Hair contains a person's 'biochemical record'

Hair contains a person's 'biochemical record'

By Maria Endah Hulupi

JAKARTA (JP): You can only say so much about your hair but
your hair has a lot to tell about you, doctors say.

Kenneth Kang, the principal consultant for Singapore-based
company Spectrum Learning, said that hair reveals the mineral
level resulting from an individual biochemistry process -- what
toxic minerals are in the air or work area a person has been
exposed to and what trace nutrients are lacking. The presence of
toxic minerals and a lack of trace nutrients say a lot about the
health of a person.

"A deficiency of certain minerals will affect a person's
condition and make him prone to certain health problems," said
Kang during a press gathering to introduce Hair Tissue Mineral
Analysis (HTMA).

"A person has around 75 trillion cells. If the cells start to
die, you too will slowly die," he said.

A mineral imbalance or the condition of toxicmatose due to a
polluted environment can lead to headaches, stress, insomnia,
fatigue, hyperactivity, impotence and muscular pain, among other
things.

Kang explained that calcium and magnesium were sedative
minerals which helped calm people and if the levels of these
minerals were low, that person would be tense, anxious and have
problems sleeping, leading to fatigue and irritability.

The HTMA test, which dates back to two centuries ago, can be
used to support blood, urine and stool tests, he said.

It can also reveal possible food allergies, intolerances or a
poor diet, which can deprive people of certain minerals. "We
found that grain products secrete certain acids that can hamper
the absorption of calcium," Kang added.

He also said the test result would reveal mineral imbalances
that could be the cause of health problems, something that could
not be thoroughly detected through biological tests.

Aside from this, HTMA is practical, painless and provides an
accurate analysis of trace minerals levels, he said. "And unlike
other tests, hair is durable," he added.

Take blood tests for example. The blood requires special
handling and is also subject to homeostatis, or a tendency to
maintain its physiological environment at "normal" levels even if
the rest of the body is lacking something.

"So if the blood test doesn't show signs of a mineral
deficiency, it doesn't necessarily mean that the person isn't
lacking important minerals," Kang said.

The HTMA result will explain the body's biochemical condition
and the eating patterns of a person over the past two months. "If
your lifestyle hasn't changed, the result can be used to predict
your health in the future," Kang said, adding that nutrient
recommendations would be made to suit a person's requirements.

Why hair? Hair growth is exposed to the internal metabolic
process. All elements, including nutrients and toxicmatose, are
incorporated into the hair protein matrix. When hair punches up
through the skin, it hardens and store all the things within it
and keeps them in its structure. The contents are protected as
the hair hardens and they are difficult to remove, even through
normal washing. Therefore hair contains a person's biochemical
record.

Bayu P. Hie, an expert on food supplement at Opti Mine, said
mineral levels in the body were important as they were correlated
with vitamins and hormonal activity.

"If the mineral level is balanced, the body and the brain can
function optimally," he said, stressing that living in one of the
world's most polluted cities, people in Jakarta are prone to
toxic-related health problems.

Budi Setiawan from the Pathology Division at Cipto
Mangunkusumo General Hospital said couples considering having a
child could benefit from the test. "Studies show that autism and
hyperactivity in children may be triggered by mineral
imbalances," he said.

With moving to somewhere less polluted not an option for most
Jakartans, a toxicologist with the Islamic Hospital Foundation,
Ahmad Hidayat, said improving nutritional intake would provide
the body with better defenses against harmful pollutants and help
rid the system of toxic matters.

"Nutritional therapy is cheap, simple and safe. This therapy
can balance the unhealthy exposure to pollution and it may be
better to try this before drugs therapy," he said, adding that
HTMA results show that malnourished children have higher levels
of lead in their systems compared to children with better
nutrition.

The US$120 test requires taking 1.5 inches of hair from
several areas on the scalp. This can be done at the Opti Mine
Bio-Mineral Diagnosis company, Century outlets and Rudi
Hadisuwarno beauty parlors. But the analysis is done in
Singapore.

Kang added that to obtain an unbiased result, people who want
to get the HTMA are advised to wash their hair using mild baby
shampoo. Those with dyed, permed or treated hair are told to
include the information about the product brand they used, if
possible.

"That information will help explain the possibilities of high
levels of zinc in the test result, for example," he said.

More information can be obtained at
Opti Mine Bio-Mineral Diagnosis
tel. (021) 800-5888
www.traceelements.com