Confession #8: Hair Today. Gone Tomorrow.

I love a good birthday card. Maxine cards are my favorites — you know, the little old lady with the purple hair. I even have some Maxine slippers with purple hair that my sister-in-law gave me when I turned 40. My kids think they are hilarious. 

Well, I found another hilarious birthday card at the Beehive the other day. I just have to share it with you. It’s not a Maxine card, but it shares the same sarcastic view of life-as-an-aging-woman. “These aren’t chin hairs…they’re stray eyebrows!” is the comment on the front of the card. Those words are decoratively written on a sign held by an obviously-more-mature-but-trying-to-look-younger lady wearing a sash that says “Miss Optimistic.” Inside the card are the words “Happy Birthday to an ageless beauty.”

What is ageless beauty? And how about those stray eyebrows? I’ll save the ageless beauty column for a rainy day, but sister, we are going to talk about those stray eyebrows.

One of the most difficult parts of growing older is hair. And hair is one of those outside garnishments which envelopes the self-esteem of every self-respecting, card-carrying Southern woman! You know, we already have the challenges of heat and humidity around here. But there are also internal challenges that wreak havoc on our pursuit of a “good hair day”.

Did you know that hormones, the body’s communication system, can greatly affect your hair? Two years ago, I was suffering from a great amount of hair loss due to an undiscovered thyroid issue. Handfuls of hair, I’m telling you! Clean out my hairbrush every day kind of hair loss. And to make matters worse, I was growing hair in places I didn’t want it — my ears, my face, my chin, etc.! That was due to an elevated testosterone level. After having my hormones tested and discovering how out-of-whack my hormone levels were, I tried bioidentical hormones, achieved a better hormone balance and the hair started staying on my head instead of jumping off my head and into my hairbrush! Plus, the random hair growth in unwanted places decreased dramatically!

So why am I bringing up a subject we’d rather not talk about? Especially in the holiday/New Year issue of The Minute Magazine? Well, here’s my answer. ‘Tis the season! We’ve got to look good for our holiday parties. And then there’s that whole issue of “New Year/New You” for 2010. With holidays and New Year resolutions approaching, there’s no time like the present to talk about hair!

Hair Tip #1: Hormone Balance

It doesn’t matter what you do, if you don’t solve your body’s mysteries, you will just have to continually deal with this problem. So let’s start with hormone testing. If your doctor doesn’t test hormones, then find one who does. And make sure that you are retested on a periodic basis. Hormones can become unbalanced again due to stress or other events in your body. So this is a constant monitoring process. You and your doctor should have an ongoing dialogue about your hormone levels. And moms, this can affect your teenagers, too. As their hormones fluctuate, hair growth can result. Hormone testing can  be beneficial for teenagers, too.

Hair Tip #2: Waxing

Waxing is a method of semi-permanent hair removal which removes the hair from the root cause. Almost any area of the body can be waxed, including eyebrows, face, bikini area, legs, arms, back, abdomen and feet. New hairs will not grow back in the waxed area for two to eight weeks. I’ve used this method of hair removal since I was a teenager for my brows and lip. It works well, is relatively inexpensive, and available at most salons.

Hair Tip #3: Waxing with Epilar Treatment

This treatment begins with waxing, followed by application of an inhibitor gel and an activator gel. This treatment works on all skin and hair types and can be used on all body parts. The procedure targets hair follicles left empty after waxing, specifically hairs that are active and in the growth phase. Epilar application will also increase the intervals for depilation and leave skin smooth and soft between treatments. I haven’t personally tried this, but I know it is very effective for women who might have a lot of hair on their cheeks and would just prefer to have smoother skin.

Hair Tip #4: Intense Pulsed Light (IPL)

FDA approved for permanent hair reduction, intense pulsed light is fast and very effective in eliminating large areas of unwanted hair. Light is absorbed by the pigment in the hair and converted to heat in the follicle. The heat damages the follicle and disables it from growing new hair. IPL is excellent for areas such as the lip, under arms, or even the bikini area. This treatment lasts only 10 to 15 minutes, works best on darker hair, and is usually recommended in a series of four to six treatments. I have had IPL treatments under my arms. And yes, I rarely have to shave there anymore. This is truly one of my small joys in life! No more itchy, scratchy, five-o’clock shadow in my pits!

