GenderLife Forum: The Information Exchange

I'm pretty sure used motor oil is, but I don't think even Deena would put that in her hair. I personally wouldn't worry about unrefined oil, but you never know, I guess... and anything can cause cancer given enough time/in large enough doses.

<---- Still haven't found the courage to use the oil though. I almost did, but then realized I have to leave it in for a half hour and didn't have the time. This weekend I'm going to give it a go. My hair stylist is probably going to berate me when she sees me next week though.... I hope the oil doesn't mess up the dye.

I smell like I've spent my life in a wood shop staining furniture. My whole apartment smells like pinesol. Even my kids keep asking what I was painting. I'm never going to smell sweet again; I was worried about this.

I put old sheets and pillowcases on my bed last night, I'm just hoping the smell hasn't seeped into my nice pillows...

Whatever the results of the Deena Experiment, share your findings. A positive result, even if slight, could give hope to many people.

And you may get used to the pine smell. Be glad the secret recipe was not based on dung.

Try taking 5000 mg of Biotin every day. It's cheap, and Biotin is very good for your hair. Be sure and take Minoxodil, which in generic form is cheap. I see no reason not to try it.

Used motor oil is definitely a carcinogen. It's been beaten up and chemically changed by hours of extreme heat. Worse, it is also full of unburned byproducts of gasoline which has blown by the piston rings. It's nasty stuff.

I can't imagine that crude oil would be of any real benefit to your hair. That sounds like pure quackery. Call it crude oil, call it snake oil, it's all the same. If you're going to rub something on your head to grow hair, at least rub something clinically proven to be effective like minox.

Yes, most definitely, my brain says it's quackery. But since she's already doing it, she may report on it.

Sometimes, logic gets surprised.

Back in the 80s crude oil was tested for carcinogenicity in humans and rats. The result was a negative, but qualified: sometimes, secondary products can be found that caused small skin tumours in mice (not humans).

But crude oil in itself is not listed as carcinogenic anywhere, and considering the regulations in place, I'd say chances are the Pennsylvania Crude Oil is clear of all those contaminants (which seem to be rare, in any case).

A brief info page from the International Programme on Chemical Safety:

http://www.inchem.org/documents/iarc/vol45/45-02.html

I'm not expecting much if anything either, but hey, I've always wanted shinier hair so if I have to give wrong directions to drunk tanker ship captains so they run up on the rocks it's what I have to do.

I suppose that I have bet on it not doing any actual damage, and I'm willing to try quite a few cheap quack solutions if they're not going to hurt anything. If all my hair fell (or falls) out because of it, well, I'd have to hunt Deena down and shave her head while she sleeps. She can't get too far on that bike. (I jest! I'd never do that Deena! Besides, Jesus would probably put up a force field around you or something)

Perhaps I'll try Biotin too.

I will give you all an update if and/or when I notice anything, but the truth is that I lack any sort of control. I was taking finasteride for a few months before I switched to dutasteride five months ago; I also started taking spiro and estradiol; I've changed shampoos and conditioners a month ago; I dramatically changed my diet a year ago and I'm working on changing it again (because I need to stop *losing* weight now, I'm too damn skinny!) so nutritionally things keep changing.

If my hair magically doubled in volume and started growing twice as fast, if it suddenly became stronger and less frizzy with less breakage, I wouldn't be able to point at anything, I'd just keep on doing whatever I was doing.

Cassie I do hope you got the pure crude oil and not the crude oil shampoo. I also hope you got the pga/water rinse because that is what is used afterwards to "cut" the oil and make normal shampooing easy and leaving no smell. And finally I hope you understand that once a week for months is what this takes. It does not suddenly blossom overnight but then transplants take quite a few months to grow in so what's the rush. I am approaching a year this fall and it has taken time but it is working. I will relish tossing my wig collection soon.

Yep, I have the oil and the grain, I suspect I did use too much though the first time. My hair didn't all fall out though (yet), so I'm probably safe and I'll keep trying for a while, again, I figure it can't hurt (too much) Detangling the rats nest I made trying to rinse it, on the other hand, oowwwiieeee! I'll be much more careful next time. I was more concerned with getting the oil all over myself than with rinsing the wrong direction - big mistake.

The great news is that the smell is gone now... mostly. If my colorist doesn't say anything funny on Thursday when I have my hair done I'll probably keep going with the oil thing, for a while, to see.

OMG you are only supposed to use what will fit in the palm of one hand and then massage it into the scalp. You aren't trying to lubricate a factory full of machinery. Oh well, so much for the directions - lol.

But Deeeennnnnaaaaaa..... I could only hold one bottle in the palm of my hand so that's what I used!