Hiya

Basically, I have been experiencing anxiety and what one might call "chronic stress" for about 4 years now, and I am worried it might be starting to negatively effect my body

I am trying to reduce my stress and lower my cortisol, but I want to do this without increasing my testosterone levels or DHT, as I have had some mild hair loss recently and I am trying to control it - increasing my testosterone or DHT will only make that worse >.<

So, I was wondering, is it safe to take Holy Basil, St John's Wort and flaxseeds together? Apparently both HB and St John's Wort can lower cortisol, calm the body from stress and lower androgen levels (both testosterone and DHT ). It seems perfect, but I don't want to mix things that shouldn't be mixed!

DHEA, Ashwagandha, Ginseng and Rhodiola Rosea were all other things I looked into, but believe it or not they seem to ALL increase testosterone levels, at least from what I read! Not by a lot, and for most people it will make no difference, but for me it's something I want to watch at the moment

Thanks everyone, I largely just want to make sure that it isn't bad at all to take HB, SJW and flaxseeds together!

Hoppipolla


EDIT -- Ah on closer inspection SJW seems a little strong for me! Also it seems more to do with depression than anxiety - and I don't have depression! Maybe I'll just take Holy Basil and flaxseeds

Hi hoppipolla, welcome! I don't think there's a problem with taking Holy Basil and St. Johns Wort together. These two herbs are found in mood products.

However, I would be careful combining the Holy Basil and the Flax Seeds. A side effect of the Holy Basil is thinning of the blood. Flax Seeds can also possibly cause bleeding. Here's a snippet of an article about the bad effects of Flax Seed from ehow.com:

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"We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals." ~Immanual Kant~

Oh no that doesn't sound too good ._.

Are the sides of flax seeds very rare or?

Because the reason I am watching this is because I have been experiencing the very beginnings of male pattern baldness hair loss, and because I suspect stress of causing my problems I wanted to lower my stress and cortisol, but then wanted to use flax seeds to balance (lower) my testosterone and estrogen levels.

I mean joke is, Holy Basil is supposed to be able to lower testosterone anyway I think isn't it? So maybe I don't need the flax seeds... perhaps the HB will kill 2 birds with one stone?


EDIT -- Oh, or I suppose I could always take an alternative to flax seeds that is also high in "lignans" (apparently it's the lignans that I need). I wonder what the best option would be!

How about this:

https://www.swansonvitamins.com/SWU207/ItemDetail

Does that look good?

Hoppipolla

Make sure you are eating a healthy diet, stressed people tend to eat a lot of junk food.

You would probably be better taking a herbal proprietary product for controlling cortisol such as NOW Cortisol Support.

https://www.iherb.com/Super-Cortisol-...caps/5022?at=0

Taurine and GABA are also good antistress supplements.

https://life.familyeducation.com/stre...83.html?page=4

If your worried about your hair this guy is probably the best using natural supplements for hair regrowth:

https://www.immortalhair.org/

All these things are just a pallative if you dont get to the bottom of the stress.

The best stress reliever is Jesus Christ:

" Come unto me all who are burdened and heavy laden and I will give you rest"
.

I'm not an expert, but the more I read about Flax Seeds OR Flax Seed Oil and bleeding, the less I'm ever likely to take it myself. Some signs of bleeding are blood in stool, vomiting blood, and vision blurriness or numbness in arms or legs if the brain is affected. It also decreases clotting.

Another more natural product for male pattern baldness is Procerin. It's expensive though, even if you just use the topical and pills.

A better seed would be chia. Sometimes called salba; just so they can jack up the cost (ridiculous). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salvia_hispanica

__________________
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- Jim
"Even if you are in a minority of one, the truth is still the truth". - Ghandi

Thanks for the help so far everyone

Thing is though the reason I chose Holy Basil is I have reason to believe my insulin levels were thrown about a bit by eating too much sugary and carb-filled foods, and HB is also supposed to help with maintaining stable blood sugar as well as testosterone, cortisol, sex hormones etc etc.

Many of the things that counteract cortisol such as DHEA also increase testosterone and also DHT, which is a BIG no no if you're trying to combat typical male hair loss.

I'm not so sure about GABA... would that be good to get from somewhere as well?


EDIT -- Hmm I've been reading about GABA and heard quite mixed things - apparently it's banned in the UK!! lol Erm... I'm curious about all of these though

Of course the best relief of stress is to identify the cause. Meanwhile, one relief of the symptom of stress is ashwagandha. When the person is very stressed or has anxiety the herb stimulates the GABA receptors in the brain to calm the mind. Ashwagandha is also beneficial to the thyroid through adrenal support and by aiding in the conversion of T4 in to T3.

The most important mineral to relax the mind as well as the muscles is magnesium.

You seem very worried about your hair-have you checked the Immortal Hair site link?

Brian Simonson is a naturopath who has made an in depth study of Male Pattern Baldness and is widely regarded as an expert on the subject.

As far as GABA goes, I order from iHerb. There is no problem in importing
and they are running a $4 shipping charge for items under 3lbs in weight on international orders at the moment.

https://www.iherb.com/Now-Foods-GABA-...sules/605?at=0

That site is interesting...

It is all based on something that had occurred to me already but I wasn't sure of it's impact - high insulin.

Insulin does seem to trigger a chain or hormone reactions (cortisol I believe is involved) - it seems to decrease SHBG, increase free testosterone and DHT, and so this then hits the hair follicles!

I have already vastly reconsidered my diet and am trying to keep my insulin levels more under control.

I used to eat a LOT (and I mean a LOT!) of pasta, pizza, sugary foods... basically, everything that is bound to hit insulin levels!! lol

So now I am remodelling everything - noticing my small hair loss... it kinda changed my life in a way o.O

But yeah... he probably is onto something...

And damn I just noticed that Reishi Mushroom AND Holy Basil are known to INCREASE insulin levels.

Back. to. the. drawing. board.

lol



EDIT -- Wow. This website is... actually I think really incredible! Thank you so much for pointing me to it... I think he's right... I mean I'm not sure but it really is blowing me away It does make a LOT of sense!

I feel really geared up to save my hair and also combat my stress better now!

More suggestions are still welcome of course but... thank you so much all of you

Well, that's male pattern hair loss CURED!!

I think this sums it up!

Under 35 with male pattern hair loss? Think about your insulin and IGF-1 levels!
Over 35 with MP hair loss? Do the above, and take flax seeds (or SDG)!


Thank you again, I think that's it! Hooray! ^_^

Ok well maybe not cured hehe! Although I think insulin sensitivity, diet and all these factors play a part! Sorry I just think I got a little bit carried away there! ^_^

That's the problem with life. Ups, downs, surprises, accidents, etc. It's a real bummer sometimes.

Actually "problem" is not necessarily the right word. Maybe I should say that these things are tests. Testing our resolve.

It is also a problem when we decide to move from the mainstream med world. Our health quest becomes more difficult; because we tend to want to self-diagnose. Well, I haven't really found a mainstream Dr that knows how to diagnose anyway.

If someone finds a "cure" for balding, they will be a qazillionaire.

Do any of you men realize how many women think bald heads are sexy?? Let nature take its course and allow you to become one of them dern good looking bald men!!!! Bald is sexy beyond sexy!!!!!

But if you must, check out your health food store for the essential oil rosemary... has the directions to combat hair loss on the bottle!

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God is and all is well
~John Greenleaf Whittier~