Hirsutism

Hirsutism is a condition where unwanted and excessive hair grows on women’s body either in face,neck,chest or back as in males. This male pattern of hair growth is the excess production of male hormone androgen called testosterone in women. The hair usually thick and dark not fair and light.
One of most common cause of hirsutism in premenopausal women is polycystic ovary syndrome which is the formation of small sacs in and around ovaries. Women with PCOS tends to develop other symptoms like irregular periods,weight gain and acne. Some of the hirsutism are of no cause and called idiopathic hirsutism. Sudden formation of hair in this way indicated presence of tumor in the body
What causes hirsutism
Hirsutism has variety of causes and insulin resistance is one among them. Insulin resistance is the condition where body became resistant to secreted insulin and body produce more insulin in response to that. This excess of insulin stimulate the ovaries to produce more androgens which may lead to hirsutism. Polycystic ovary syndrome is another cause of excessive hair growth in women. Being over weight and obese has a strong relation to the hirsutism. Hisrutism may a symptom of conditions like Cushing’s disease, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, tumors in the ovaries or adrenal gland, or stromal hyperthecosis.
The following medications can cause hirsutism:
Anabolic steroids
Testosterone
Glucocorticoids
Cyclosporine (Sandimmune®)
Minoxidil (Loniten®, Rogaine®)
Danazol (Danocrine®)
Phenytoin (Dilantin®)

Remedies for hirsutism
Cutting down the calorie and reducing weight can have an impact on the hirsutism. Overweight and obesity can cause hyperandrogenism in women that results in hirsutism. Reducing calorie intake especially in the evening can help to reduce the weight. Eating more vitamin B can also help to stop the development of hirsutism in women. Taking especially vitamin B2,B3,B5 and B6 can help to increase fat metabolism and reducing the weight. These vitamins are play a key role in normal thyroid function which in turn result in proper weight control. Glycyrrhizin in licorice root can reduce the formation of testosterone and including this in the diet will help to inhibit the enzyme responsible for the formation of testosterone in the body. You can read the article here to gather more knowledge on this topic.

Medical treatments
Oral contraceptives
Spiranolactone
Finasteride
Flutamide
Metformin
Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (gnrh)

Oral contraceptives reduce the androgen level in the body and it also help for the normal menstrual cycle and prevent preganancy. Most women will notice a change within 6-12 months. Spiranolactone which is diuretic used for high blood pressure is also used for hirsutism . It reduce the effect of androgen and reduce hair growth. Finasteride is also an antiandrogen which used to reduce the effect of androgen and is as effective as spiranolactone. Metformin is also used to reduce the blood levels of androgen and is have adverse effect so it is not used commonly. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (gnrh) reduce the androgen production by the ovaries and requires injection . It is very expensive too and does not offer benefit than oral contraceptives
Other methods to remove hair
Temporarily hair can be removed by shaving which safe and inexpensive method but needs to be done regularly. Waxing or tweezing also can be used to remove the hair. Some people will use bleach to lighten the hair so that it makes less visible to others. Skin irritation and allergy make the use of bleaches limited.

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