Hair Tip #5: Electrolysis

FDA approved for permanent hair removal, electrolysis is a procedure in which individual follicles are destroyed with chemical or heat energy. The hair is then removed with tweezers. Once the follicle is destroyed, it can never reproduce hair. Electrolysis can only be performed by a Licensed Electrologist. Electrolysis works on all hair and skin colors and is great for small areas that can’t be treated with IPL like ears, eyebrows, and for white-blonde, red or gray hair. Many factors influence hair growth, so the number of sessions needed to remove hair permanently from an area will vary. Treatments typically occur once a week and last 15 minutes to one hour. Electrolysis is on my list of things to do. I’d like to never again see a hair on my big toe again! Can anyone relate to that? This is also great for those “stray eyebrow hairs” that show up on your chin!

Whew! That’s it. Five tips for hair! And none of them involved cutting, highlighting, styling, weaving, extensions, horse shampoo, or other strange products. While this conversation has been geared towards my lady friends, it applies to our men as well. The ear hair that you would like to see disappear from your honey’s ears (this will help him actually hear the honey-do list you so lovingly give him) can be permanently gone, not to mention the nose hair. I do recommend that you LOVINGLY and DELICATELY talk to your honey about getting his coiffure in order PRIOR to the company’s Christmas party! After all, guys are as sensitive about their hair as we girls are. They just use fewer products — hair gels, straighteners, hairspray, to name a few. This is the moment when you can educate your man about hair removal. And after you make your own appointment, make him an appointment, too!

So if you, like me, would like to reduce or eliminate the hair issues in your life, then join me on the appointment calendar at my favorite two places for hair reduction and removal: Seasons Medical Aesthetics and It’s Permanent. You can find Seasons Medical Aesthetics & Spa in Ruston at 411 E. Vaughn Ave., Suite 201. You can find Seasons Medical Aesthetics in association with It’s Permanent in Monroe at 1033 N. 6th Street. And to make an appointment or get more information about any of these procedures, contact our Ruston office at 318-255-3223 or in Monroe at 318-340-1778. In the meantime, girls, let’s put our best hair (and hair removed) forward!

From the Doctor’s Desk: How Do I Detoxify? Detoxification Part 3

First of all, take a few minutes to read through my two previous posts: Detoxification Part 1 and  Detoxification Part 2. Part 3 of our detoxification series begins with a little chemistry lesson. Are you ready? Here we go. Let’s get down to the nuts and bolts of detoxification in the liver. By learning how the detoxification process works, we can learn the steps we need to take to detoxify.

As I mentioned in my earlier post, there are two basic parts to liver detoxification: Phase I and Phase II (this reminds me of Thing 1 and Thing II from the Dr. Seuss book I read to my kids).

Phase 1 Detoxification.

Phase 1 detoxification involves the cytochrome P450 system. Phase I detoxification involves oxidation, reduction, and hydrolysis. Phase I detoxification is always active and is very redundant.  What do I mean by redundant? There are a handful of enzymes in the CYP450 family that are utilized by over 200,000 substrates for oxidation, reduction and hydrolysis. In other words, many different chemicals or substrates will use the same CYP450 enzyme. A great picture of the redundancy is seen by clicking here.

Of note is the the CYP1A2 enzyme. This particular enzyme is responsible for metabolism of 40-50% of the drugs that we take. Do you remember the statistic from my earlier post? A leading cause of death is drug-to-drug interactions. Approximately 100,000 Americans die each year from adverse reactions to medications. If we are taking too many medications, then there is not enough CYP1A2 enzyme to adequately metabolize the drugs in the system leading to drug-to-drug interactions.

Let me give you some perspective. Drug interactions cause twice as many deaths as car accidents. And furthermore, hospital costs due to drug interactions have been estimated at between $1 and $4 billion annually. One of the big topics in the healthcare debate is controlling health care costs. Reducing deaths due to drug interactions looks like a good place to start, doesn’t it?

It doesn’t stop there. Phase I detoxification requires many cofactors: niacin, magnesium, copper, zinc, vitamin C, vitamins B2, B3, B6, B12, folic acid, and flavonoids. As you can see, vitamins are extremely important in the detox process. Without them, our bodies don’t work well. One more tidbit on vitamins — many causes of vitamin deficiencies today are the prescription medications we take — a double whammy!

