Consejos y Golosinas	Consejos Sueños Horóscopo Recetas TipsAndTreats.com Aries Tauro Gemini Cáncer Leo Virgo Libra Escorpio Sagitario Capricornio Acuario Piscis
Inicio | Consejos | Escritores | Trata | Feed | Mapa Del Sitio | Consejos eZine | Publicidad
Astrología | Auto | Belleza | Comunicación | Ordenadores | Jardín | Entretenimiento | Moda | Dinero | Comida | Internet | Citas | Compras | Deportes | Viajar | Varios.

Temas de actualidad

Interpretación de los Sueños Horóscopo Diario Aries Tauro Gemini Cancer Leo Virgo Libra Escorpio Sagitario Capricornio Acuario Piscis Rata Buey Tigre Conejo Dragon Serpiente Caballo Ovejas Mono Gallo Perro Cerdo TAT Móvil   Ezine libre   Distribuir Nuestro RSS

Unwanted Hair Removal Tips

Thoughrecent decades have seen many changes in our concepts of masculinity andfemininity, one thing has not changed: women still are not supposed tohave hair on their face or body. That this is not biologically accurate– most women do have at least some extra hair somewhere – hasnot changed fashion.

Last Updated - 10th September 2006

Indeed our society seems to have grown more “trichophobic”- phobic about body hair. Even pubic hair is now often shaved or waxed.This dislike of hair is not confined to women, more and more men are optingto have chest or back hair removed. In the past, ideals of beauty weremore realistic. In ancient India, a band of hair in the middle of a woman’schest was considered a sign of great beauty. That body hair was more acceptedin earlier times does not help much now since we have to be comfortablein the culture in which we find ourselves.

Despite the assumption that women do not have facial and body hair, manydo. How bothersome this extra hair is depends on the amount and consistency.Having to tweeze a light chin hair once in awhile can be taken in stride.But if you need to spend more than a few minutes each morning removinghair, or if your extra hair is dark and stiff, it tends to be more distressingbecause it is harder to conceal.

Unfortunately, women with hirsutism are often not believed when theyturn to health care providers for help. Some doctors fail to notice theextra hair. Or, if they do, they may tell women that the condition ishereditary with the implication that nothing can be done about it. Whilethere is no question that some families and ethnic groups have a tendencyto more hair, this does not mean that they cannot benefit from treatment.There are other excuses doctors give for not treating hirsutism but womenwith increased hair should not be put off by them. There are effectivetreatments for hirsutism, and women troubled by this condition are entitledto seek help.

How Much Hair is Normal

• Testosterone is thought of as the male hormone but this is not strictlyaccurate because it is present in active levels in women as well asmen. Women’s levels however are only 5 to 10% of men’s levels.
• In both sexes, testosterone levels rise at puberty, causing increasedoiliness of the skin and the appearance of pubic and underarm hair.While we think of these as the only places a woman has body hair, mosthave some on other areas as well: lower legs, upper thighs, betweenthe navel and pubic region, around the nipples and on the chin and upperlip. Some women experience increases in hair on other regions as well:chest and abdomen, lower back, neck and cheeks.
• Half of American women remove facial hair at least once in a whileand ten percent remove it two or more times a week. Some remove evenmore often. Some even use a razor once or twice a day because theirfacial hair grows as quickly as a man’s. Heavy hair growth on womenis not as rare as people think because women with this unfortunate problemdo all they can to hide it. Most never discuss this problem with friendsbecause they feel so embarrassed about it. Women on TV or in moviesor magazines never seem to have any extra hair. The reality is different.There are some well known actresses who have considerable growth offacial or body hair but they either wax it off or the camera is keptslightly out of focus – a trick also routinely used to hide wrinkles.Retouching is the rule also.
• There is no sharp dividing line between normal and abnormal amountsof hair. Facial and body hair is a very personal matter and so a personaldefinition is appropriate: hair that is enough to make a woman afraidthat it will show is too much. However this does not mean that a medicalproblem is present. A few hairs in the following locations are normalfor a woman: outer corners of the upper lip, the chin, around the nipples,between the navel and pubic region and the tops of the thighs. If awoman has more than light growth of hair in these places or if thereis wider coverage of face and body, then the condition of hirsutismcan be said to be present. This degree of extra hair is reason for medicalevaluation, especially if accompanied by irregular periods or weightproblems.

