The Glass Dragonfly

It’s All About the Hair

Kelly — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 20:44:48 +0000

I completely changed my diet last January. I ditched grains, vegetable oils, sugar, legumes, low fat anything and most processed foods in favor of animal fats, full fat dairy (yogurt and cheese), meats and non-starchy veggies. In the past year: I’ve lost 40 pounds. A small ganglion cyst that I’ve had on my wrist for at least 15 years just disappeared. My almost daily panic attacks (irregular heartbeats) are gone. I haven’t been sick. I have started to feel a little ill on two occasions, but it never settled in. This is huge!! I used to, I swear, you can ask Mayan, be almost constantly sick. I would go from illness to illness without having a well period in between.

One not so great thing that happened started about four months after changing my diet. My hair started falling out. By the handful! Now, I’ve always had a lot of hair, and long hair, when you lose it, you see it and you are losing it constantly, but this freaked me out! In fact, I was in a full on panic. It had to be my diet, but why?? Was I doing something wrong? How could eating real food be wrong? It only took a few minutes of Googling to find comfort in a blog post by Dr. Michael Eades. I have clipped the relevant bits, emphasis is mine:

Let me tell you what has happened.

You are experiencing a common problem called telogen effluvium, which is the medical term for acute hair loss due to a metabolic, hormonal or drug stress.

So you can better understand what has happened, let’s take a look at the normal hair growth cycle. Hair has a growth phase call anagen and a resting or dormant phase called telogen. Typically for hair on the head, anagen lasts around three years followed by telogen that lasts about three months.

During anagen, the growth phase, the hair follicle is active and the hair grows; during telogen the hair follicle becomes dormant and the hair quits growing. But the hair stays in the hair follicle, and since you can’t really measure the growth of a single hair, you don’t know that the hair is actually dead and the follicle dormant. When the follicle reactivates during anagen, the new hair growing in pushes the old, dead hair out, and the hair falls from the scalp. That’s why we all find hairs on our pillows, in the shower, and other places it’s noticeable. Those old are hairs pushed out by the new hair growing in.

This waxing and waning of anagen and telogen is why we continuously lose hair and yet our head of hair doesn’t continuously thin. And, I suppose, it goes without saying that not all of our hair is in lock step in this cycle otherwise we would have hair for 2-3 years, then it would all fall out at once. The estimate is that about 10% of hair on the head is in telogen at any given time, which means that the other 90% is growing normally. And even the 10% in telogen appears normal if you looked at an individual hair. It’s just not growing and will ultimately be pushed out when the follicle converts to anagen.

But sometimes this cycle can be disrupted.

A number of stresses can send hairs from anagen to telogen before their time. Pregnancy, a major illness, a high fever, an injury, surgery (usually from the anesthesia), some medications and a major change in diet, especially going on a starvation diet.

Whew! I had turned my diet upside down, that is a major change! After a few days, the dramatic losses stopped and I tried to believe that the new growth would come in soon. It wasn’t long before I forgot about it, thankfully the hair loss wasn’t very noticeable in the mirror. Finally, a month or so ago, I was getting frustrated with my hair, it wasn’t cooperating, I couldn’t figure it out. I made an appointment with my stylist for a trim and after a few minutes she said, “oh my gosh, you have a TON of new growth!” Once she said it I could see it and realized why my hair was bothering me. This new growth is lifting my hair around the roots and some of it is poking out, standing on end. The little new hairs are hard to catch when blowing out my hair, so they stay wavy when the longer hairs around them are playing nice.

I’m not complaining, the new growth is great. I am relieved to see it (I’m not going bald! *Does a happy dance*), and it will stop being uncooperative soon enough.

I am reminded of when I was a toddler, I had “baby” hair for a long time and then when my hair actually started growing, this is what happened:

Fancy!