Phase II Detoxification.

Phase II detoxification leads to further modification of the products of Phase I detoxification.  Large water-soluble molecules are added to the toxins through several different processes: glutathione conjugation, amino acid conjugation, methylation, sulfation, acetylation, and glucoronidation. In layman’s terms, after phase II modification, the body is able to eliminate the inactivated toxins via the bowels and/or bladder.

In summary, Phase I and Phase II enzymes are the power houses that detoxify our bodies of our daily toxin load. They are very dependent on vitamins, minerals, and energy. The many prescriptions we take lead to major drug interactions and vitamin depletions which interfere with our body’s ability to detoxify. Thus, if we are malnourished (typical American diet of fast food) and lack key vitamins and nutrients, then our body cannot adequately detoxify.  If we cannot detoxify, then we become inflamed. If we become inflamed, we develop disease.

So what next?  A shoe isn’t one-size-fits-all. And neither is detoxification. Assessment of your individual detoxification system and the build-up of toxins within your body will allow us to develop a customized detoxification process to fit your individual needs. Not only will we live healthier, disease-free lives through detoxification, but we will also save money! It all starts with a call. Make an appointment at Seasons join us on the path to wellness. Renew yourself.

From The Doctor’s Desk: Who Needs To Detoxify? Detoxification Part 2

Dr. Nathan Goodyear

Ever wonder if you need to detoxify? My first recommendation is look at and listen to your body.  The body will tell you if it is in trouble or imbalanced.  How? Physical signs or symptoms are our bodies’ message that all is not right. Here’s how to know if you bodies’ signs and symptoms are saying that you might be suffering from toxic build up. Here are some symptoms of toxin buildup.

• Headaches
• Muscle aches and pains
• Fatigue
• Asthma
• Allergies
• Skin disorders
• Chronic infections
• Altered mood
• Altered cognition
• Weight gain
• Altered stress tolerance
• Altered libido
• Infertility

Where do toxins in our bodies come from? Remember the quote from last week’s post? “For the first time in the history of the world, every human being is now subjected to contact with dangerous chemicals, from the moment of conception until death.  In the less than two decades of their use, the synthetic pesticides have been so thoroughly distributed throughout the animate and inanimate world that they occur virtually everywhere.”  — Rachel Carson from her book Silent Spring, published 1962.

Toxins are everywhere. The sources can range from toxins like Dioxins to prescription medication.  Adverse reactions to prescription drugs have been ranked as the 4^th to 6^th leading cause of death in the US according to the Journal of American Medical Association. This amounts to over 100,000 deaths per year.  The cause of adverse drug reactions is an overloaded pathway in Phase I of detoxification (CYP3A4), the pathway that detoxifies over 50% of all drugs in your system. The costs associated with adverse drug reactions has been estimated at up to $4 billion. With the rising costs of health care, treating the cause of these adverse drug reactions in addition to decreasing prescription drugs are two excellent ways to prevent complications and lower costs.

The most dangerous sources of toxins are environmental. Organochlorine pesticides, industrial chemicals, and unintended chemical byproducts surround us everyday and expose us to unwanted toxins. Widespread production of  pesticides began less than 80 years ago. Recently, the EPA estimated that more than 4 billion pounds of chemicals were released into the grounds natural water sources in the year 2000. In addition to pesticides and chemicals, the average American eats, unknowingly I might add, 124 pounds of additives per year. Frightening to think of it, isn’t it? And over 2.5 billion pounds of pesticides are used on crop lands, forests, lawns, and fields. The unfortunate fact is this: we live in a toxic world.

How can you decrease your daily exposure to toxins? Here are some great ways.

1. Avoid processed foods
2. Avoid fats
3. Avoid tap water — use filtered water
4. Avoid excess caffeine
5. Avoid excess alcohol
6. NO tobacco
7. Limit chronic medicine, if possible
8. Daily exercise
9. Avoid exposure in your workplace
10. Avoid living near industrial plants
11. Avoid liver dysfunction
12. Avoid kidney problems
13. Avoid intestinal dysfunction

The first ten suggestions are steps you and I can take every day to decrease our toxin exposure. But the last three require a bigger step: detoxification. By detoxifying your body, the liver, kidney, and intestines can operate more efficiently and effectively.

So, the question is not who needs detoxification, but who does NOT need detoxification?  The answer? EVERYONE will benefit from a periodic detoxification program.

