I used to drink diet coke all the time. That was the beginning of my journey into natural medicine. My family started drinking diet soda when I was about 12 years old. I HATED THAT STUFF. I would complain that it gave me a headache, but this is all my family would buy. Maybe some of you remember this fad. This is right around the time when Dr. Atkin's diet was all the rage.

I've been artificial sweetener free for about 5 years now. That stuff hides in a lot of things. I supposedly did a detox for it 4 years ago, but who knows if it did anything. I believe my sister developed a brain tumor from the use of aspartame, but she won't listen to me about it. In fact they (my family) STILL drink it. I gave up on my family years ago.

I know lead can cause my specific type of hair loss. I had lead exposure from an old bathtub that lost its coating over the years. I bathed in a lead bathtub for 4 years!

The other nutritional deficiencies may cause diffuse hair loss, but I seriously doubt alopecia areata. There is some evidence that supplementing with zinc can help AA. I've been eating 2-3 spinach salads a day. Hopefully some of that zinc is being absorbed into my body.

I appreciate the information! The DMSA seems to be stimulating new growth, so it looks promising.