Regaine Foam – Do something about Hair Loss

Hair loss in men is extremely common. You only have to look around you.

 

In the UK, 8 million men suffer some degree of hair loss with almost 40% of men showing noticeable hair loss by the age of 35.

The most common type of hair loss is hereditary hair loss, which is also referred to as ‘male pattern baldness’ or ‘androgenetic alopecia’. This accounts for 95% of cases of hair loss in men.

As the name suggests, hereditary hair loss is an inherited condition which becomes increasingly common with age. It is thought to be linked to the male hormone, androgen.

Regaine Foam is a great new way to deliver Minoxidil, which is a highy effective medicinal ingredient. In a clinical study, 9 out of 10 men who use Regaine Foam twice daily said that they kept or re-grew hair.

It may take up to 16 weeks of using Regaine Foam twice a day, every day before most men will see an improvement in their condition.

Heat from the scalp allows the foam to dissolve quickly. Once the foam is dissolved it is absorbed into the affected area.

Regaine Foam is non-messy and it only has to be applied twice a day – in the morning and in the evening.

Before new hair can begin to grow, old hair may need to come out. Don’t worry if this happens – it’s all part of the process and it shows that your treatment has begun to work. Simply continue to apply Regaine Foam morning and night everyday. It is important to remember that once you stop using Regaine Foam the treatment benefits will be lost.[egg id=”4″]

Regaine Foam can be used at all stages of hair loss, but there is a greater chance of success if you start using it in the early stages.

Minoxidil can promote hair regrowth in four different ways;

1. Stimulates follicles to move from resting to growth phase
2. Increases length of time in the growing phase
3. Increases blood flow to the follicle
4. Works to reverse follicle miniaturisation

 

What Causes Hereditary Hair Loss?

There are 3 main stages of the Hair Cycle:

 

Stage 1 – Anagen or ‘Growth’ phase:

• Hair shaft diameter increases
• Hair reaches maximum length
• Lasts around 33 months

Stage 2 – Catagen or ‘ Transitional’ phase:

• Hair begins to stop growing
• Lasts around 2-3 weeks

Stage 3 – Telogen or ‘Resting’ phase:

• Hair Stops growing completely
• Hair shedding begins
• Lasts around 5-6 weeks

In hair loss, hair follicles shrink or miniaturise causing

• more hair follicles to enter the resting phase
• the resting phase to last longer
• the growth phase to get shorter

British and Italian researchers are warning that not sleeping enough can considerably shorten your life span. They define this as sleeping less than 6 hours a night.

Their research shows that people sleeping for less than 6 hours a night are 12% more likely to die over a 25-year period than people who sleep for the recommended 6-8 hours a night.

A link was also found for people who sleep for more than 9 hours, however this is thought to just be a sign of poor health.

Sleep journal reports the findings, based on 1.5m people in 16 studies.

This new study looked at the relationship between sleep and mortality by using earlier studies from the UK, US and European and East Asian countries.

All causes of premature death were linked to getting either too little or too much sleep outside of the recommended six to eight hours per night.

Professor Francesco Cappuccio, leader of the Sleep, Health and Society Programme at the UK’s University of Warwick, said: “Modern society has seen a gradual reduction in the average amount of sleep people take and this pattern is more common amongst full-time workers, suggesting that it may be due to societal pressures for longer working hours and more shift-work.

“On the other hand, the deterioration of our health status is often accompanied by an extension of our sleeping time.”

If the link between a lack of sleep and death is truly causal, it would equate to over 6.3 million attributable deaths in the UK in people over 16 years of age.

Prof Cappuccio believes that further studies are needed to determine exactly why sleep is so vital to our long term health.

Professor Jim Horne, of the Loughborough Sleep Research Centre, said Other things may be the issue and that sleep could just be an indicator of what is going wrong.

“Sleep is just a litmus paper to physical and mental health. Sleep is affected by many diseases and conditions, including depression,” he said.

And getting improved sleep may not make someone better or live longer, he said.

“But having less than five hours a night suggests something is probably not right.

“Five hours is insufficient for most people and being drowsy in the day increases your risk of having an accident if driving or operating dangerous machinery.”

There are many medicines available to help with sleep disturbance and insomnia.

There are many supplements available that contain Zinc, but what are the benefits of Zinc supplements?

The refining of cereal grains, a major dietary staple in the UK, has been shown to remove upto 90% of the available zinc content of these foodstuffs. This, combined with the trend to eat less animal-derived protein, is likely to be one of the reasons why a staggering one out of three adults in the UK receive less than the Reference Nutrient Intake (RNI) for Zinc.

