Nutritional supplement shown to be effective in reducing female hair loss

19-Mar-2015 - Last updated on 19-Mar-2015 at 15:48 GMT

Effect of a nutritional supplement on hair loss in women

Hair loss is a distressing thing for anyone, and is particularly so for women, but scientists have found that taking a nutritional supplement can improve the overall scalp coverage and hair condition.

The team, made up of researchers in France, Italy, and the US, found that a combination of specific omega 3&6 and antioxidants were beneficial, and say that it provides a new alternative in the treatment of Female pattern hair loss (FPHL).

FPHL is a broad term for the decrease in central scalp density that is frequently observed after puberty in females and is characterized by a diffuse reduction in hair density which mainly affects the crown and the frontal scalp.

It has no serious health consequences; however it is understandably distressing and has been reported to affect up to 50% of women over 50.

“A 6-month supplementation with omega 3&6 and antioxidants acts efficiently against hair loss in improving hair density and reducing the telogen percentage and the proportion of miniaturized anagen hair,” says the study, published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology.

“Objectively measured improvements were confirmed by the subjects’ perception of efficacy.”

The scientists say there is no doubt that nutrition influences hair loss and hair condition, and that vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients are frequently used in a large range of products claiming to be efficient against hair loss.

Evaluation

With this in mind, they set about evaluating the specific nutritional supplement outlined above versus a non-supplemented control group

Specifically, the nutritional supplement combines specific omega 3&6 from fish and blackcurrant seed oils with antioxidants (lycopene, vitamin C, and vitamin E) and was monitored for improving hair loss and the hair characteristics volume, shine, softness.

In the study, 120 healthy female subjects took part for 6 months with the primary endpoint being the change in hair density evaluated on standardized photographs.

Secondary endpoints included changes in telogen hair percentage and diameter distribution of anagen hair (>40 µm vs. ≤40 µm) measured by trichogram. Overall changes in hair density and diameter were also measured by trichometer and by subjects’ self-assessment.

The study showed that after 6 months of treatment, photograph assessment demonstrated a superior improvement in the supplemented group (P < 0.001).

A large majority of supplemented subjects reported a reduction in hair loss (89.9% of subjects at 6 months), as well as an improvement in hair diameter (86.1%) and hair density (87.3%).