Treatments For Increased Hair

There are basically three approaches: self-removal at home, use of electrolysisor laser and prescription medication.

• Home removal All sorts of methods are in use, but the mostcommon one, tweezing, is the worst, because it pulls the hair out bythe root, which injures the skin. Done for a long time it can give abumpy look to the skin over the jaw. Snipping with a scissors is betterthan plucking though it does not last as long. Bleaches and depilatoriesare OK too; but with depilatories, be sure not to leave them on longerthan the instructions say otherwise there can be considerable irritation.A razor is an effective way to remove hair but many women understandablydo not like to use one. Despite widespread belief to the contrary, removinghair by a razor or other means does not make it grow in faster or darker.
• Electrolysis is a well-established method which is permanent.Continuing treatment is often needed for women with substantial hairgrowth because new follicles become active. To get a good result, electrolysisneeds to be done by a skilled professional using proper equipment. Agood place to start is the Worldwide Registry of Professional ElectrologistsWROPE or the directories of two national professional associations:The International Guild of Professional Electrologists, Inc. and AmericanElectrolysis Association. Many electrologists are highly committed totheir profession and have an excellent understanding of the problemsof women with increased hair growth.
• Laser has been heavily promoted. It is said to offer “permanenthair reduction” though how much the hair is actually reduced inthe long term is difficult to tell. Current laser technology is notsuitable for those with very light or very dark skin. Some get pigmentarychanges from it. Long term studies are lacking so that it is hard totell how happy people will be with the results later on.

Ethnic Variations in Facial and Body Hair

• Asians, both men and women, have relatively little body hair. However,many women in Japan find even slight extra hair growth disturbing. Sometimesit is assumed that women from Mediterranean countries (Italy, Greece,etc.) will not be bothered by extra hair since it is more common inthose parts of the world. However in the media there, as everywhere,photographs of women do not show how much facial and body hair theyreally have. The result is that women with average or slightly morethan average amounts of hair think they are abnormal. Sadly, this tendsto create a feeling of isolation. If you are reading this article becauseyou have extra hair, be reassured, there are millions of other womenlike you.
• Blacks have fewer hairs than whites but the hair tends to be equallynoticeable because it is curly and dark, so the incidence of visiblehirsutism is similar in whites and blacks.
• African-Americans have another problem when they develop excessivehair. The curliness makes the hairs more likely to become ingrown afterthey are removed. This can result in a pimple-like breakout termed PFB(pseudofolliculitis barbae). As these lesions heal, they often leavedark patches do not fade completely. Proper treatment of the hirsutismto reduce ingrown hairs is important to maintain smooth skin coloring.

What Causes Increased Hair

• With only the rarest of exceptions, facial and body hair are due tothe action of androgens, the family of hormones that includes testosterone.Though androgens are loosely called “male hormones,” thisis misleading. All adult males and females have biologically activelevels of testosterone in their blood. The levels in men are about 10times higher than the levels in women. In childhood, androgen levelsare unmeasurably low in both boys and girls.
• At puberty testosterone levels begin to rise in both sexes, but ofcourse much more sharply in boys. Some of the normal events producedby androgens at puberty are: the appearance of pubic and underarm hair,increased oiliness of the face and darkening of the genital skin. Inmales, androgens stimulate sexual feelings, but their role in this regardis far less clear in women.
• As androgen levels increase, more areas of the skin start to respondby showing hair growth. The genital area is most sensitive, followedby the underarms, chin, middle of the upper lip, around the edge ofthe nipples and the midline of the abdomen. Many women have some hairin these latter four locations and in small amounts it is certainlynot abnormal. For a few the amounts are greater, and embarrassment andself-consciousness result.

Lab Tests for Increased Hair

• The most important lab test is testosterone. The so-called free testosteroneshould also be measured. This is the portion of the hormone which isnot attached to protein in the blood and therefore can actually travelinto the tissues. DHEA-S can be converted to testosterone and so shouldalso be measured. Another androgen, androstenedione is useful occasionally.If one or more of these androgens is more than mildly elevated, moretests need to be done to determine the cause and find out which glandthe extra testosterone is coming from – ovary or adrenal or both.
• If periods are irregular, FSH and prolactin should be checked to findout if there is a problem in the ovary or pituitary.
• The most common underlying condition causing increased hair growthis PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome). This is discussed in detail ina separate article on this site. With PCOS, there are often changesin metabolism and other tests are needed to identify these so that theycan be treated.
• A variety of rare conditions such as late-onset adrenal hyperplasiarequire more elaborate work-up by an endocrinologist.

