Acupuncture for hair loss and thinning

According to Chinese medicine, the growth and quality of hair has strong connection with quality of Lung, Kidney, Blood and Qi. If hair is starting to lose or thinning, a Chinese medicine practitioner will check those areas.

For almost all types of hair loss, Acupuncture can be helpful except scarring alopecia. After pattern differentiation diagnosis, acupuncture can be used accordingly, sometimes ear or auricular acupuncture can be applied. Overall of the treatment, we first focus on the prevention of hair loss. Because if just focusing on hair growth treatment, even have a hair growth, the situation can not improve and hair keeps losing.

Lung Qi deficiency

According to TCM theory: Lung controls skin and hair. Moisture and healthy skin depends on strong Lung organ and hair is a subsidiary structure of the skin. Therefore, it would be reasonable to start treating or strengthening Long once the skin and hair get sick. Once Lung health is restored, skin would be also healthier, hair loss would stop and new hair starts grow.

Kidney Qi, Blood deficiency

In addition, Kidney Qi can determine quality and quantity of hair. Hair nutrition comes from the Blood, and its vitality is derived from the Kidney. Or in another way, the Kidney essence (Kidney Jing and Qi) is one of the raw material of Blood, the Blood is a source of nutrition for the hair. After baby is born, and grows until adolescence, Kidney essence gradually fills up and his hair gradually flourishes. Then when he starts aging, Kidney essence becomes lesser and hair gradually becomes less. Therefore hair loss may also be related to Kidney, Blood deficiency. If there happens the loss, grey or thinning of hair, it would come from the deficiency of Kidneys, Blood.

TCM "WaiKeiZhengZong(Surgical authentic)" states: "Once Blood becomes deficiency, there is not enough essence to nourish the skin, hair roots becomes empty, and fall into pieces. Also generate Wind Heat, causing bright skin, itch skin and loss of hair.

Type of hair loss

Environment, climate, disease, medication can cause Lung, Kidney disorders, thus causing hair loss. According to these types of factors, hair loss can be divided into several types:
1. Alopecia areata: accounted for approximately 14.2%. Some hair loss can be only in one place, some in a few areas, ranging from the size of the patch area. Some are round, some are oval, or irregular shape.
2. All bald( alopecia totalis): about 0.5%, loss of all hair, some even involving the eyebrows, eyelashes.
3. Alopecia universalis:  accounting for 0.6% of the body hair are shedding off.
4. Alopecia due to emotional trauma:  known as sudden despair, emotional depression, sudden panic or grief, etc. when major emotional trauma acts on central nervous system, it can cause adjustment disorder, decreased body metabolism, poor blood circulation, peripheral vascular spasm, further resulting in dermal papilla blood supply disorders, nutritional deficiencies, lack of hair moisten, and hair loss.
5. Alopecia due to mental tension: Living in long-term stress condition, especially for heavy brain works, white collar workers, in particular, often stay and work late at night. Most of the blood flow goes to brain  tissue, blood supply to hair follicles is relatively reduced , causing the hair follicles to shrink, gradually degrade, and finally leading to hair loss.
6. Alopecia nutritional and metabolic abnormalities: due to improper diet can lead to malnutrition or disorders of the body, hair and hair color can degrade. Severe malnutrition can even lead to hair loss hair.
7. Excessive amount of sebum scalp hair loss: also known as seborrheic alopecia, alopecia accounts for about 70% is generated on the basis of hormonal imbalances, seborrheic dermatitis occurs on more common in young, especially males are more common, the incidence of men and women is 6: 1.
8. endocrine disorders alopecia: hair growth with a variety of endocrine hormones, imbalance can cause more hair loss disease, the common is Hirsutism and Androgen alopecia.
9. Alzheimer alopecia (early bald): also known as alopecia youth, common in men 32 years of age, especially the mental is more common among minority women in the 28-year-old is facing such a plague, but symptoms than men mild.
10. As a result of radiotherapy or chemotherapy

Treatment: Acupuncture + Herbal medicine
Commonly used by Chinese medicine for hair loss are Blood, Kidney tonification herbs. Described below in Book "BenCaoGangMu(Compendium of Materia Medica)" :
1. mulberry, foxglove, Eclipta, Radix, wolfberries, Dodder, Angelica, Salvia, with decoction.
2. walnuts, wolfberries, black beans, Radix, foxglove, dogwood, with decoction.
3. Radix, Huang Jing, foxglove, Wudou clothing, jujube, with decoction.
4. Radix, habitat, Angelica, with a decoction.

Food,
● containing plant protein foods: such as oats, peanuts, corn, walnuts, beans and so on.
black beans, Radix, black sesame seeds.
● iron elements of food: such as potatoes, beans, spinach, carrots, shrimp, eggs, bananas, birds.
● high iodine foods: such as kelp, amaranth, seaweed, jellyfish, sea cucumber, seaweed, persimmon.
● containing alkaline food: such as fruits and vegetables.
● Vitamin E foods: such as black sesame, mustard, spinach.

Avoid spicy food,

People with hair loss, hair thinning usually should eat good food germinal (see list above), but try to avoid intake of spicy foods such as chili, pepper, ginger, onion, garlic, greasy, oil fried; high-sugar high-fat foods, and avoid alcohol and tobacco, to avoid hair loss. Dr. Lin Lici, a Chinese Medicine Doctor, said, "Spicy will make our body heat, which is easy to stimulate the scalp oil secretion, thus causing hair vascular obstruction that way affect the blood circulation, blood and nutrients can not be sent to the capillaries, the lack of nourishment, hair and off on their own self-will starve, At the same time, also because of the lack of nutrition, unable to nurture the growth of new hair. "

Scalp massage,

Using horn comb hair scrape scalp can help blood circulation, thus prevent hair loss. Meanwhile, acupressure scalp, each time must last for at least 5 minutes or more, the function as previously described.

Relax and have enough sleep,

Avoid staying up late.

Comprehensive treatment with Chinese medicine, acupuncture, diet, lifestyle adjustments can help stop hair loss and regenerate new hair. If scarring alopecia, ie. hair loss due to head wounds, burns, electric shock, bruises caused , then it is a permanent hair loss unless addressed by surgery.