Zinc is an integral part of insulin, the hormone used for the treatment of diabetes, and is essential for all protein synthesis in the body. Any extra physical or mental demands made on the body can increase the need for zinc or cause our bodies to lose extra zinc, whereas phytate and fibre rich foods inhibit the absorption of zinc from food.

One fifth of zinc in the body is found to be in the skin. Zinc helps tissue renewal and is involved in some of the enzymatic reactions necessary for skin’s normal oil gland function.

The maintenance of the health of several body systems such as the nervous, immune and reproductive systems are influenced by zinc, as are the senses of taste and smell.

There are a number of zinc supplements available. Lamberts do a full range of different  options. One of these is the Zinc as Citrate Tablets and another popular choice is the Zinc Plus Lozenges.

For our full range of products containing zinc click here.

The menopause is marked by the ending of menstruation and occurs at an average age of 50, but the usual range is from 47-52. The menopausecan be a challenging time for amny women as they may experience pysiological changes and have to make decisions regarding the range of different treatment options available. Due to the reported negative side effects many women decide not to use HRT.

It is important to remember that a healthy diet during the menopause can maintain well-being together with heart and bone health. A diet in low saturated fat and high in fruits, vegetables and grains is recommended as well as an adequate amount of calcium.

Menopace by Vitabiotics is the UK’s number one selling supplement for the menopause. Menopace includes B Vitamins, chronium and selenium as well as vitamin B6, zinc and magnesium, which are used by the body in the production of G.L.A (gamma linolenic acid). GLA is a precursor of the body’s own hormone like substances which help regulate changes in hormone balance.

Menopace also contains vitamin D3, which helps maintain calcium levels in the body. Bone health is particularly important for women during the menopause, since bone loss accelerates from 0.1% to 3% per annum during this time.

Vitamin E, which may be of benefit together with mixed B vitamins, which are involved in the maintenance of the nervouse system and may help contribute to a nrmal sense of well-being are also included. Menopace does not contain any hormones.

Menopace Plus combines the original Menopace tablet with a unique active botanical tablet in a handy dual pack to provide even greater support.

Each active botanical tablet provides a special blend of natural plant extracts all recognised for their importance during and after the menopause, including soy isoflavones, sage, green tea and flaxseed lignans.

Menopace and Menopace Plus can be used as a food supplement alongside medications such as HRT. They also double up as a complete multivitamin, so there is no need to worry about taking any other multivitamin supplements.

Every year people over-indulge at Christmas Time and New Years. So, we thought that we would put together a list of the best ways of avoiding a hangover after this years festivities. Please feel free to add your own tips in the comments below!

Top Tip Number 1: Vegetable Soup – Apparently having a bowl of Vegetable soup will give your body all of the antioxidants that it will need to protect your cells and line your stomach.

Top Tip Number 2: Prepare Your Body – We would also recommend taking a multivitamin supplement to prepare your body for the loss of nutrients through frequent urination. We would not advise taking the multivitimin in the soup as this may not taste very nice.

Top Tip Number 3: Don’t Use Fizzy Mixers – Australian Researchers have found that fizzy mixers, and in particular diet drinks, increase the amount of alcohol that is absorbed into your bloodstream. We would advise using water or fruit juice as a mixer to avoid this! Apparently you should also avoid having Ice in your drink too as the low temperature opens a small valve in the roof of your stomach which encourages you to gulp down your drink rather that sip it slowly and space out your alcohol intake!

Top Tip Number 4: Avoid Cheap Drinks – According to Australia’s National Drug Research Institute, cheaper drinks (for example whisky and champagne) will intensify the resulting hangover. This is because it contains more congeners, which are the agents in alcohol that give you a hangover.

Top Tip Number 5: Stay Hydrated – Drinking a glass of water between your drinks could help to avoid your hangover by keeping your body hydrated. Dehydration is one of the main factors of any hangover.

Top Tip Number 6: Don’t Mix your Drinks –  Experienced drinkers swear to this. Stick to one type of drink through out the night.

Top Tip Number 7: Knowing when to stop – When you get to the point where you are not sure if it is a good idea to have another drink or not then it is probably the right point to say no. Remember some alcoholic drinks take a bit of time to effect you and so pacing yourself is the best way to go.

Top Tip Number 8: Do Not Drink and Drive – If you wake up in Jail then your hangover is going to seem a lot worse!

Top Tip Number 9: A Glass of Milk – Researchers at King’s College London say that milk will help hydrate the body without making you pee throughout the night. Milk also contains tryptophan, which crosses into the brain and turns into serotonin, helping you get a good night’s sleep.

Top Tip Number 10: Treat the After Effects – Resolve Extra is a great way to deal with the symptoms of a hangover. It helps you to deal with Headaches and also upset stomachs associated with ‘overindulgence’! Vitamin B6 is also thought to help treat a hangover. Foods that contain good levels of Vitamin B6 include bananas, peas, chicken, fish and liver. Antioxidants, like Redoxon or Immunace, help to break down the free-radicals that are caused by your body breaking down the alcohol.