Have Too Much Hair But My Hormone Tests AreNormal – How Can This Be?

• If your testosterone is normal, but you shave daily, does this meanthat hormones are not involved? The answer is clearly “no.”Hirsutism is always due to testosterone stimulating the hair follicles.Why then do many women with hirsutism have normal levels of this hormone?The answer is that some people have hair follicles which are extremelysensitive to testosterone. Think about body hair on men. Some have alittle and others have a lot even though their testosterone levels aresimilar. In women the situation is the same; whatever their testosteronelevels, those with more sensitive follicles have more hair. Hair folliclesensitivity to testosterone is the single most important factor in increasedhair growth.
• Some women have the opposite situation: hair follicles which are insensitiveto testosterone and so have hardly any body hair. This is usual in Asiansbut is uncommon in whites or blacks.
• Lab tests are important in medical evaluation of hirsutism but theyhave their limitations, too. The laboratory does not tell us what iswrong with someone, rather it aids in doing so. Tests are ordered whenthere are symptoms or other reasons to suspect a disease. But a negativetest does not mean there is no problem, simply that the test has failedto tell us the cause.

Other Reasons For Hirsutism With Normal Testosterone

• Women’s levels of testosterone are at their highest in the lateteens and early 20s. After that levels decline until after menopausewhen they are usually very low. But here’s the unfair part: oncestimulated by testosterone, hair follicles stay over-active. A womanmight have slightly high testosterone levels when she is in her 20s,but by the time she has a workup some years later, the elevations arealready long gone. However the follicles haven’t forgotten andkeep on producing thick, dark hairs.
• Another cause of misleading test results is that testosterone is releasedinto the blood episodically. Levels fluctuate and so testosterone maybe high only sometimes. But hair follicles are stimulated every timethe testosterone level goes up. A single blood draw may miss the peaks.
• A sudden or large increase in hair makes it important to see if hormonelevels are high. If they are, a hormonal disorder is present and morework-up may be needed. If levels are normal, there is usually no hormonaldisorder, just a problem with sensitive follicles.
• Increased hair can be treated whether testosterone levels are normalor elevated. Medications which block androgens such as spironolactone(Aldactone®) work in both situations because they protect the hairfollicles against the testosterone.
• If you have increased hair but normal hormones, don’t believeit if you are told that nothing can be done. There are several treatmentswhich can greatly reduce the amount of hair. If your testosterone ishigh, or there are other abnormal hormone levels, treatment can significantlyreduce hair but more medications may be needed in order to help withother effects of the hormonal abnormality.

Medical Terms for Extra Hair

• Hirsutism refers to increased hair in the so-called sexual distribution.Sexual distribution simply means skin areas on which men and women havedifferent amounts of hair. Hair growth on these areas is due to theeffect of testosterone on the hair follicle. As I have just mentioned,hirsutism can affect chin, upper lip, sideburn area, neck, chest, abdomenand pubic region as well as upper thighs.
• Hypertrichosis refers to extra hair on other areas and which is notcaused by testosterone. Areas which can be affected by hypertrichosisinclude the forehead, upper cheeks or, in the case of prepubertal children,anywhere on the body. Hair on the forearms and lower legs can be hormonalor non-hormonal. More than mild hypertrichosis is uncommon. Certaininfrequently used drugs can cause it, for example, cyclosporin, usedto prevent transplant rejection.
• The dark, stiff opaque hairs found with hirsutism are called terminalhairs. Very light, fine hairs which are barely visible are termed vellus.With testosterone stimulation vellus hairs develop into terminal ones.Sometimes the vellus hairs start to become more noticeable but are stillfine – a situation colloquially referred to as “peach fuzz.”This sort of hair can appear at or after menopause.
• Almost all women concerned about increased hair growth have hirsutism,not hypertrichosis.

Hope For Women With Unwanted Hair

• Whatever you have been told, it is possible to find out what is causingunwanted hair growth and to get effective treatment. Treatment willnot necessarily remove every unwanted hair but can reduce it considerably,making removal less of a burden and reducing insecurity that otherswill discover the secret.

