Natural Treatments for Hair Loss in Men

Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4289931/

A Korean research that was published in the Toxicological Research journal on December 2014 investigated the effect of peppermint oil on hair growth on mice.

The animals were divided into 4 groups based on different topical applications: saline, jojoba oil, 3% minoxidil, and 3% peppermint oil.

Each compound was topically applied to the shaved area once a day, 6 days a week, for 4 weeks.

During the 4 week study, the mice were evaluated in terms of hair growth as well as other parameters.

Of the 4 groups tested, the peppermint oil group showed the most noticeable hair growth effects, a significant increase in dermal thickness, follicle number, and follicle depth.

The study found that from the second week, peppermint oil grew hair more rapidly than saline and jojoba oil. At week 3, peppermint oil remarkably promoted hair growth more than saline and jojoba oil, and even greater than Minoxidil. At week 4, peppermint oil showed hair growth of about 92%, whereas Minoxidil about 55%.

Abstract

This study investigated the effect of peppermint oil on hair growth in C57BL/6 mice. The animals were randomized into 4 groups based on different topical applications: saline (SA), jojoba oil (JO), 3% minoxidil (MXD), and 3% peppermint oil (PEO). The hair growth effects of the 4-week topical applications were evaluated in terms of hair growth, histological analysis, enzymatic activity of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and gene expression of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), known bio-markers for the enhanced hair growth. Of the 4 experimental groups, PEO group showed the most prominent hair growth effects; a significant increase in dermal thickness, follicle number, and follicle depth. ALP activity and IGF-1 expression also significantly increased in PEO group. Body weight gain and food efficiency were not significantly different between groups. These results suggest that PEO induces a rapid anagen stage and could be used for a practical agent for hair growth without change of body weight gain and food efficiency.

INTRODUCTION

Hair loss is a distressing condition that is associated with a multitude of natural, medical, or nutritional conditions. For example, androgenetic alopecia in men, or male pattern baldness, is increasingly recognized as a physically and psychologically serious medical condition that often requires a professional care by generalist clinicians (1).

The only products sanctioned by the US FDA for hair loss treatment are oral finasteride (Proscar) and topical minoxidil (Rogaine). Minoxidil was originally created as a hypertension medication by Upjohn Pharmaceuticals (2). Upjohn itself has warned of possible negative side effects of the medication including increased heart rate, difficulty breathing, rapid weight gain, edema, seborrhoeic dermatitis, scalp itching, and scaling (3-5).

Traditional plant remedies have been used for centuries in the treatment for hair loss, but only a few have been scientifically evaluated (5). Peppermint (Mentha piperita) extracted from peppermint leaves is generally regarded as an excellent carminative and gastric stimulant, and also has been used in cosmetic formulations as a fragrance component and a general skin conditioning agent. The principal ingredient of peppermint oil, menthol, is primarily responsible for its beneficial effects (6). In vitro, peppermint has been reported to show anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and antifungal activities as well as strong antioxidant activity, and antiallergenic and antitumor actions (7, 8). Several clinical trials examining the effects of peppermint oil (PEO) on irritable bowel syndrome have been reported (9). However, experimental trial of PEO in its hair growth activity has not been fully reported. The aim of this study was to address the therapeutic potential of PEO for hair loss via the comparative analysis between PEO and minoxidil.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Materials. This study used peppermint oil (Sanoflore®, France) certified as 100% pure and natural essential oil by an organic product certification organization (ECOCERT-F- 32600) and jojoba oil (Desert Whale, USA). The chemical compositions of peppermint oil and jojoba oil used are listed in Table 1. The 3% minoxidil was obtained from Hyundai Pharmacia (Korea).

Experimental animal. Five-week-old male C57BL/6 mice (Daehan Biolink Co., Korea) were allowed to adapt to their new environment for one week, with food and water provided ad libitum under 22 ± 1℃ room temperature, 50 ± 5% relative humidity and 12 hrs of a light/dark cycle before the experiment was begun. The dorsal area (2 cm × 4 cm) of the 6-week-old C57BL/6 mice was shaved with an animal clipper. Upon shaving the mice all of the hair follicles were synchronized in the telogen stage, showing pink color. All animals were randomized into 4 groups based on different topical applications: saline (SA), jojoba oil (JO), 3% minoxidil (MXD), and 3% peppermint oil (PEO, diluted in jojoba oil). Each compound (100 μl) was topically applied to the shaved dorsal area once a day, 6 days a week, for 4 weeks. Both animal care and the protocol for this study were in accordance with IACUC (Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee) and OECD guidelines.

