follicle and ultimately stop its hair growth. Blocking both of these steps is the best method to stop hair loss and regrow hair.
DHT is produced from the male sex hormone, testosterone, by an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase. Not all hair follicles are inhibited by DHT, for example, body hair in men may increase while scalp hair is lost.
Conflicting Studies on DHT and Hair Loss
Studies on DHT and hair loss are conflicting but the general conclusion is that DHT is a key player in hair loss but other factors influence the final outcome.
It does appear that hair follicles in balding individuals are more sensitive to inhibition by DHT.
The first link of hair loss to testosterone metabolism was the very ancient observation that men who were castrated at a young age did not develop pattern baldness.
Modern research has confirmed this but such men can develop baldness if they receive supplemental testosterone.
Individuals born with a deficiency of 5-alpha reductase suffer neither scalp hair loss nor prostate hyperplasia. The deficiency reduces levels of DHT and spares sensitive hair follicles.
(Imperato-McGinley J et al Science 1974; 186:1213-5) Studies reported that adult males with congenital 5 alpha-reductase deficiency had decreased levels of dihydrotestosterone (DHT).
These individuals had a small prostate gland throughout life and did not develop BPH. They also did not develop male pattern baldness or acne.
On the other hand, the genes controlling 5-alpha reductase activity and DHT production are not the only factor involved in balding.
In a study of 828 healthy families comprising 3000 individuals, both young, bald individuals as well as older, non-bald individuals were compared for the genes controlling DHT production.
It was found that the genes controlling DHT production in men are not the cause of male pattern baldness. This study shows that there is no overproduction of DHT, or if there is it is not caused by the genes that control DHT production (5-alpha reductase activity).
Another interesting finding of this study was that baldness did not follow a simple genetic inheritance pattern which suggests that multiple genes and or environmental factors control hair loss (Genetic analysis of male pattern baldness and the 5-alpha-reductase genes, Ellis JA; Stebbing M; Harrap SB, J Invest Dermatol, 110(6):849-53 1998).
Tips for Beard Growth and Skin Protective Shaving Techniques
CLEANSING
1. Use a mild cleanser with a neutral or slightly acidic pH. Do not use soaps, since they are too alkaline and may increase skin irritation.
2. Try using a conditioner which will help make your beard softer and add an especially well-groomed look.
GROWTH STIMULATION
1. Use Minoxidil to help hair growth.
2. Use a copper peptide scalp product for beard, mustache, or sideburn luster.
3. Apply a light amount of a hair-healthy biological oil to assist penetration of the products and for enhanced scalp moisturization.
PREVENTING RAZOR BUMPS
Razor bumps (or pseudofolliculitis barbae) are small red bumps on the skin that appear soon after shaving. They are caused by hairs that curl back and grow into the skin. This problem is especially common among men with thick, curly hair. To prevent razor bumps, use these methods:
1. Take hot showers before shaving or wash your face with warm towel—this will help soften the skin.
2. Shave in the direction your hair growth.
3. After shaving, rinse your face with cold water or press a cold cloth to your face.
4. Use a hydroxy acid serum with salicylic acid — The thicker the upper layer of dead skin cells (stratum corneum), the greater the chance of developing razor bumps. This is why it is important to keep the skin properly exfoliated.
For more information on How to Prevent Ingrown Hairs see our page at: www.folligen.com/ingrownhairs
Questions or Advice?
Email Dr. Loren Pickart at drlorenpickart@gmail.com
Call us at 1-800-405-1912 Monday Through Friday (8 am to 6 pm) PST