Bad Hair Day, Could it be Your Drugs? New Tool from RxISK.org to Explore Drug Side Effects on Hair

RxISK.org, the first free independent website for researching and reporting prescription drug side effects, has just added a Hair Zone to both highlight and to collect more data on the links between prescription drugs and our hair.

Toronto, Canada (PRWEB) December 17, 2012

Dr. Dee Mangin, RxISK.orgs Chief Medical Officer explains, It makes sense that this accumulation has effects on the hair itself. In the sixties women and their hair stylists were the first to identify changes in hair consistency caused by the use of oral contraceptives: it was discovered that oral contraceptives caused womens hair to thin both during use and after. But its not just The Pill - a lot of commonly used drugs cause hair side effects including blood pressure medications, cholesterol drugs, and antidepressants. Some of the most commonly used drugs in Britain and North America have thinning effects on hair. But its not just hair thinning drugs can really cause problems with the way hair treatments like colours, extensions and waves take."

Kaye Briden, owner of Yazu Hair Lounge in New Zealand, has over 30 years experience in the industry and is part of the LOreal Ambassador Team. She says over the years, hair stylists have been aware that things like antidepressants can cause hair to dry out and thin to the point that it wont take extensions; chemotherapy causes hair to fall out and grow back a different color; and when a color doesnt take in a persons hair it is likely because of some medication he or she is taking. But up until now there has been no way to highlight or share this knowledge.

Dr. Dee Mangin, says, Men, women and their stylists know more about the effect of drugs on hair than anyone else. These effects can be devastating, but because there is no current way to share this information the link to treatment is often not made by patients and their doctors. Until we pool the collective wisdom men and women and their hairdressers have, and make it accessible, it will not be useful. This is what the RxISK Hair Zone is all about.

Kaye Briden agrees. Hair stylists are in the best position to understand what is happening to the hair and why, and to help clients with these effects. There is for example a yellowing of hair thats due to hormonal changes or treatment. We will often know from your hair that you are pregnant before you do.

Not all effects are negative says Mangin. A famous drug discovery in recent years, Latisse, was revealed when women noticed an involuntary thickening and elongation of their eyelashes while using an eye-drop.

The RxISK Hair Zone has been designed so people can look up and report specifically the effects of drugs on hair and the use of hair products and treatments.

RxISK your megaphone to help change drug safety

RxISK.org allows users to enter the name of a prescription drug and see the side effects that have been reported to the FDA since 2004, as well as to RxISK, for more than 35,000 drug names from 103 countries. The data is presented in tables, tag clouds, heat maps, and interactive graphs, showing whats happening with other people taking the same drug around the world.

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Bad Hair Day, Could it be Your Drugs? New Tool from RxISK.org to Explore Drug Side Effects on Hair