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Comment by Karen Grevious on March 21, 2011 at 1:40pm

DPCP is a prescription solution you put on your scalp at specific intervals. It was prescribed by Dr. Piliang. I never tried the Rogaine. I just didn't feel it was the answer for my type of hair loss. I've lost everything but what few grey hairs I had. I decided if my hair was going to grow back, I was going to take the natural and not chemical route. If it is meant to be, then....

You can't "baby step" into the dietary changes. I tried that. It has to be drastic and strict for the first 3-6 months to allow your body time to adjust. I found the easiest way to to resist the bad foods was to not have it in the house cause if it was in the house, I was more prone to cheat. First off...no pop, no juice, no Kook-Aid, no bottled teas, etc. Water!!!!! If you need flavoring in your water, squeeze in some fresh lemon juice. Drink fresh-brewed green tea every day. Lots of antioxidants. Every meal should have a good quality protein. If you don't want to do a lot of cooking, keep boiled eggs at the ready in the refrigerator. Also, walnuts, pecans, almonds, and pistachios are good protein sources. Keep a bag around for snacking or put in salads. You can eat them straight or crumble them on salads. I make smoothies with Kefir. It is a fermented yogurt drink that is a good protein source as well as a good source of probiotics. You do want to limit your dairy (milk and cheese). Make your own salad dressings. Buy fresh or canned salmon. Make sure it is "wild caught" and not farm raised. They put dye in the farm raised to give it the orange color. Kale, collards, mustards, bok choy, and other leafy greens should be part of your daily diet. Put them in salads, omelettes, saute them, etc. Eat dark berries (they can also go in your salads) like blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries (frozen berries are OK). Limit the amount of orange juice you drink. It spikes your glucose level too much. If you want the vitamin C, eat whole oranges so you can get the fiber benefits. As far as vitamins, you should be taking a good fish oil twice a day, take glucosamine for your arthritis, you need to have your doctor check your 25-hydroxy D levels. Two yrs ago my levels were very low. Taking daily vitamin D made a world of difference. Depending on what you read you should be taking 1000-4000 units per day. If you like mushrooms, these should be on your list: Shitake, Maitake, Reishi, cordyceps, and astragalus. You can find all of these in supplements or fresh at Whole Foods. I buy all my supplements at http://www.vitacost.com Their prices are very reasonable and you can get a lot of info on the site. Please feel free to contact me with any questions. I love helping people improve their health through food and I never use the word "diet". I've always felt diets are doomed to fail. I do believe in lifestyle changes.

Comment by Wendy on March 21, 2011 at 11:54am

Thanks for the great info Karen. I went to Dr. Piliang, she was very nice once. Very nice lady but did not have any answers, and just told me to use rogaine and biotin. Did you have any luck with Rogaine. I have all over diffuse and would have to put it all over my scalp.

I know I need to change my diet and have been trying to cut down on sugar. I do not have the best diet and will try. I have been doing a lot of vitamins but I am doing to work on my diet. I am so tired all the time and have a very hard time getting out of bed. My doctor thinks I also have cfs. I guess when you have one immune disorder you are prone to others. I have a lot of lupus symptoms, but my blood work was not positive for ana.

Just curious what is DPCP?

Thanks,

Wendy

Comment by Karen Grevious on March 21, 2011 at 11:28am

I went to Dr. Piliang and consulted with Dr. Bergfeld at Cleveland Clinic. I tried the DPCP for a while, but really didn't get any results. I'll start off by telling you that I'm an RN. I was diagnosed with lupus and hypothyroidism in the 80's. I have had alopecia since 2007. If you have arthritis and seb dermititis, that means you have various inflammatory processes going on in your body. You will have to get those under control before you can address your hairloss. Before I developed alopecia, I was already into alternative medicine and health through foods. Since I have started researching alopecia and its causes, I have turned all my research up several notches. We litterally are what we eat. If you are eating foods that feed inflammation, then that is what you will have. One of the biggest culprits is sugar in all its forms. Any kind of processed foods is also on the list. Any kind of premade meal is processed food. This included Lean Cuisines and anything else in that category. If you really want to get your inflammation under control, then you have to start eating whole foods, fresh fruits, and vegetables. I have also learned through my research that gluten is not our friend when you have a body that is prone to inflammation. I have gradually changed my lifestyle/diet over the past 5-6 years. It has been a challenge, but the payoff has been well worth it. Although my hair has not grown back, I have been able to stop taking my thyroid medications and am not on any meds for my lupus. I also battled atopic dermatitis all my life, which started to develop into scaley psoriasis. Except for a few patches on my face that normally clear up when the weather gets warm, I no longer have problems with the psoriasis. Basically, what I'm saying is you have to take charge of your life and your health. The doctors, while they try very hard, do not have the answers. Anything they try on us is hit or miss. There is a reason they call it the "practice" of medicine! Here are some web sites to get you started. http://www.amenclinics.com http://www.drhyman.com http://www.thebestdayever.com These all have tons of information on anti-inflammatory lifestyles, foods, supplements, etc. Hope this helps.

Comment by Wendy on March 21, 2011 at 12:28am

Who are the doctors you know? I have been to a top specialist at the clinic, it took 9 months to get into. I have had every test possible, I do suffer from arthritis and seb. dermititis. The specialists did not do much just told me to use rogaine. I would love to know why I am losing my hair, I have a lot of other symptoms this past year like pain and numbness throughout my body. I have been negative for lupus and parkinson so far. That is great you gave up wigs, I am not that secure to go bald and need to start working again.

Take care,

Comment by Karen Grevious on March 21, 2011 at 12:02am

I am a Clevelander. I used to wear a wig but gave it up almost a year ago.

Comment by Karen Grevious on March 21, 2011 at 12:00am

Wendy, I don't know of any support groups in Cleveland. I do know of some Drs that specialize in alopecia.

Comment by Wendy on March 20, 2011 at 11:20pm

Hello, I live in Bay Village Ohio and was wondering if there are any support groups in the Cleveland Ohio area? I have been losing my hair for the past 3 years. Have lost more than 1/2 of it and it looks really bad. Have started wearing wigs, would love to find a natural looking wig.

Wendy

Comment by Phil on January 30, 2011 at 4:52pm

Does anyone know of a current support group in the columbus area?

Comment by Stephanie on July 14, 2010 at 11:24am

I'm looking to get a fashion show to benefit alopecia together. Anyone in the Cincinnati Area know of people that would be able to help? Volunteer, design, photography, make-up etc...I'm in the Cincinnati area but will take help from anywhere!

Comment by Karen Grevious on July 10, 2010 at 1:35pm

Are there any activities coming up in Ohio?

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