6 solutions for hair loss

1. Get your hormones checked.
2. Look for other root causes.
3. Stop over-styling.
4. Medications may help.
5. Try laser hair therapy.
6. Consider a non-surgical hair replacement system.

Lymphedema Prevention Tips

If you have had treatment for gynecological cancer, which may include surgery, the removal of lymph nodes and radiation, you are at risk for developing lymphedema. This could occur shortly after or many years post cancer treatment. Even though there are no guarantees to prevent lymphedema, there are ways to help minimize the possibility of developing this chronic condition.

• Learn as much as you can about the lymphatic system and lymphedema.
• Set up a “preventative” appointment with a Certified Lymphedema Therapist.
• Do not allow any medical treatment to be administered on the “at risk” limbs. No IV, no blood sticks, no injections, no blood pressure readings.
• Avoid acupuncture needles placed in the “at risk” limb. Although these are very fine needles, it still is a break in the skin.
• Protect against insect bites or sunburn that can damage the skin.
• Wear compression garments when flying. Cabin pressure changes may trigger an initial onset of lymphedema.
• Maintain a normal body weight. Being overweight adds excess strain or may block the lymphatic system to the already at risk limb.
• Exercise regularly. Seek professional advice after cancer treatment regarding the type and intensity of your exercise regimen. Returning to your previous exercise program too fast or too intense may overload the lymphatic system.
• Avoid steam rooms, hot tubs, and saunas. These treatments increase swelling and may trigger lymphedema.
• Avoid prolonged sitting or standing.
• Avoid crossing your legs.
• Wear well-fitting shoes.

What every man should know about prostate cancer

Check-Ups Every Guy Needs

In Your 20s

• Annual physical exam by your primary care physician, including blood pressure, and height/weight checks 
• Screening for testicular cancer, including monthly self exams 
• Cholesterol testing every 5 years 
• Depending on your individual circumstances, your doctor may want to do an electrocardiogram to check for heart disease, and blood tests to screen for diabetes, thyroid disease, liver problems, and anemia 
• Depending on risk factors, your doctor may also recommend screening for skin cancer, sexually transmitted diseases, HIV infection, and alcohol abuse

In Your 30s

• Annual physical exam by your primary care physician, including blood pressure, and height/weight checks 
• Screening for testicular cancer, including monthly self exams 
• Cholesterol testing every 5 years 
• Depending on your individual circumstances, your doctor may want to do an electrocardiogram to check for heart disease, and blood tests to screen for diabetes, thyroid disease, liver problems, and anemia 
• Depending on risk factors, your doctor may also recommend screening for skin cancer, oral cancer, sexually transmitted diseases, HIV infection, and alcohol abuse 
• Vision examination Screening for coronary heart disease in individuals with strong family history and/or risk factors

In Your 40s

• Annual physical exam by your primary care physician, including blood pressure, and height/weight checks Screening for testicular cancer, including monthly self exams 
• Cholesterol testing every 5 years 
• Depending on your individual circumstances, your doctor may want to do an electrocardiogram to check for heart disease, and blood tests to screen for thyroid disease, liver problems, and anemia 
• Screening for prostate cancer 
• Diabetes screening every 3 years over the age of 45 
• Depending on risk factors, your doctor may also recommend screening for skin cancer, oral cancer, sexually transmitted diseases, and alcohol abuse 
• Vision examination Screening for coronary heart disease in individuals with strong family history and/or risk factors

In Your 50s

• Annual physical exam by your primary care physician, including blood pressure, and height/weight checks 
• Screening for testicular cancer, including monthly self exams 
• Cholesterol testing every 5 years 
• Annual screening for Type II diabetes 
• Depending on risk factors, your doctor may recommend screening for skin cancer, oral cancer, lung cancer, sexually transmitted diseases, and alcohol abuse 
• Screening for lipid disorders 
• Annual electrocardiogram 
• Vision and hearing examinations 
• Screening for prostate cancer 
• Screening for colon cancer with fecal occult blood testing, sigmoidoscopy, or colonoscopy at age 50 
• Screening for coronary heart disease in individuals with strong family history and/or risk factors Screening for depression 

In Your 60s

• Annual physical exam by your primary care physician, including blood pressure, and height/weight checks 
• Screening for testicular cancer, including monthly self exams 
• Screening for prostate cancer 
• Screening for lipid disorders 
• Annual electrocardiogram 
• Discuss with your physician screening for coronary heart disease, abdominal aortic aneurysm, and carotid artery ultrasound screening 
• Vision and hearing examinations 
• Screening for osteoporosis 
• Depending on risk factors, your doctor may recommend screening for skin cancer, oral cancer, lung cancer sexually transmitted diseases, and alcohol abuse 
• Continue colorectal screening based upon previous studies and results Screening for depression 
• Screening for dementia and Alzheimer's disease