RESULTS

Hair growth promotion. From week 2, PEO grew hair more rapidly than SA and JO. At week 3, PEO remarkably promoted hair growth than SA and JO, even greater than MXD. At week 4, PEO showed hair growth about 92%, whereas MXD about 55% (Fig. 1).

Fig. 5 shows the growth promoting activity of hair follicle number. At week 2, the hair follicle number of PEO group was 473% and 218% greater than SA and JO groups, respectively (p < 0.05). At week 4, PEO group had 740% and 307% more hair follicles than SA and JO groups, respectively (p < 0.001), comparable to MXD group. We also found that the number of hair follicles increased as hair regrew.

Fig. 6 shows the growth promoting activity of hair follicle depth. At week 2, the depth of hair follicles of PEO group was 172% and 133% greater than SA and JO groups, respectively (p < 0.01). At week 4, the depth of hair follicles of PEO group was 236% and 182% greater than SA and JO groups, respectively (p < 0.001), comparable to MXD. Histological studies revealed that PEO markedly stimulated the skin and thickened it. The depth, size, and number of hair follicles were also markedly increased in PEO treated skin. These results clearly demonstrate that topical application of PEO markedly stimulated hair growth and induced rapid anagen hair growth in telogen mouse skin.

DISCUSSION

Menthol is a major constituent of peppermint oil, which is a cyclic alcohol. Menthol has been widely used as a component of food and cosmetics. It has been reported that menthol increases the sensitivity of cutaneous cold receptors by modulating Ca2+ currents of neuronal membranes (16). Menthol is the most effective penetration enhancer that, along with limonene, can be considered the prototype for the use of terpenes as penetration enhancers (17). For years terpenes (e.g., menthol, β-pinene, terpinene-4-ol, α- pinene, 1,8-cineole) have been used alone or as constituents of essential oils in medicine, cosmetics and household products. In the experimental dermopharmacy and technology of transdermal drug forms, terpenes have also been intensively explored as penetration enhancers (18). When skin is treated with terpenes, the existing network of hydrogen bonds between ceramides may loosen because of competitive hydrogen bonding (19). The high accumulation of most of the terpenes in the skin layers proves that these compounds easily permeate the stratum corneum and that they may easily penetrate into blood circulation in vivo (20).

In our study, we found that PEO induced very thick and long hair after 4-week topical application and promoted the elongation of hair follicles from the epidermis down to the subcutis in a vertical section (Fig. 3), showing in the stage of anagen III. Application of MXD caused similar results. We observed that this increase in hair follicle length was not associated with any loss of hair follicle architecture and that the increase in hair follicle length was associated with an increase in the length of the keratinized hair shaft.

The drugs for alopecia treatment have been developed to maintain or induce the anagen stage of hair cycle. ALP activity was particularly detected in the dermal papilla. ALP activity in the dermal papilla was moderate in very early anagen, reached a maximal level in early anagen, and was kept at a low level during catagen (21). The bulbar dermal sheath showed intense ALP activity only in early anagen (22). Although results from clinical trials vary, the majority of the evidence indicates that there is a direct correlation between the hair follicle depth and the level of ALP activity. In our study, PEO induced significantly high ALP activity at week 2, even greater than MXD. This study demonstrates that PEO stimulates both dermal papilla and ALP activity, which promotes blood circulation by relaxing vascular smooth muscle (8).

In conclusion, our experimental data suggest that 3% PEO facilitates hair growth by promoting the conservation of vascularization of hair dermal papilla, which may contribute to the induction of early anagen stage. In addition, PEO effectively stimulated hair growth in an animal model via several mechanisms and thus could be used as a therapeutic or preventive alternative medicine for hair loss in humans.

The researchers also found that the depth, size, and number of hair follicles were also markedly increased in peppermint oil treated skin.

The researchers concluded that the results clearly demonstrate that topical application of peppermint oil markedly stimulated hair growth in mice skin and thus could be used as a therapeutic or preventive alternative medicine for hair loss in humans.

Peppermint Oil for Hair Loss – Home Treatments

To reap the benefits of peppermint oil to promote hair growth, you can do the following:

Peppermint oil massage for hair growth

For a daily massage to stimulate new growth, add two drops of peppermint oil to one tablespoon of carrier oil such as jojoba oil or coconut oil. Rub it into the scalp and leave for at least 30 minutes (it is a good idea to do a test on a small skin patch to make sure you don't develop any skin irritation). Make sure the oil mixture doesn't reach your eyes.

Add peppermint oil to your shampoo

For nourishing your hair on a daily basis, add peppermint essential oil to your shampoo or conditioner (you can use mild shampoo or a baby shampoo). Use 4-6 drops of oil for every ounce of shampoo (18 drops per ounce = 3% using essential oil guidelines) or conditioner. Massage the shampoo/conditioner and leave for a few minutes.