Hair loss is big business: in the UK, men and women spend around £150 million a year on over-the-counter remedies.
About 80 percent of men over 50 lose at least some hair, while 40 percent of women the same age are also affected, often due to falling estrogen levels during menopause. (the hormone helps hair growth).
However, despite decades of research, science has yet to find a cure.
Existing remedies can stabilize hair loss and slightly improve thickness.
But the improvements are limited and the side effects can be intolerable. About a third of people who use Regaine (a foam or lotion made with the drug minoxidil that increases blood flow to hair follicles) see little or no response.
Hair loss is big business: in the UK, men and women spend around £150 million a year on over-the-counter remedies.
And around one in 20 complain of side effects, such as tachycardia, swollen feet and stomach pains.
Meanwhile, the evidence on caffeinated shampoos remains conflicting, despite British consumers buying more than a million bottles a year. Some studies suggest that applying the stimulant to the scalp can block the effects of dihydrotestosterone or DHT, a hormone in both men and women that causes hair to fall out, shrink and become brittle. But other studies suggest little improvement.
There are more powerful hair loss medications available on private prescription (but not on the NHS), including Propecia. Taken in daily tablet form, it contains the drug finasteride, which also blocks DHT and can cause new hair growth in up to 80 percent of men. But it has been linked to erectile dysfunction in up to 3 percent of those who use it.
In the absence of an easy solution, it is no surprise that thousands of British men each year fly to countries like Turkey for hair transplants at a fraction of the cost in the UK.
But are there better and potentially safer treatments in the future?
Here we look at some of the promising new cures for baldness that are being developed.
Sugar gel makes hair grow back
The cure for hair loss could be much closer to home than anyone thought, according to recent research by scientists at the University of Sheffield.
They discovered that a type of sugar that occurs naturally in the body, 2-deoxy-D-ribose, can trigger hair growth when used in a scalp gel.
Sugar stimulates the growth of new blood vessels to transport oxygen-rich blood to organs and tissues.
Researchers were actually investigating whether it could help wounds heal by increasing blood supply to the area.
But in tests on mice they noticed that it also stimulated new hair growth, reported the journal Frontiers in Pharmacology.
The gel is believed to penetrate the skin, causing the formation of small blood vessels that feed the hair follicles.
And it is now thought to show promise as a treatment for androgenetic alopecia (or male pattern baldness), the leading cause of hair loss in men, usually due to genes inherited from both parents. (Women also suffer from genetic hair loss, but it tends to cause thinning from the top, rather than complete hair loss.)
About a third of people who use Regaine (a foam or lotion made with the drug minoxidil that increases blood flow to hair follicles) see little or no response.
Lotion with fewer side effects
One problem with medications like finasteride is that they are usually taken in tablet form, so they have to pass through the stomach, then into the bloodstream and circulate through the body, increasing the chances of side effects.
A rival drug currently being tested in the United States works in a similar way, but comes in the form of a rub-on lotion that is applied once or twice a day, with fewer adverse effects.
The lotion, called Breezula, contains clascoterone, a drug already used in acne creams.
in the US, it prevents DHT from stimulating the release of fats and inflammatory chemicals that trigger spots.
In a trial involving 18 men with male pattern baldness, published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology in 2019, researchers found that the lotion increased the diameter of hair shafts, suggesting that it leads to a thicker hair, and also increased the number of hair follicles. . Results from larger trials in the United States, Germany and Poland, involving up to 1,500 men, are due early next year.
“This could be a potentially very useful treatment,” says Dr Christos Tziotzios, consultant dermatologist at St John’s Institute of Dermatology, Guy’s and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust, London.
‘Clascoterone appears to be able to block the effects of DHT. Larger trials will confirm whether it is effective and safe.”
Could Hayfever Pill Get Rid of Baldness?
Millions of us take them during pollen season, but now research suggests that certain hay fever medications could also hold the secret to fighting hair loss. Cetirizine in particular is attracting a lot of interest.
It is an antihistamine, meaning it blocks the release of histamine, a chemical that the body pumps out in large quantities when it detects the presence of something harmful, such as an allergen.
Several studies have found that a 1 percent cetirizine solution can also combat genetic hair loss in men and women.
In a study of 33 men, published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology last September, researchers in Iran showed that rubbing the lotion into the scalp twice a day was as effective as Regaine but with fewer side effects.
The drug is believed to block the production of a type of prostaglandin, a compound released by the body to stimulate healing, relieve pain and keep blood vessels healthy. A specific form, prostaglandin D2 (PGD2), is found in excessive levels in the scalps of bald men and is known to slow hair growth. Studies have shown that cetirizine can reduce the production of PGD2.
Dr Tziotzios said: “There is anecdotal evidence that some antihistamines can help with certain forms of hair loss.
“But we need more research; I urge patients not to take hay fever medication in the hope that it may help their hair.”
The pills can cause side effects such as fatigue, headaches, dry mouth, nausea and dizziness, and are unlikely to reach the scalp in sufficient concentration to have an effect.
Cream made with ‘sunshine vitamin’
A lack of vitamin D (produced by the body with exposure to the sun’s ultraviolet rays) is known to increase the risk of thinning hair: it disrupts the growth cycle and weakens the dermis, the layer of skin that keeps hair in place. your place.
But could a cream made with vitamin D reverse the loss in women, even if they aren’t necessarily vitamin D deficient?
That’s what a clinical trial at Sohag University in Egypt is exploring: 45 women with genetic hair loss are using the cream twice a day for three months; The results will be compared to those of women using Regaine (minoxidil).
A new study published in the Journal of Nutrition Biochemistry found that bald mice grew new hairs when they were given vitamin D.
The vitamin is thought to counteract the harmful effects of DHT on delicate hair follicles, but a vitamin D cream is unlikely to make a significant difference in patients who are not deficient in it, warns Dr David Fenton, consultant dermatologist and hair loss specialist at the OneWelbeck Clinic in London.
“You should also make sure that hair loss is not due to a deficiency of some other vitamin, such as B12 (important for the formation of red blood cells),” he says.
Medication used for arthritic joints.
Another common cause of hair loss is alopecia areata, which affects around 400,000 men and women in the UK and causes bald patches to suddenly appear. The hair usually grows back, although it may fall out again in the future.
Earlier this year, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence approved the use of a new drug, ritlecitinib, for alopecia areata.
The tablet was originally developed for patients with rheumatoid arthritis, where the immune system mistakenly attacks the joints.
Something similar happens in alopecia areata: the immune system mistakenly attacks the hair follicles.
During trials on patients with arthritis, doctors noticed that new hair was also beginning to sprout on the scalp in those with bald patches. The drug, from a class called Janus Kinase (JAK) inhibitors, is thought to block enzymes that prevent hair from growing back in alopecia areata.
“They are good medications, but they are not a magic cure and can have unpleasant side effects,” says Dr. Fenton. These include skin infections, chest infections and life-threatening blood clots.
Gelatin injection could help it grow back
Stem cells extracted from a gelatin found in umbilical cords could be a new treatment for some types of hair loss.
Called Wharton’s jelly, it is found in abundance in the umbilical cord, insulating and protecting it.
Scientists have discovered that it is also a rich source of stem cells, master cells that can grow into any type of organ or tissue. Now, researchers at a private clinic in New York are exploring whether stem cells extracted from gelatin and injected into thousands of hair follicles on the scalp can treat genetic hair loss.
The 12-month study, which will end next July, will compare the results with a placebo treatment.
Stem cells extracted from a gelatin found in the umbilical cord could be a new treatment for some types of hair loss.