In Your 70s and Up

• Annual physical exam by your primary care physician, including blood pressure, and height/weight checks 
• Screening for testicular cancer, including monthly self exams 
• Screening for prostate cancer 
• Screening for lipid disorders 
• Annual electrocardiogram 
• Discuss with your physician screening for coronary heart disease, abdominal aortic aneurysm, and carotid artery ultrasound screening 
• Vision and hearing examinations 
• Screening for osteoporosis 
• Continue colorectal screening based upon previous studies and results. 
• General screening until age 75. 
• Discuss with your physician screening if aged 76-85 years old. 
• Screening is not recommended for those greater than 85 years of age. 
• Depending on risk factors, your doctor may recommend screening for skin cancer, oral cancer, lung cancer, sexually transmitted diseases, and alcohol abuse Screening for depression Screening for dementia and Alzheimer's disease

You Asked: Can Deodorant Give You Cancer?

By Markham Heid 

There may be reasons to worry—though hard proof remains elusive.

If you’ve seen the 1989 film Batman—the one with Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson—you’ll recall that the Joker terrorizes Gotham City by slipping toxic chemicals into cosmetics: while no single item is lethal, combining deodorant with shampoo and lipstick could kill you.

It’s hard not to think of that movie while chatting with toxicologists who study the potential risk of deodorant and antiperspirant ingredients, especially parabens and aluminum. However, according to the American Cancer Society’s website, there is no “clear” or “direct” link between parabens or aluminum and cancer. The National Cancer Institute site says “more research is needed.”

The FDA, for its part, says “FDA believes that at the present time there is no reason for consumers to be concerned about the use of cosmetics containing parabens. However, the agency will continue to evaluate new data in this area. If FDA determines that a health hazard exists, the agency will advise the industry and the public.

But “absence of evidence is not evidence of absence,” says Dr. Philip Harvey, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Applied Toxicology.

Dr. Philippa Darbre, an oncologist at the University of Reading in the U.K., has published more than 30 research papers on those substances found in underarm deodorant and other personal care products. She says that many of these ingredients are concerning on their own. But the health risks of each may be greater—and more difficult to identify—when you consider the complex chemical cocktails that form when they combine.

For example, her research has detected parabens—a category of chemical that acts as a preservative in some underarm and personal care products—in women’s breast tissue, though how those parabens got there and what happens when they are in breast tissue is unknown.

In Darbre’s experiments, combining different parabens with human cells creates activity that may contribute to the development of cancer. But attempts to find these links in humans—as opposed to in petri dishes—have produced inconsistent results. One 2002 study found no correlation between underarm product use and breast cancer; a 2003 study did find ties. Darbre says both studies have flaws and leave many important questions unanswered.

Like Darbre, Harvey has looked into the ways cosmetics interact with your body. He says wiping these chemicals under your arms and on the sides of your chest or breasts “could provide a route of almost direct exposure to underlying tissue containing estrogen receptors.”

Both parabens and aluminum are “estrogenic” chemicals—meaning they interact with your body’s hormones or cells in ways similar to estrogen. That’s concerning, because excess estrogen plays a role in promoting the growth of cancer cells, according to the National Cancer Institute. While many experts think cosmetic chemicals like parabens have only “weak” estrogenic activity, Harvey doesn’t agree. He says, “It is often quoted that parabens are thousands of times less potent than estrogen in terms of their estrogenicity. This can be misleading and ignores actual exposures.”

Harvey says his own calculations suggest these cosmetic chemicals may “significantly add to estrogenic burdens.” Because of that, he says he questions the wisdom of including any chemical with known hormonal activity in your personal care regimen.

But until he and other researchers are able to explain—and demonstrate—the ways these chemicals cause health problems, no regulatory changes are likely.

That’s because unless a chemical is proven harmful, regulators allow you to eat it, smoke it, brush with it or slather it on your body. Finding that proof of harm is a difficult, costly and time-consuming proposition. Darbre says researchers can’t simply mix some human cells and some chemicals in a test tube and watch for cancer to pop up.

So where does that leave deodorant and antiperspirant users? Largely in in the dark, Darbre says. “People want a simple fix,” she says. “Unfortunately it is not simple.”