All Estrogens Are Not Created Equal

There is a lot of confusion in the medical and non-medical communities regarding estrogens. Many today think there is only one estrogen. Many today think bioidentical estrogens and synthetic estrogens are identical in structure and function. Many today think estrogen production stops after menopause or after a total hysterectomy. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth.

The body never stops producing estrogens. The body, in fact, produces 3 types of estrogens: estradiol, estrone, and estriol. These are the natural estrogens native to the body and the foundation of bioidentical hormone replacement of estrogen.

A woman’s body produces estrogens in various places. Most people knows that ovaries produce estrogens. But did you know that the adrenal glands and fat cells produce estrogens, too? Think about that for a minute. This explains why women of all ages continue produce estrogen. Our adrenal glands don’t disappear at menopause. And fat cells certainly don’t. So how do we know if a woman needs estrogen?

Let’s look more closely at the 3 main estrogens produced in the body.

• estradiol
• estrone
• estriol

Estriol is a good place to start. Estriol is the weakest of all Estrogens. A woman’s placenta produces very large amounts of estriol during pregnancy. However, estriol is not confined to pregnancy. The liver produces small amounts, too. Estriol primarily affects a woman’s hair, nails, skin, and her vaginal lining. Studies also suggest estriol has potential in breast cancer prevention because estriol binds to specific receptors (beta-receptors) in the breast that inhibit breast cell growth. All other estrogens would be expected to increase breast cell growth (which can lead to cancer) through activity with alpha-receptors.

Estrone is the second most potent estrogen. Estrone is predominately produced in fat cells after menopause. Overweight women have high circulating estrone levels. Unfortunately, 63% of American women are overweight or obese, so many women have high estrone levels. Estrone levels rise even more after menopause, and estrone has been implicated in breast tumors in animal studies. (Scientists say this because estrone has a 5:1 affinity for alpha breast receptors, but that’s pretty technical.) Just remember that alpha-receptors increase breast cell growth. You could say estrone encourages breast cell growth, and that can lead to uncontrolled breast cell growth. We call that breast cancer.

Estradiol is the most potent estrogen. Estradiol is produced predominately from the ovaries. This means a woman will have less estriadiol after menopause because her ovaries are producing less. Estradiol is the main stimulus for growth of the lining of the uterus in the first 2 weeks of the monthly cycle, and it helps in triggering ovulation. Like estrone, estradiol has been implicated in breast tumors. It has a 3:1 affinity for alpha-receptors in the breasts, which promote breast cell growth and can lead to cancer.

That’s a lot of information for one blog post, I know. But remember the overall point. Bioidentical hormone therapy is much more than the use of bioidentical estrogen. It is about which estrogens your body needs to maximize efficacy, reduce side effects, and prevent disease.

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Can I Feel Good Again?

Am I destined to a life of feeling sub-par? Can I feel good again? Or am I forever limited to my health as it is right now? The answer is an emphatic no. In this video, Dr. Nathan Goodyear answers these questions and discusses our revolutionary approach to women’s healthcare.

video management, video solution, video streaming

Essure: A Great Permanent Birth Control Option

If your family is complete and you are considering options for permanent birth control, then it’s time for you to learn about the Essure procedure, a non-invasive permanent birth control option. Essure is a 10-minute in-office procedure and is a great alternative to all other types of permanent birth control, even vasectomy! In this video, Dr. Nathan Goodyear explains the Essure procedure and its advantages.

video management, video solution, video streaming

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Pelvic Floor Therapy: Help for Your Leaky Bladder

No. You may not need bladder surgery! Learn about pelvic floor therapy, an early intervention in-office therapy offered at Seasons which can prevent the need for bladder surgery and help patients regain control of their bladder. In this video, Dr. Nathan Goodyear discusses pelvic floor therapy as an early intervention treatment for leaky bladder issues.
video management, video solution, video streaming

What Is Seasons?

At Seasons, our focus is wellness, not just treatment of disease. In this video, Dr. Nathan Goodyear talks about his vision for Seasons and our revolutionary approach to women’s health care.

video management, video solution, video streaming

Our Strategy For Treating Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)

After my last post on Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS or PCO), a reader from Arizona emailed us and said: “My doctor prescribed metformin for me and my periods came back after 5 months of no periods!! It also is helping me lose some weight. Keep in mind, I am overweight, hypertensive, and have slightly elevated cholesterol. Ugh!”