Medications For Increased Hair

• Although hirsutism shows on the skin, it is started by hormones inthe blood. It is therefore as much an internal as external condition.Treatment directed at the hormonal cause can be quite effective. Severalof these treatments have been in use for many years but are not widelyknown. Most of the prescription medications are FDA approved for otherindications but not for hirsutism. They can be prescribed for hirsutismhowever.
• The following is meant as general information. What treatment is suitablefor an individual must be worked out with a physician.
• Proper treatment depends on hormone levels. It generally involvestwo components:
  
  • Lowering the level of free testosterone. Oral contraceptives(OCs) are often used for this since some will lower free testosteroneby about half. However by themselves, OCs help only slightly. Theyslow hair growth rates but not down to normal. Some specific oralcontraceptives seem to be better than others for hirsutism and relatedproblems. OCs work best when combined with the next form of medicaltreatment:
  • Blocking the effect of testosterone on the hair follicle. Severalmedications have this effect. Here are some of the most often used:

Spironolactone - The medication most commonly used to block testosteroneis spironolactone (Aldactone®) but it must be used in the proper dose.Originally introduced for treatment of high blood pressure, spironolactoneis probably now more often used for hirsutism. Doses for hirsutism arehigher than those for high blood pressure. Spironolactone can cause menstrualperiods to come closer together but combined use with an OC will usuallykeep the cycle regulated. Because it is a diuretic (water pill) spironolactonecan cause slight dehydration. Signs of this include mild fatigue and dizzinessbut this can be almost always be prevented by adequate water intake.

Finasteride (Proscar® and Propecia®) - Finasteride issold in different doses under the brand names Proscar ® and Propecia®for prostate enlargement and male pattern baldness respectively. Thismedication blocks the enzyme 5 alpha-reductase which converts testosteroneto its more active form, DHT (dihydrotestosterone). DHT is the hormoneresponsible for the gradual enlargement of the prostate which occurs inmost men beyond the age of fifty. A form of this same enzyme is activein the hair follicle and plays a role in both increased hair and lossof hair from the scalp. We know this because people with a rare inheritedcondition of deficiency of this enzyme have scant body hair. Unfortunately,the males with this rare condition also have abnormal genital development.

Finasteride seems to have some effectiveness for hirsutism though itmay not be quite as effective as spironolactone. (It probably can alsohelp alopecia but this is discussed in the article on hair loss.) Howeverit does not have the common spironolactone side effects of increased waterloss and more frequent periods.

Risks of finasteride - There is a major problem which greatlylimits use of finasteride in women. The fear is that if a woman takesfinasteride when pregnant with a male child, genital abnormalities mayoccur. This has not been reported in humans but remains a grave concernnonetheless. The labeling for finasteride includes warnings that it shouldnot be taken by women. This is because of the birth defect concern.

Finasteride has been used for hirsutism and alopecia in women, usuallythose who cannot become pregnant — because they have gone throughmenopause or had a tubal ligation or hysterectomy. Use of finasterideby women is a decision which needs to be thought through carefully withthe input of a knowledgeable physician and reliable means for preventionof pregnancy.

Actually, there are similar concerns about any anti-androgen and anywomen who takes such medications must be aware of this and take suitableprecautions not to become pregnant.

The Cream for Facial Hair - There is a new medication, Vaniqa®(eflornithine) which is FDA approved for treatment of facial hair. Itis applied twice a day and works by slowing the metabolism of the hairfollicle. It does not eliminate the hair but simply slows its growth.I was involved in its development and many women are happy with it. Thething to remember is that it is basically for women who are removing hair.By slowing down how quickly it regrows, Vaniqa can decrease how oftenhair needs to be removed and make a woman more confident that her secretwill not be apparent a few hours after removal. It can be combined withother medications.

How long does it take to see improvement? - Because hair growthchanges slowly, treatments to alter it work gradually. Though improvementcan begin to show within the first 3 or 4 months, it is after that thedifference starts to become more and more apparent. It does take patiencebut most women are happy with the result if treatment is done properly.A regimen customized to a woman’s individual hormonal pattern ismuch more likely to produce a satisfying result.

Login | Contacto | FAQ | Términos | Política Anti Spam

Copyright © TipsAndTreats.com. Todos los derechos reservados. La reproducción total o parcial en cualquier forma o medio sin el permiso escrito está prohibida. El uso de este sitio web está sujeto a los términos y condiciones. Los enlaces rotos? Problema con el sitio? Enviar email a admin@tipsandtreats.com

© Consejos y trata. Un sitio web basado en la información (2005-2012)