Until more is known, consumers are in a bind. “Avoiding certain publicized chemicals is only the tip of the iceberg,” she says. Darbre says she switched to a twice-daily regimen of underarm cleaning with soap and water. (“No one has yet complained!” she jokes.) Frequent pit scrubbing may seem unnecessarily laborious—or just plain weird. But if you’re concerned about the chemicals you rub on your body, regular bathing might seem like an attractive alternative.

No More Comb-Overs!

Does the man in your life still try to pull off a comb-over?   It's time to bring them out of the 70s! Check out this video of Christian Bale in American Hustle as he artfully crafts his comb-over.

Tired of staring at that hideous comb-over? Our master hair stylists are the best at creating non-detectable hair replacement solutions for men.  Enjoy time in the pool this Father's Day and contact us today for a free consultation!

The psychology of why so many people bite their nails

by Joseph Stromberg

Excessive nail-biting is a surprisingly widespread human activity.

It goes back millennia: the ancient Greek philosopher Cleanthes, for instance, was said to be addicted to biting his nails. In the modern era, no one has any good data on how many of us share the affliction (technically called onychophagia), but small-scale studies indicate about 20 percent or so of adults bite regularly — which would suggest millions of Americans do it.

"Everybody picks and bites to a degree," says Fred Penzel, a psychologist who helps patients deal with nail biting, hair plucking, and other body-focused repetitive disorders. "When it gets to the point that people are doing damage to themselves, that's when we treat it as something other than an everyday behavior." This certainly applies to a much smaller number of people — but it's still, he says, a surprisingly common problem.

Even though excessive nail-biting is widespread, however, psychologists have only begun studying it within the last few decades. In fact, they're still trying to understand the basic question that many people with onychophagia spend so much time wrestling with: given that the rational part of our brain wants to quit, why do we keep on biting our nails?

The current hypothesis: nail biting helps even out our emotions. When we're bored, it provides stimulation; when we're stressed-out or frustrated, it provides a temporary calm.

Early theories on why we bite our nails have been rejected
Most of the early explanations of nail biting have been thoroughly disregarded. Sigmund Freud, for instance, believed that excessive nursing during infancy could lead to a so-called "oral receptive" personality — and a tendency to chew on nails and other objects, as well as a distinct preference for oral sex. He had no evidence for this idea, and subsequent followers of his ideas didn't turn up any either.

Later, some researchers considered nail biting, hair plucking (called trichotillomania) and skin-picking as mild forms of self-harm — the intentional injuring of oneself, often by cutting. Under this theory, biting one's nails would be sign of hostility towards oneself.

Undercutting this idea, however, is the fact that most nail biters aren't particularly fond of the damage that their habit causes — and for many people, it's the main reason they want to quit. Starting in the 1990s, most psychologists began distinguishing it and body-focused repetitive disorders from more severe forms of self-harm.

As they've begun to better understand the behavior, one big question is whether it should be grouped in with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Though the latest DSM (a text that's considered an authority on psychiatric diagnoses) puts nail biting in a broader category with OCD, many of those who specifically study body-focused repetitive disorders disagree.

"The word 'obsessive' doesn't really apply," says Penzel. "Every behavior that's repetitive is not necessary a compulsion."

Compulsions, for one, are usually associated with extreme levels of anxiety. Nail biting, on the other hand, is often accompanied by pleasure — the people who do it want to do it, except for the fact that it causes damage over time. Though people with OCD appear to have a greater chance of being nail biters, they seem to be distinct disorders.

The new theory: nail biting helps us balance out our emotions
Recently, psychologists have come to a more plausible theory of nail biting: that it can provide a temporary escape, distraction, bit of pleasure or relaxation for the biter.

Penzel points out that many people get the urge to bite when they're under-stimulated (i.e. bored) or overstimulated (stressed-out or excited). "When they're under-stimulated, the behaviors provides stimulation, and when they're overstimulated, it actually helps calm them down," he says. Like nicotine, the idea is that nail-biting can have a biphasic effect: it can stimulate under certain conditions, and relax in others.

It's still not proven, but to someone who's spent a lot of time biting nails, this explanation rings true — and a recent study conducted by Sarah Roberts and other researchers at University of Quebec at Montreal provides a bit of evidence for it.

In the study, people with onychophagia, trichotillomania, or other body-focused repetitive behaviors were put into situations designed to elicit frustration (they were given a difficult task that couldn't possibly be completed in the allotted time), boredom (they were left in a room with absolutely nothing to do for a while), anxiety (they watched a notoriously terrifying plane crash scene from the movie Alive) or relaxation (they watched a video of a beach, from a comfortable chair).