Finally, we would like to point out that the absolute best way to avoid a hangover is to not drink any alcohol in the first place!

Please let us know your tips for avoiding hangovers in the comments below.

Would you get enough magnesium in your diet? Were you aware it could help prevent type 2 diabetes?

Dr. Ka He from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and colleagues have found that people who ingested the most magnesium from foods and vitamin supplements were about half as likely to develop diabetes in the next two decades as folks who took no magnesium at all.

Inside their study, the researchers looked at magnesium intake and diabetes risk in 4,497 males and females aged 18 to 30 years old, none of whom were diabetic at the study’s outset. Throughout a 20-year follow-up period, 330 of the subjects developed diabetes.

The folks with the highest magnesium intake were 47 percent less prone to develop diabetes than those eating the lowest intakes (average of 100 milligrams of magnesium per 1,000 calories).

The researchers noted, however, that large clinical trials testing the effects of magnesium on diabetes risk are essential to determine whether a causal relationship truly exists.

The outcome on this study could explain why usage of whole grain products, which can be full of magnesium, is related to lower diabetes risk. And while grains can be a common way to obtain magnesium, there are numerous other sources of magnesium to think about.

Vegetables including spinach are great sources because the middle of the chlorophyll molecule (which gives vegetables their color) contains magnesium. Some legumes (beans and peas), seeds and nuts, and whole, unrefined grains will also be good sources.

Tap water may also be a source of magnesium, but the amount varies based on the water supply. Water that naturally contains more minerals is called “hard.”

The proposed arguments why an increased intake of magnesium could lower the risk for developing type ii diabetes vary, but according to the National Institutes of Health, Magnesium plays a crucial role in carbohydrate metabolism. It may influence the release and activity of insulin, the hormone that helps manage blood glucose (sugar) levels.

The lesson? Increasing magnesium intake could possibly be necessary for improving insulin sensitivity, reducing systemic inflammation, and decreasing diabetes risk.

And you? What are you waiting for? Start now to introduce more magnesium rich foods in your daily diet!

About our Guest Author: Anna Sophie Bernstein is writing for the hypoglycemic diet website, her personal hobby blog dedicated to suggestions to aid individuals to prevent Diabetes and enhance the awareness on healthy eating.

According to research done by St Andrews University eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly can improve your attractiveness more than make-up or cosmetic surgery.

The research showed that people tended to pick up on slight changes to skin colour and that people prefered the colours, or hues, that would reflect a healthier lifestyle.

“What we’re finding is that an attractive skin colour is one that is slightly red, slightly increased in yellowness and is lighter than normal,” said Dave Perret, psychologist and author of “In Your Face: The new science of human attraction“.

“That combination is probably due to diet and exercise: exercise increasing the blood flow and diet changing the chemical composition of our skin.”

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“They’re presented with a screen with somebody’s face and they’re able to change the colour,” PhD student Ross Whitehead explained to the BBC reporter who went to see him.

“In this instance they’re able to manipulate the face’s yellowness.

“We find that from the original starting colour of the face, they choose to slightly increase the yellowness to improve the appearance.”

The results were that irrespective of race or colour, people consistently preferred faces that were slim, light in colour, with red and yellow hues which tend to give the impression of a person being healthy and having a warmer appearance.

The opposite was also found to be true. People did not like the wider faces with a paler, pasty look as they appeared unhealthy.

The advice that comes off the back of this research is to not spend money on expensive clothes and cosmetics but to spend time looking after yourself, eating healthily and exercising.

At Pharmacy First we would suggest that one way to increase your level of health might be to supplement your diet with appropriate Vitamin Supplements. This is why we endeavour to keep our prices as low as possible to make them as affordable as possible for as many people as possible.

Research has found that people who exercise more are less prone to colds.

A 1000 person study found that people who are more active have about half the chance of colds and viruses than people who were not active. It also showed that if the cold is not prevented the severity of it is reduced massively.

Experts have told the British Journal of Sports Medicine that the reduction in suseptablity could be because exercise helps strengthen the immune system to fight off viruses.

However you do not even have to do much exercise at all – those who simply believe they are fit and healthy also seem to have a lower risk of contracting colds and flu.

Adults can expect to suffer 2-5 colds per year. This latest study suggests that there are lifestyle choices that you can do to improve your chances of avoiding them or lowering their severity.

For their study, U.S. researchers asked healthy volunteers to keep track of all coughs and sneezes that were experienced during a period of three months during the autumn and winter. The volunteers were also asked how many times in a week that they did exercise of at least 20 minutes and whether it was intense enough to break a sweat.

