Hair Loss – How Chinese Medicine can help
By: Jill Blakeway, M.S. L. Ac. | Author's Archive | Bio
“It started with a few extra strands on my hair brush and before I knew it there were patches so thin you could see my scalp” Diana is a beautiful woman in her mid-thirties who was understandably devastated when her hair began to fall out. She had tried a variety of medicines before coming to see us at the YinOva Center on the advice of a friend who had used Chinese medicine successfully to treat alopecia.
More and more women are suffering from hair loss according to the American Academy of Dermatology who estimate that at any given time 30 million women in the USA are affected by alopecia. Certainly at the YinOva Center we are seeing an increasing number of women who are struggling with this issue and seek our help. Chinese medicine has a long history of treating hair loss in both sexes and can often be very helpful both for stopping further hair loss and for supporting regrowth.
In Chinese medicine healthy hair relies on a good flow of qi and blood to nourish the scalp. This flow and be interrupted by either a deficiency of qi and blood or a stagnation of qi and blood either of which can mean that insufficient nourishment reaches the scalp. Blood and qi deficiency are often caused by either poor diet or poor assimilation of nutrients where as qi and blood stagnation is often caused by stress or a hormone imbalance.
Acupuncture can improve the flow of qi and blood in the scalp and can help hair to regrow and Chinese herbs can nourish qi and blood to stop more hair from falling out. At the YinOva Center we usually use both acupuncture and herbs together along with nutritional suggestions and lifestyle changes to help our patients who are suffering from hair loss.
Here is the advice we give our YinOva patients who are suffering from hair loss
- Regular acupuncture can stimulate hair regrowth by encouraging the flow of qi and blood to the scalp.
- Chinese herbs have been used for hundreds of years to stop hair loss. One herb in particular is known for it’s ability to treat alopecia. He shou wu (Polygonium Multiflorum) is included in almost all the formulas we write for women who are losing hair. It is a blood tonic in Chinese medicine. In several studies over 60% of people who had hair loss experienced hair regrowth within 3 months after taking He Shou Wu.
- Make sure you have a broad diet and are not missing out on important nutrients. Omega 3 fatty acids are particularly important for a healthy scalp and can be found in salmon, walnuts, flax seeds or taken as a supplement. Iron deficiency can often contribute to hair loss. At the YinOva Center we are particularly impressed by the iron supplement Floradix which comes in an easy to absorb liquid form. Vitamin B12 is essential to healthy hair and is found in eggs, poultry and meat. If you are a vegetarian it may be helpful to take B12 as a supplement. Biotin is another B vitamin that helps hair to regrow. It’s hard to get enough of it from food so here at the YinOva Center we usually suggest people take it as a supplement.
- A daily scalp massage can help stimulate the scalp to aid with hair regrowth. We usually suggest rubbing the scalp gently for 5 minutes morning and night.
- In 1999 a team of researchers at Aberdeen university discovered that an essential oil blend applied to the scalp can help with hair regrowth. 86 patients were divided into two groups and over a seven-month period one group massaged an essential oil blend onto their scalps daily for two minutes while another group did the same thing with only the carrier oils jojoba and grapeseed. At the end of the study, 19 of the 43 patients in the active group demonstrated significantly improved hair growth while only six of the 41 patients in the control group showed improvement. One man in the active group grew a full head of hair after being completely bald. The recipe used in the study is as follows.
- atlas cedarwood essential oil – 2 drops
- thyme essential oil – 2 drops
- rosemary essential oil – 3 drops
- lavender essential oil – 3 drops
- jojoba carrier oil – ½ teaspoon
- grapeseed carrier oil – 4 teaspoons
Using a small glass jar mix the jojoba and grapeseed oils together first. Then add the essential oils one at a time and place the lid on the jar. Shake the oils together to mix them together.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. • The information on this website is designed for educational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for medical advice or care. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat any health problems or illnesses without consulting your doctor. Please consult a doctor with any questions or concerns you might have regarding your condition. • Jill Blakeway, M.S. L. Ac. © July 2010
26 Responses to “Hair Loss – How Chinese Medicine can help”
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This is interesting. I’ve suffered from alopecia for a while and its very depressing. Nothing has really worked. Is there a long wait to see you?
There are several practitioners at the YinOva Center so you’ll be able to see someone quite quickly. We look forward to meeting you, Carolyn.
I will like to know if this treatment can possibly work for someone who has lost almost all their hair due to Alopecia.
Hi Maritza,
I’ve used this combination on patients with severe and significant hair loss and had good but mixed results. By that I mean that some people respond really well but for some people it does not seem to help so much. So it might be worth a try.
Jill
my son was diagnosed with alopecia. his hair is growing back in small patches. Is there a acupuncturist you could recommend? we live in hawaii. thanks.
HI Amy,
I’m sorry to hear about your son and am glad that his hair is growing back. Acupuncture may be really helpful. I don’t know any practitioners in Hawaii but the Traditional Chinese Medicine College of Hawaii may be able to help you. Their website is http://www.tcmch.edu/
Let us know how he’s getting on.