Obviously, these situations are somewhat artificial. Still, when the researchers observed the participants' behavior — and surveyed them afterwards on how strong their urge to bite was — they found something interesting.

"People had a higher urge to engage in the behavior in the stressed condition and the boredom condition, much more than in the relaxation condition," Roberts says. Other surveys of nail biters and hair pluckers have come to similar conclusions. "It seems fairly clear that there's some emotional regulation involved."

Why we bite our nails instead of other alternatives
Of course, this theory still prompts a more basic question: why does biting your nails — or plucking your hairs or picking at your skin — provide pleasure or distraction in the first place? Why do so many people become addicted to these grooming habits, rather than, say, balling their hands up into fists?

One possible answer relates to the finding that people with body-focused repetitive disorders tend to be perfectionists. It might be that ripping off an oddly-shaped nail can provide a satisfying sense of perfection for the biter — and the quest for this satisfaction eventually gets out of control.

It's also possible that the uncontrollable urge to groom excessively goes much deeper than we realize. Lots of other animals, after all, seem to do it too: some cats lick themselves excessively, leading to fur loss, while some horses bite their own flanks over and over. Perhaps the urge to groom past the point of usefulness — to the extent that we actually cause damage to ourselves — is a trait that can be traced way back to the evolutionary ancestors we shared with these other mammals.

Finally, there's a more mundane explanation. Maybe we just bite our nails because they're there. Psychologists believe that you can get psychologically (not chemically) addicted to pretty much anything: any activity that provides a reward can reinforce itself over time.

For an under-stimulated mind looking for a momentary distraction, the hands are always present. Biting and ripping off a nail can provide a distinct reward (it sounds weird, but to a biter, there's something distinctly satisfying about removing it). Nails grow back, so there's always a fresh one to bite. Do it enough times, and you start to get pleasure from the habit — so whenever you're bored, stressed, or frustrated, your brain unconsciously goes back to it.

How to quit biting your nails
Different psychologists recommend slightly different techniques for quitting, but they mostly boil down to one common strategy: identifying the circumstances that lead you to bite, and changing them. "We try to identify all the triggers and control them in various ways — either by blocking them, or finding substitutes," Penzel says.

For instance, if you habitually bite your nails while watching TV, you might chew gum or use your hands to play with an object whenever you sit down on the couch to watch. You might also set out signs and reminders next to the couch, reinforcing the idea that you do not want to bite.The same goes for different emotions or feelings that usually make you bite: if being frustrated is a trigger for you, try to alter the circumstances in some way, by giving yourself something else to do or making it harder to bite.

If you still can't stop, there's also a way to make nail biting way less palatable no matter what the circumstance: clear nail polishes that taste absolutely terrible. They're harmless, but once you paint these on, even brief contact between your mouth and your nails will leave a bitter, disgusting taste in your mouth until you eat something else. Some people have success combining this with other strategies.

Regardless of the particular technique you use, a big thing to keep in mind is that breaking your addiction might not come all at once, so if you break down and bite, it doesn't mean you have to give up completely. Abstaining for longer and longer chunks of time can still help break down the habit — until, someday, the bizarre habit of nail biting no longer has the same hold on your mind.

Lymphedema Summer Travel Kit Must-Haves

1.  Emergency Antibiotics - Before you leave for a summer vacation, visit with your doctor and see if he/she will prescribe you a course of antibiotics.  This is especially important if you are traveling to tropical areas where mosquitoes and other insects are more likely to carry disease.

2.  Good Quality Sunblock - SPF 50-60 should do the trick!

3.  Insect repellent spray or cream - A repellent containing at least 50% DEET is most effective.

4.  Anti-Itch Skin Bite Products - Anti-histamines and calamine can help in counteracting the effects of bites or stings.

5.  Anti-Fungal Powder - For those with lower-limb lymphedema, in case you develop Athlete's Foot or other fungal infections.

6. Triple Antibiotic Ointments -  To treat any cuts, scratches or bites.

7. An extra pair of compression garments - It's good to have a back up pair, just in case!

Pack all of these items in your carry-on luggage.  You never know if your checked bags will get lost or delayed!

After my mastectomy, I am not a candidate for breast reconstruction. What are my options?

Sometimes after a mastectomy, women experience swelling or lymphedema in the remaining breast tissue and are not candidates for breast reconstruction surgery.  Kristen demonstrates how a special breast prosthesis works with massaging technology to actually help remove fluid while you wear it! You can even insert it into your favorite pre-mastectomy bra.

Researchers hail new cancer treatment: Unlocking the body's immune system