Tag: acid

Cure Acid Reflux Now

Perhaps this article is a bit backward in the fact that I’m going to talk about treatments that do not cure acid reflux. The reason for this is to clear up some common misconceptions about heartburn in general. The power of advertising is so strong that people will believe just about anything that’s on tv these days.

So I’d like to go through and explain the many different over-the-counter medications that claim to stop heartburn, and talk about what I mean when I say they do not cure acid reflux. For reference purposes, know that when I refer to ‘OTC’, I’m talking about over-the-counter medications.

In general, OTC’s provide relatively fast relief to the pain you feel by aiding digestion or decreasing the acidity in your system. The unfortunate thing about these is that they always seem to come with side effects. What is the point of trading one source of pain for another? How is that referred to as a remedy for acid reflux?

The point I am making is that OTC’s are not only the least effective cure for acid reflux, they are also big factors for creating other problems as well. For instance, antacids relieve your symptoms fast enough, however, they also stimulate the release of a hormone called gastrin that stimulates stomach acid. Talk about counterproductive.

Foaming agents are another way to help cover your stomach to prevent acid reflux. Unfortunately, if your esophagus is damaged, these agents are useless. And most people who suffer with severe heartburn do have damaged esophagus tubes.

Pepto Bismol temporarily soothes your symptoms of this painful condition. The most common side effect for this so-called remedy is ringing in the ears. Frankly, I’m not sure which I would rather have to deal with. But the point I am laboring to make is that what if we do not have to deal with either? What if there was actually a home remedy for acid reflux that could cure it and still not give you any side effects?

Dare to dream. I’m telling you that it is ok to allow your mind to explore the possibilities of a world of overall health and well being. It’s true. It exists. The key to an effective cure for acid reflux is to use the natural approach.

Our body’s are amazing. They are literally designed to heal themselves. We get in our own way when we solicit drugs to heal us. Drugs only push the problem deeper and smother the symptoms with new ones. Natural methods, however, can cure heartburn forever.

Get More Specific Details to Naturally Cure Acid Reflux Now

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Taurine for Hair Growth — the Most Effective Amino Acid for Fighting Hair Loss?

Taurine supplement

Taurine, also known as 2- aminoethanesulfonic acid, is an organic compound that can be found in animal tissue and has a vital function in both animals and humans.

Its primary biological roles in humans are:

  • to conjugate bile acids;
  • osmoregulation;
  • antioxidation; and
  • modulation of calcium signalling

Taurine has been proved beneficial for regulating blood pressure and vasoactivity

Taurine is found in the brain, heart and blood cells called platelets and it’s considered a conditional amino acid which means that it is produced by the body. (Schuller-Levis and Park, 2003)

Taurine Benefits

There is clear research showing that taurine supplementation has benefits in various medical fields.

Taurine has been proven beneficial for:

  • regulating blood pressure and vasoactivity;
  • it’s neuroprotective role (Frye et al., 2013);
  • Beneficial effects on high blood pressure ( El Idrissi et al.2013)
  • Benefecial effects on high cholesterol (Wójcik et al., 2009, 2012),
  • improving seizures and autism (Ghanizadeh, 2013), and
  • improving mental performance (Seidl, 2000)

Other studies show that there are increased health benefits when it comes to congestive heart failure and taurine supplements may improve or even treat this condition or other heart related conditions. It’s important to state that taurine could also serve as a great preventative and adjuvant in treatments for people predisposed to any of the conditions above. (Xu et al., 2008)

How is Taurine linked to Hair Regrowth?

The observations concluded that taurine protects the hair follicle from the effects of (TGF)-β1 as well as promoting hair survival

There are several studies showing the benefits of taurine on hair growth and overall health, as well as its connection with the hair’s natural growing cycle.

One study in 2013 (Kim et al.) describes alopecia as a modern malady that is aggravated by stress due to the changing socio-economic conditions we are living.

Researchers studied the effects of taurine against alopecia that has been caused by various chemical stress agents. There was a positive response when taurine was added and it allowed better stress recovery. The study concludes that there is strong evidence showing how taurine can help with alopecia, especially when used with other treatments that reduce hair loss.

Another study conducted in 2008 (Collin et al.) analyses taurine in relation to (TGF)-β — a protein that may cause hair loss. Taurine is involved in many physiological functions among which the immunomodulatory and antifibrotic functions. The researchers used taurine on in-vitro hair follicles. The observations concluded that taurine protects the hair follicle from the effects of (TGF)-β1 as well as promoting hair survival.

besides being an important element in brain and retinal development, taurine has a great anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effect

The (TGF)-β1 is a protein that performs various functions such as cell growth, cell proliferation, cell differentiation, etc.; it also plays an important role in the fibrosis of hair follicle and its growth.