They were asked about their lifestyle, diet, and recent stressful events, because they can influence the human immune system. Being older, male and married seemed to reduce the frequency of colds, as did eating plenty of fruit.

But the most significant factor was found to be the amount of exercise that each person did and how physically fit that they beleived themselves to be. Feeling fit and active to reduce the risk of a cold by almost 50%.

People who were physically active on five or more days of the week were unwell with a cold for about five days of the three-month period, compared to nine days for those who did little or no exercise.

And even when they were ill, they suffered less with their symptoms.

The severity of symptoms fell by 41% among those who felt the fittest and by 31% among those who were the most active.

Lead researcher Dr David Nieman and his team, from Appalachian State University in North Carolina, say bouts of exercise spark a temporary rise in immune system cells circulating around the body that can attack foreign invaders.

Although these levels fall back within a few hours, each session is likely to provide an immune boost to fight off infections like the common cold.

Professor Steve Field, chairman of the Royal College of General Practitioners, said: “This is yet more evidence for doing exercise. It reflects what we have believed for some time.

“Exercise makes us feel better and now here’s more evidence that it is good for us.”

The common cold

• Common cold infections are so widespread that there can be very few humans who escape infection each year
• Adults with regular contact with children are most exposed to infection
• Cold viruses can be passed from person to person by hand contact or by touching contaminated surfaces such as door handles

A Reputable Lightening Cream

What are Skin Lightening Creams and how do they work?

Skin lightening creams are used by some black and Asian people who wish to make their skin fairer and to treat acne and blemishes. Melanin is the pigment that gives the skin its colour. Skin lightening creama usually work by causing the breakdown of melanin or blocking melanin production.

What are the illegal and harmful ingredients found in some lightening creams?

• Mercury
• Steroids
• Hydroquinones

There are many skin lightening creama that are safe as long as they are used as directed on the packaging, such as the Pharmaclinix range.

What are the possible health effects of using illegal skin lightening creams?

• Mercury is poisonous and can cause damage to the kidneys, skin, brain, central nervous system and the digestive system. Mercury accumulates in the kidneys and can effect their function. Effects on the central nervous system may include fatigue, weakness, headaches, depression and insomnia. Mercury can affect the skin, causing irritation, reddening, rashes and peeling, and also raise blood pressure and heart rate.
• Mercury exposure from using skin lightening creams may be harmful to babies developing in the womb and breast feeding mothers who use these creams may have mercury in their blood and therefore be exposing their children to mercury.
• Hydroquinone has been banned from use in cosmetics in the UK because it irritates the skin.
• Creams containing steroids are prescribed by GPs and dermatologists for certain skin conditions but unsupervised use of high-dose steroid creams can be harmful to health.

What should you do if you or someone you know uses skin lightening creams?

• Do not buy or use any cosmetics products containing mercury or hydroquinones.
• Do not use cosmetics products containing steroids unless for have been prescribed them.
• Do not use skin lightening creams that do not have the supplier’s name and address in the UK and a list of ingredients in English as these may be illegal and harmful to your health.
• If you have any concerns about any creams that you think may be affecting your health then please ask your GP.

What skin lightening cream should I use?

Our most popular skin lightening creams are made by Pharmaclinix and the biggest sellers are lightenex for women and lightenex for men. The full range includes eye creams and body lotions as well as face masks and creams. The Pharmaclinix range use the active ingredient Kojic dipalmitate, which comes from a japenese mushroom extract and does not use hydroquinone or mercury.

At any one time, nappy rash affects one in three babies and those aged 9 to 12 months are the most frequently affected. Every day, mums will be going to pharmacies looking for advice about nappy rash.

Lots of mums report cases of nappy rash linked to teething. Large amounts of saliva are produced and swallowed during teething which may cause runny faeces and lead to nappy rash.

The other times when a baby is likely to be susceptible to nappy rash are:

• First sleep through the night
• After Antibiotics
• Diarrhoea
• Starting on solid foods
• Common cold
• Changing from breast to bottle

Most cases of nappy rash are mild and can be treated using creams, such as Metanium, and the following skin care advice:

• Leave nappies off for as long as practically possible
• Clean and change the child as soon as possible after soiling the nappy
• Dry gently after cleaning avoiding vigourous rubbing.

Metanium is specially formulated to both soothe and effectively treat nappy rash. Metanium contains titanium salts which get to work straigh away to actively treat nappy rash. It acts as a non-occlusive barrier film on the skin, allowing it to ‘breathe’ whilst protecting it from further irritation. Metanium is lanolin free.

Bepanthen Nappy Care Ointment is used in a similar way and has similar affects on treating nappy rash.