Let’s focus on her two implied questions. First, why did her periods return when she started taking metformin? Second, why she has lost weight? As we address those two questions, you’ll learn more about our treatment strategy for PCO at Seasons Women’s Care.

As I explained in my last post, PCO is characterized by

• High insulin levels and insulin resistance
• High androgen levels (think testosterone)
• Irregular cycles (due to anovulation)

Additionally, many women gain weight.

At Seasons we focus on alleviating these three areas without introducing any side effects. You work with the body, the body will work for you! Let’s go over them one at a time.

Elevated Insulin

Elevated insulin is the result of poor insulin sensitivity, or insulin resistance. The most commonly prescribed insulin medicine used today is the drug metformin. This is a diabetes medicine that improves insulin sensitivity and reduces the liver production of glucose. Metformin can also be associated with significant gastrointestinal side effects, though.

Metformin isn’t the only treatment to reduce insulin resistance. Alpha-lipoic acid also works, and it doesn’t have the side effects associated with metformin.

However, the easiest way to improve insulin resistance is through weight loss. You read that right. Merely losing weight will result in improved insulin sensitivity. At Seasons, we help all women with PCOS to lose weight through nutrition.

One final note about insulin. High insulin levels appear to be a primary factor in testosterone production (discussed below) because insulin binds to specific receptors in the ovaries that augment testosterone production.

Our strategy at Seasons: We work to improve insulin resistence and lower insulin levels, using weight loss, Lipoic acid, and metformin (if necessary).

Elevated Testosterone

Many drugs today are prescribed to lower testosterone. These include spirinolactone, finesteride, cyproterone acetate, dexamethasone, Lupron, flutamide, and finesteride. These are big drugs, and they can have big side effects.

At Seasons, we attack the cause at the source: lack of progesterone and elevated insulin.

OK, this part is a bit technical. Progesterone dominates the last two weeks of a cycle, following ovulation. When you don’t ovulate, your body lacks progesterone. When your progesterone levels decrease, your body stimulates more testosterone production. Raising progesterone levels again can reduce the stimulation to the ovaries for more testosterone production.

Even more important for most women, progesterone lowers the testosterone to dihydrotestosterone conversion. This will reduce the facial hair, hair loss, and acne so commonly associated with PCO.

Progesterone also improves a women’s estrogen dominance (high estrogen to progesterone ratio), and thus improves weight loss.

Our strategy at Seasons: We work with your body to lower testosterone levels more naturally by addressing the root causes of decreased progesterone levels and elevated insulin levels.

Irregular Cycles

Irregular cycles are a hallmark of PCOS. They are, however, just a symptom of the hormone problem. A woman’s uterus will only do what her body tells her to do. You might call the uterus a “Yes, Ma’am” organ. This is why removing a woman’s uterus won’t fix the problem.

The problem is hormone imbalance: high testosterone, high insulin, and low progesterone. When we add progesterone back in, we can address the high testosterone and the low progesterone problems. Additionally, we help women eat better and encourage them to eliminate their exposure to environmental toxins. This helps a woman lose weight, and it helps her body’s insulin sensivity and estrogen dominance.

Now, what about birth control pills? Most of your friends are probably on birth control pills to treat PCOS. Birth control pills do correct the cycle issues, but they replace a hormone imbalance with a hormone overload. This can be a big band-aid with dangerous consequences.

Of course, band-aids aren’t solutions. But we’re more concerned about the consequences of long term birth control. It has been shown to increase your chances of breast cancer and weight gain.

Our strategy at Seasons: When we treat PCOS, we look to the root causes, not quick fix band-aids. Treating the causes—high testosterone, high insulin, and low progesterone—results in long-term solutions that restore your overall health.

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Who needs Hormones?

Who needs hormones? The answer is: not everyone. Some need hormones, and some don’t. Additionally, a need for hormone therapy is not unique to women. Men can benefit from hormone therapy as well.

If you have symptoms of hormone imbalances, then hormone replacement therapy may be right for you. However, a “one size fits all approach” is never appropriate. Each individual’s hormone needs are as unique as his or her thumb print.

Hormone testing will help determine the specific hormone imbalances and direct treatment.

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