There is further research that shows how (TGF)-β1 is linked to androgenetic alopecia as an important factor in hair growth. This particular study concludes that (TGF)-β1 derived from DPCs mediates hair growth suppression in AGA. (Kim et al.,2013)

Taurine as an anti-inflammatory

Taurine’s anti-inflammatory effect might also help reduce inflammation, thus helping those with scarring alopecia as well as micro inflammation that is due to external factors. In fact it’s thought that inflammation plays a major role in male pattern hair loss, caused by DHT.

A study in 2013 (Kim et al.) concluded that besides being an important element in brain and retinal development, taurine has a great anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effect. The study also shows that taurine inhibits the pro inflammatory mediators resulting from TLR9 activation. This may help researchers find treatment and even a cure for conditions like alopecia areata, psoriasis, vitiligo or other autoimmune conditions.

Hibino & Nishiyama argue that hair loss can be easily prevented by understanding how DHT stimulates synthesis of (TGF)-β1 in derma papilla cells. (TGF)-β1 also suppresses the proliferation of epithelial cells and stimulates synthesis of some caspases. Ultimately, epithelial cells are eliminated through apoptotic cell death. The study concludes that (TGF)-β1 antagonists help by preventing morphological changes as well as promoting the elongation of hair follicles. (Hibino & Nishiyama, 2004)

There is significant evidence showing how taurine is linked to (TGF)-β1 and can be used in treatment of hair loss. One study on taurine deficiency further supports the link between taurine and (TGF)-β1 (Hagiwara et al., 2014) while another study shows that taurine inhibits the expression of procollagen type I and type III in lung fibrosis, once again linking taurine to (TGF)-β1. (Gurujeyalakshmi, Hollinger & Giri, 1998)

Another study on taurine supplementation in the treatment of women with hair fragility shows the potential benefits of a systematic taurine supplementation; the study was conducted on 20 women with ages between 20 to 68 years who had fine hair and decreased hair thickness and shows that daily oral intake of taurine 150mg, Catechin 75mg and Zinc 15mg is beneficial to hair health. 11/12 women showed increased hair diameter from 0,040 to 0,045 μm while 6 other women showed an increase from 0,040 to 0,043 μm. (Tosti et al., 2007)

Natural Taurine Sources

Considering how many benefits taurine has to humans, it’s only logical to look into ways to supplement our taurine intake every day. Fortunately, besides oral supplements, there is a plethora of options for those who simply want to increase their taurine intake naturally.

A paper in 2009 (Oktawia et al.) reviewed taurine content of various foods and the most rich in taurine are:

  • beef
  • chicken
  • turkey
  • veal
  • pork loin
  • lamb
  • ham.

Seafood is also extremely rich in taurine with clams, octopus, scallop, squid and white fish being the most taurine rich foods. Taurine cannot be found in plants except sea algae so vegetarians and vegans should consider monitoring their taurine levels and take supplements if needed.

Energy drinks contain a very high amount of taurine (between 1000mg to 3000mg) as well as high caffeine content. However, it’s unknown whether the high caffeine content may have detrimental effects on health.

Numerous studies indicate that taurine has tremendous benefits for our overall health. While some of the studies have led to revolutionary treatments in certain areas such as proposing it as adjuvant treatment for cardiovascular disease, a specific treatment model for hair loss that incorporates taurine hasn’t been furthered yet. Although there isn’t sufficient data showing that taurine by itself cannot cure hair loss, it is an essential discovery that may pave the path for further hair loss treatments.