Favorite Mp3s 2011

Kelly — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 08:17:32 +0000

A few of my favorite posted (at my other blog) songs this year. : ) They are not necessarily songs that were released in 2011, just that I POSTED them last year! When I go back and listen to all of the songs that I DID post, I am finding it really difficult to pick just a few. I liked them all! At any rate, here is a sampling (click the previously posted links below the songs to be directed to posts that include the purchasing information and website/social media links):

“Blackbird” – Ben Ottewell
Ben Ottewell – Previously Posted

“Breadcrumb Trail” – Buried Beds
Buried Beds – Previously Posted

“100 Other Lovers” – DeVotchKa
DeVotchKa – Previously Posted

“Trust” – Generationals
Generationals – Previously Posted

“Poison & Wine” – The Civil Wars
The Civil Wars – Previously Posted

“Greenleaf” – Generationals
Generationals – Previously Posted

“Please Let Go” – Jonah
Jonah – Previously Posted

“Lost in My Mind” – The Head and The Heart
The Head and The Heart – Previously Posted

“Gypsy Faded” – Joseph Arthur
Joseph Arthur – Previously Posted

“Essex” – Ariel Abshire
Ariel Abshire – Previously Posted

“A Little Lost” – Nat Baldwin
Nat Baldwin – Previously Posted

“Shadow” – Gringo Star
Gringo Star – Previously Posted

“Settling It Off” – Peter Wolf Crier
Peter Wolf Crier – Previously Posted

“My Body” – Young the Giant
Young the Giant – Previously Posted

“Colours” – Grouplove
Grouplove – Previously Posted

Mayan reminded me of another song today that probably deserves to be on the list, so here is an extra treat:

“East Harlem” – Beirut
Beirut – Previously Posted

Slide Project: Finished Scanning

Kelly — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 08:13:06 +0000

I have a lot of sorting and editing to do, but it is a relief to be done with the scanning part of the project.

This is my mom, 1981. Gosh, she would have been 41 years old. That’s six years younger than I am now.*

My parents used to ride bikes across the country with their friends, storing the bikes here and there in mini-storage until they could continue the journey. They had a lot of fun. I wish that I had something like that going on in my life right now. I won’t tell the skinny dipping with real bikers story! There are things that I hear about my mom that surprise me! She seems so conservative. These things just make me admire her more!

Love her!

*Damn. It was worse a few weeks ago when I found pictures of my grandmothers at my age and younger…darn, they LOOKED like grandmothers. Mayan laughed at me, but I seriously felt the need to curl up in a ball and weep. Time is slipping away. Quickly! I need to start LIVING while I have the chance!!

Inappropriate

Kelly — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 07:53:54 +0000

Mayan and I did a little, very little, holiday shopping yesterday. Target and Barnes and Noble. I wasn’t shopping, I was company for Mayan. We shared some laughs and bought nothing.

As we entered Barnes and Noble a choir of carolers started singing. They were gathered in the middle of the store, dressed in traditional costumes such as this:

It was pretty. I should have stopped to take a picture, but Mayan was trying to be focused on the task at hand, so I just listened as we shopped. We were both startled by a woman in the next aisle complaining loudly that the caroling was inappropriate “it wasn’t even December yet!” and more. Seriously?? How Scrooge-y! Who cares? It was pleasant. How exactly does having an attitude help you? Does it make you happy?

I doubt it.

Maybe she wasn’t Christian? I don’t know. For Pete’s sake, I’m not Christian, but I wasn’t offended…I was happy to hear and see them. They made me smile. It seemed to us that this woman was the type of person that looks for things to be angry about. I just want to shake her and ask “why??” I didn’t say anything, I didn’t even see who was complaining, but her negative attitude bothered me for the rest of the day.

I’m feeling grumpy just thinking about her. Which leaves me in the position of complaining about the complainer. *sigh* A reminder, I guess, that negativity sticks. Even to those who encounter it in passing. So, can I end this mini-rant on a positive note?? I can’t really turn than moment into a positive, but:

Oh my! Thanksgiving!!

Mayan and I invited her (ex) step-mom to join us. The other kids (Rocket and Sissy) were spending the day with their dad’s family and M (step-mom) was going to spend the day alone. I’ve been there, it isn’t fun. The three of us ate our traditional (which isn’t so traditional, but it is delicious!) Thanksgiving dinner, shared some wine and had a few laughs. It was awesome. We had a great time! We feel blessed that M decided to join us. I feel blessed by the close relationship that Mayan and M have. It makes me happy. I would love it if the three of them (the kids and step-mom) could join us next year. I love to see all three kids together!

Those Smiles, Gotta Love Them

Kelly — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 22:36:01 +0000

Mayan and her brother at his Super Bowl game last Sunday. His team won, they were undefeated for the season. I just love it when they get to see each other. It doesn’t happen often enough!

Beautiful

Kelly — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 05:19:39 +0000

I just might have posted a starling video in the past, because I think that they are pretty darn amazing to watch. The fluidity. The connection. This one is probably one of the best videos that I’ve seen. It’s worth the watch!!