Jill
I have been looking for resources for NYC friends! I will be sure to pass on your info! Also, enjoyed your book and often refer my fertility patients to it. Thank you!
Thank you so much – I’m glad you enjoyed the book – Jill
Can you tell me of somewhere to go for treatment of alopecia in Connecticut — preferably an acupuncturist that specializes in hair loss
Hi Sam,
I’m sorry I don’t know an acupuncturist in CT who specializes in hair loss. But I can recommend Samantha Jacobs. Here’s a link to her practice.
Jill
I am also looking for a acupuncturist specializing in combatting hair loss. Any recommendations for the Toronto/Mississauga area of Ontario, Canada would be appreciated.
Sorry Mary! I don’t know an acupuncturist in Toronto that specializes in hair loss. Any good acupuncturist/herbalist should be able to help you though. Good luck!
Im in SC. Always had problems with hair growing very long. Had lots of hair loss after a couple of close deaths in family and after father died, almost all fell out. Took injections it grew back well and suddenly losing again big round patch in back. Im also anemic. Any good acupunturist/herbalist in SC,NC
Hi Mel,
I’m so sorry to hear about all your losses and sympathize with the effect this has had on your hair. The anemia will also be playing into your hair loss so its important to make sure that you take steps to correct that either with diet or supplements. At the YinOva Center we like an iron supplement called Floradix.
Unfortunately I don’t know any good acupuncturists in your area (although I bet there are lots of them). This website may help you find one http://www.nccaom.org/find-an-acupuncture-practitioner-directory
Good luck!
Jill
Hi Jill, do you happen to know a practioner in the Chicagoland area that you can refer me to for hair loss?
Thank you in advance,
Kim
HI Kim,
I don’t know any practitioners in Chicago, I’m afraid. However you may be able to find one by searching this directory
Hope this helps,
Jill
hi jill,
i’ve been on topamax for years to prevent my migraines. recently i’ve noticed i’ve been losing my hair. i’ve always had a tremendous amount of hair and its now been thinning tremendously.
i’m wondering, if you have a suggestion, for the hair loss as well and something in lou of the topamax.
thanks in advance for your help.
best regards,
justine
Hi Justine,
In Chinese medicine migraines are often caused by qi rising and the topamax descends qi which is why it’s effective. Normal qi and blood flow to the head is important to maintain hair quality and in this case it may be that , over the long term, the topamax has interrupted qi flow. If you were our patient here at the YinOva Center we would do acupuncture on your scalp and give you a herbal formula to raise central qi based on the classic Chinese formula bu zhong yi qi tang with added herbs for hair loss. We would not advise stopping the topamax without your doctor’s input however.
Jill
Hi Jill,
Your website is quite informative and it is a shame I don’t reside in NYC to visit your practice. I am looking for a an acupuncturist in Los Angeles, but my question is how many times per week/month do patients usually receive acupuncture treatment? Thank you for all of your knowledge and feedback it is difficult finding information on how to treat alopecia.
Amanda
Hi Amanda,
Thanks for reading our blog. There are lots of great acupuncturists in LA. In fact California trained acupuncturists are considered to be some of the best in the US because their State Acupuncture Board exams are particularly rigorous. So you should be able to find someone locally who can help you. Here at the YinOva Center we treat our patients suffering from alopecia once a week with acupuncture and give them herbs to take every day.
Jill
Hi Jill,
I would like to check with you if you had any patients where they experienced eyelashes and eyebrows loss only and whether the acupuncture helps in this case. I’m on my mid thirties and after a traumatic experience 3 years ago I started losing my eyebrows which are almost completely gone and a year ago my eyelashes followed. Next time I visit NY I will definitely stop by. In the meantime I will find someone around here. If you have any recommendations for Boston please let me know.
Thank yo so much for your help.
Tina
HI Tina,
I’m so sorry to hear about your eyelashes and eyebrows. I can imagine how upsetting that is.
We’d love to see you when you’re in NYC but in the meantime there are lots of good practitioners in Boston including Emily Greenstein. We’ve referred quite a few patients to Emily and heard only good things about her work from them. You can check out her website here. http://www.emilygreenstein.com/
Warmly,
Jill
Hi Jill,
Thanks for all of the information. I live in Mcallen, Tx and I want to know if there is any practicioner near where I live?
I will appreciate your help!
Thank you!
HI Lorena,
I don’t know anyone who specifically deals with hair loss in Texas but you can find local acupuncturists on this site http://www.nccaom.org/find-an-acupuncture-practitioner-directory
Hope this helps,
Jill
Hi JILL,
I have oine question. I went to see a good practitioner because of my hairloss. He gave me some herbal tea the first week and then I had my first session of acupuncture. The next day my hair falled even more and I want to know if this is normal. I asked him and he said it was normal but I want to know your opinion.
Thanks in advance for your answer!
HI Wendy,
It’s isn’t normal for the acupuncture to make your hair fall out more but it does take longer than a week to work so I think what your practitioner probably meant is that it’s normal for your hair to continue to fall out for a while after the first acupuncture treatment.