References

  1. Georgia B. Schuller-Levis, Eunkyue Park, Taurine: new implications for an old amino acid, FEMS Microbiology Letters Sep 2003, 226 (2) 195-202; DOI: 10.1016/S0378-1097(03)00611-6 Link: http://femsle.oxfordjournals.org/content/226/2/195
  2. Frye, R. E., Rossignol, D., Casanova, M. F., Brown, G. L., Martin, V., Edelson, S., … Adams, J. B. (2013). A Review of Traditional and Novel Treatments for Seizures in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Findings from a Systematic Review and Expert Panel. Frontiers in Public Health, 1, 31. http://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2013.00031
  3. Abdeslem El Idrissi , Evelyn Okeke, Xin Yan, Francoise Sidime, Lorenz S. Neuwirth, Taurine Regulation of Blood Pressure and Vasoactivity, Volume 775 of the series Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology pp 407-425, 10 January 2013 Link: http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-1-4614-6130-2_31
  4. Wójcik, O. P., Koenig, K. L., Zeleniuch-Jacquotte, A., Costa, M., & Chen, Y. (2010). The potential protective effects of taurine on coronary heart disease. Atherosclerosis, 208(1), 19. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2009.06.002
  5. Wójcik, O. P., Koenig, K. L., Zeleniuch-Jacquotte, A., Pearte, C., Costa, M., & Chen, Y. (2013). Serum taurine and risk of coronary heart disease: a prospective, nested case-control study. European Journal of Nutrition, 52(1), 169–178. http://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-011-0300-6
  6. Ghanizadeh, A. (2013). Increased Glutamate and Homocysteine and Decreased Glutamine Levels in Autism: A Review and Strategies for Future Studies of Amino Acids in Autism. Disease Markers, 35(5), 281–286. http://doi.org/10.1155/2013/536521
  7. R. Seidl, A. Peyrl, R. Nicham, E. Hauser, Taurine and caffeine-containing drink stimulates cognitive performance and well-being, Amino Acids 19(3-4):635-42 · February 2000 Link: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s007260070013
  8. Xu, Y.-J., Arneja, A. S., Tappia, P. S., & Dhalla, N. S. (2008). The potential health benefits of taurine in cardiovascular disease. Experimental & Clinical Cardiology, 13(2), 57–65.Link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2586397/
  9. Hyemin Kim, Hyunsook Chang, Dong-Hee Lee, Simulative Evaluation of Taurine Against Alopecia Caused by Stress in Caenorhabditis elegans, 2013, Volume 776 of the series Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology pp 267-276, Link: http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-1-4614-6093-0_25
  10. Collin, C., Gautier, B., Gaillard, O., Hallegot, P., Chabane, S., Bastien, P., Peyron, M., Bouleau, M., Thibaut, S., Pruche, F., Duranton, A. and Bernard, B. A. (2006), Protective effects of taurine on human hair follicle grown in vitro. International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 28: 289–298. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-2494.2006.00334.x Link: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-2494.2006.00334.x/abstract
  11. Kim BS, Spinner DS, Kascsak RJ, Park SY, Cho IS, Schuller-Levis G, Park E., Inflammatory mediators are inhibited by a taurine metabolite in CpG oligodeoxynucleotide and IFN-r activated macrophage cell line. J Drugs Dermatol. 2013 May;12(5):551-7. Link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23652950
  12. Hibino, Toshihiko et al.,Role of TGF-β2 in the human hair cycle, Journal of Dermatological Science , Volume 35 , Issue 1 , 9 – 18, Link: https://secure.jbs.elsevierhealth.com/action/showCitFormats?pii=S0923-1811%2803%2900270-6&doi=10.1016%2Fj.jdermsci.2003.12.003&code=desc-site
  13. Hagiwara, A., Ishizaki, S., Takehana, K., Fujitani, S., Sonaka, I., Satsu, H., & Shimizu, M. (2014). Branched-chain amino acids inhibit the TGF-beta-induced down-regulation of taurine biosynthetic enzyme cysteine dioxygenase in HepG2 cells. Amino Acids, 46(5), 1275–1283. http://doi.org/10.1007/s00726-014-1693-3
  14. G. Gurujeyalakshmi, M. A. Hollinger, and S. N. Giri “Regulation of Transforming Growth Factor- β1 mRNA Expression by Taurine and Niacin in the Bleomycin Hamster Model of Lung Fibrosis”,American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology, Vol. 18, No. 3 (1998), pp. 334-342.doi: 10.1165/ajrcmb.18.3.2867 Link: http://www.atsjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1165/ajrcmb.18.3.2867?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori%3Arid%3Acrossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%3Dpubmed&#.V3nfK_l97IU
  15. Tosti, Antonella; Vincenzi, Colombina; Starace, Michela; Pazzaglia, Massimiliano; Department of Dermatology University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy Oral Supplementation With Taurine in the Treatment of Women With Hair Fragility Link: http://nahrs.org/Portals/0/meetings_support/abstracts_5th_congress/Final_Program_from_Bristol_pt6.pdf

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the itchiest (and most successful?) alopecia areata treatment i’ve found: squaric acid dibutylester

in may, my dermatologist and i set out on a fun new alopecia areata adventure where we made my body allergic to a compound called squaric acid dibutylester (which from here forward i’ll just refer to as squaric acid because dibutylester is a ridiculous word to type more than once) by applying a concentrated solution of it to my arm. (see amazing bicep photo below). this photo does not do justice to how itchy this got. like, the itchiest itch i’ve ever itched. it took about a week for the reaction to peak and eventually the reaction had to be stopped with cortisone (yay, steroids!).

next step was a less concentrated formula that i applied to my bald spots once a week. on a scale of 1 to “the itchiest itch i’ve ever itched”, the formula that i apply on my scalp is probably a 6 or 7. the sensation lasts for about 36 hours, then it gets flaky, then at day 7 it looks like a “normal” bald spot again and it’s time to reapply. i’m so happy to say that it’s all worth it because typically after a few weeks of applying, i can start to see hair growth. (see amazing scalp photo below).

the idea behind squaric acid is that when applied to a bald spot, the allergic reaction earns the attention of your immune system as something to fight, rather than fighting with innocent hair follicles. i believe this treatment is also done with poison ivy, the downside being that poison ivy is a substance that you could run into in nature, whereas squaric acid is man-made and there’s very little risk of running into it on a hike and having an over the top allergic reaction. does that make sense? i’m not a doctor.

i’m still applying the squaric acid to my menagerie of bald spots every 7 days, and happily scratching away, eagerly waiting to meet my new hair sprouts.

yay, chemistry!
the alopecia project.