From a sugar gel to hay fever pills and cream made from the ‘sunshine vitamin’, the latest ways to combat hair loss

Hair loss is big business – in Britain, men and women spend an estimated £150 million a year on over-the-counter products.

About 80 percent of men aged 50 have at least some hair loss, while 40 percent of women of the same age also experience it, often due to the drop in estrogen levels during menopause (the hormone helps hair growth).

But despite decades of research, science has yet to come up with a cure.

Existing remedies can stabilize hair loss and improve thickness somewhat.

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.

And around one in 20 complain of side effects, including a fast heartbeat, swollen feet and stomach pain.

The evidence for caffeine shampoos, meanwhile, remains mixed, even though British consumers buy more than a million bottles a year. Some research suggests 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 or shrink and become brittle. But other studies suggest little improvement.

More powerful hair loss medications are available by private prescription (but not on the NHS), including Propecia. As a daily tablet, this 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’s not surprising that thousands of British men head to countries like Turkey every year for hair transplants at a fraction of the cost in Britain.

But will better and potentially safer treatments come onto the market?

Here we look at some of the promising new baldness treatments being developed.

Sugar gel ensures that the hair grows back

According to recent research from scientists at the University of Sheffield, the cure for hair loss could be much closer to home than anyone realised.

They discovered that a type of sugar that occurs naturally in the body – 2-deoxy-D-ribose – can stimulate hair growth when used in a scalp gel.

The sugar stimulates the growth of new blood vessels to transport oxygen-rich blood to organs and tissues.

The researchers actually investigated whether it could help heal wounds by boosting blood flow to the area.

But when tested on mice, they found it also caused new hair growth, the journal Frontiers in Pharmacology reported.

The gel is thought to penetrate the skin, forming tiny blood vessels that nourish the hair follicles.

And now it’s thought to hold 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 experience genetic hair loss, but this usually results in thinning hair from the top, rather than hair loss all over the hair.)

Lotion with fewer side effects

A problem with medications like finasteride is that they are usually taken as tablets, i.e. via the stomach and then enter the bloodstream and circulate through the body, increasing the risk of side effects.

A rival drug currently being tested in the US works in a similar way, but comes as a rub-on lotion applied once or twice a day, with fewer side effects.

The lotion is called Breezula and contains clascoterone, a drug already used in acne cream

in the US, it stops DHT from stimulating the release of inflammatory chemicals and fats that cause breakouts.

In a study of 18 men with male pattern baldness reported in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology in 2019, researchers found that the lotion increased the diameter of hair shafts — suggesting this leads to thicker hair — and also increased the number of hair follicles . . The results of larger studies in the US, Germany and Poland – involving up to 1,500 men – will be announced early next year.

‘This could potentially be a very useful treatment,’ says Dr Christos Tziotzios, consultant dermatologist at the St John’s Institute of Dermatology at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust in London.

‘Clascoterone appears to be able to block the effects of DHT. Larger studies will confirm whether it is effective and safe.”

Can Hay Fever Pill Banish Baldness?

Millions of us take them during pollen season, but now research shows that certain hay fever medications may also hold the secret to combating hair loss. Cetirizine in particular is receiving a lot of attention.

It is an antihistamine, meaning it blocks the release of histamine, a chemical that is pumped out in large quantities by the body when it detects the presence of something harmful, such as an allergen.

Several studies have shown that a 1 percent solution of cetirizine can also address 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 thought to block the production of a type of prostaglandin, a substance released by the body to promote healing, relieve pain and keep blood vessels healthy. One specific form, prostaglandin D2 (PGD2), is found in excessive amounts in the scalp of bald men and is known to hinder hair growth. Studies have shown that cetirizine can reduce PGD2 production.

Dr. Tziotzios said: ‘There is anecdotal evidence that some antihistamines can help with certain types of hair loss.

‘But we need more research. I would urge patients not to take hay fever medication in the hope that it might help their hair.’

The pills can cause side effects such as fatigue, headache, dry mouth, nausea and dizziness – and are unlikely to reach the scalp in sufficient concentration to have an effect.

Cream made from ‘sunshine vitamin’

It is known that a deficiency of vitamin D (produced by the body when exposed to UV radiation from the sun) increases the risk of thinning hair. It disrupts the growth cycle and weakens the dermis, the layer of skin that holds hair in place.

But can a cream made with vitamin D reverse the loss in women – even if they don’t necessarily have a vitamin D deficiency?

That’s what a clinical trial at Sohag University in Egypt is investigating: 45 women with genetic hair loss use the cream twice a day for three months; the results will be compared with women taking Regaine (minoxidil).

A new study in the Journal of Nutrition Biochemistry found that bald mice grew new hair when given vitamin D.

The vitamin is thought to counteract the damaging effects of DHT on sensitive hair follicles, but a vitamin D cream is unlikely to make a significant difference in patients who are not deficient, warns Dr David Fenton, a dermatologist and specialist in the field of hair loss. OneWelbeck clinic in London.

“You should also be sure that the hair loss is not caused by a deficiency of another vitamin, such as B12 (important for red blood cell formation),” he says.

Medicine used for arthritic joints

Another common cause of hair loss is alopecia areata, which affects an estimated 400,000 British men and women, causing sudden bald spots. 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 with alopecia areata: the immune system accidentally attacks the hair follicles.

During studies on arthritis patients, doctors noticed that new scalp hair also began to grow in people with bald spots. The drug, from a class called Janus Kinase (JAK) inhibitors, is thought to block enzymes that prevent hair from growing back in alopecia areata.

“These are good medications, but they are not a miracle cure and they can have unpleasant side effects,” says Dr. Fenton. These include skin infections, respiratory infections and potentially life-threatening blood clots.

Injection of jelly can help regrowth

Stem cells harvested from a jelly found in the umbilical cord could be a new treatment for some types of hair loss.

It is called Wharton’s jelly and 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 investigating whether stem cells harvested from the jelly and injected into thousands of hair follicles in the scalp can treat genetic hair loss.

The 12-month study, which ends in July next year, will compare results with a placebo treatment.