It’s Déjà Vu All Over Again

Kelly — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 21:29:32 +0000

Last Wednesday morning I took this picture out the back door:

We ended up getting about 10 inches of snow, measured on my deck.

Today, Wednesday morning, I took THIS picture (all of last weeks snow had melted, this is all fresh!):

I measured 9 inches this time.

: /

I Am Not Ready For This!

Kelly — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 01:30:42 +0000

We have had our first snow of the season…and what a snow it was!

What I woke up to:

No. I am not ready for this, but I knew it was coming! Ugh.

What a Cutie!

Kelly — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 22:51:54 +0000

I had a little visitor the other day. He was just taking it easy in my yard. I took a couple of pictures through my very dirty kitchen window, but when I tried to open it a bit, he startled and ran away.

Cholesterol Levels, Have We Been Misinformed?

Kelly — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 20:30:36 +0000

Anthony Colpo posted this article yesterday highlighting a recently published study (linked below) showing that cholesterol may actually be protective. I thought it was worth sharing. We have been bombarded with the message that high cholesterol is bad news for years. It’s everywhere. You can’t escape the message “Lower your cholesterol! Now!” But is it true? I don’t believe it any more.

New Study: Women With Higher Cholesterol Live Longer – Anthony Colpo

From the article:

Only one of the following statements is true. Can you guess which one?

a). Cholesterol clogs your arteries.

b). Cholesterol causes heart attacks.

c). Cholesterol will cause you to grow an extra head, have deformed kids, glow in the dark, then spontaneously combust at the age of 66.

d). Cholesterol is an essential substance without which we humans simply could not exist. It is a vital component of cells and used as a crucial substrate for cellular repair, has antioxidant properties, and may protect against infectious diseases. Your nervous system is especially dependent on cholesterol, which is found in high concentration in your brain and the myelin sheaths surrounding your nerves. Cholesterol has never, I repeat NEVER been clinically demonstrated to cause a single heart attack; the evidence linking cholesterol to heart disease was originally inspired by totally irrelevant rabbit studies conducted in Russia a century ago, and now rests entirely upon extremely spurious epidemiological associations. The main benefactors of the idiotic war on cholesterol are not members of the public wishing to avoid heart disease but those in the medical, diagnostic, and pharmaceutical industries. Oh, and let’s not forget the ‘non-profit’ (cough, cough) heart associations that thrive on this same paradigm (“Pssst, can I interest you in a cheap-as-chips Heart Check/Tick? Five grand and she’s yours, bro!”)

If you guessed d), go to the to top of the class. If you guessed a) or b), you are an unfortunate victim of the massive cholesterol brainwashing campaign that has been running strong for some 50 years now.

From Healthy Diets and Science which also reported on the study:

The study (ten years of duration) investigated if cholesterol levels are a risk factor for mortality in 52,087 individuals (24,235 men and 27,852 women) aged 20–74 years and free from known cardiovascular disease at the start of the study.

The study found:

(a) Compared with women whose cholesterol was under 5.0 mmol/l (193 mg/dl), those with a reading over 7.0 mmol/l (270 mg/dl) enjoyed a 28% reduction of death.

(b) Compared with men whose cholesterol was under 5.0 mmol/l (193 mg/dl), those with a reading over 7.0 mmol/l (270 mg/dl) enjoyed a 11% reduction of death.

(c) Compared with women whose cholesterol was under 5.0 mmol/l (193 mg/dl), those with a reading over 7.0 mmol/l (270 mg/dl) enjoyed a 26% reduction of cardiovascular diseases.

(d) Compared with men whose cholesterol was under 5.0 mmol/l (193 mg/dl), those with a reading up to 5.9 mmol/l (228 mg/dl) enjoyed a 20% reduction of cardiovascular diseases.

A direct link to the study mentioned above: Is the use of cholesterol in mortality risk algorithms in clinical guidelines valid? Ten years prospective data from the Norwegian HUNT 2 study

From Chris Kresser yesterday on Facebook: “I’ve been reading the full-text. Amazing. Men & women with cholesterol <193 mg/dl had a HIGHER risk of death than those with cholesterol between 193 and 270, and even those above 270! The protective effect of cholesterol was most apparent in women: the higher their cholesterol went, the lower their risk of death.

When talking about cholesterol, I need to discuss LDL and particle size. I believe it’s important and I will try to pull a post together on the subject soon.