Through the ages, people have continually searched for cures to baldness. And today, we are closer than ever to finding the solution to hair loss. Read on to find out what the best hair loss treatments currently are, and what the future holds.
Drug Treatments
The days of Old West charlatans selling miracle-cure hair tonics may be a thing of the past. But today, some drug treatments can indeed restore hair. The first is a drug that has been approved for hair loss in men, called Propecia. Commercially, it is known as Finasteride. It works by stopping testosterone from converting into the hormone that shrinks hair follicles and causes hair loss. It is a very effective treatment for receding hairlines and balding crowns. Studies show nine out of ten men taking Finasteride grew more hair or stopped losing hair so quickly. Finasteride is available in tablet form, so it is easy to take. You can purchase Finasteride from Manual.co.
Another popular drug is minoxidil. These days, you can even buy shampoos with the ingredient in it. But it is also available in tablet form. Although it is still unclear exactly how minoxidil works, and how much it works, experts agree that it does have the ability to slow new hair loss and promote new hair growth.
Hair Transplants
Both Finasteride and minoxidil can be combined with hair replacement surgery. The very first successful hair transplant was conducted in the early 1950s by dermatologist Dr Norman Orentreich. Today, hair replacement surgery has become a popular option for many who experience baldness.
Hair transplants work by trying to restore hair growth to areas of the scalp that have limited or absent growth. Transplants are effective for many types of hair loss. However, they cannot prevent future hair loss. Therefore, many people require follow-up transplants. How well transplants work depends on how much healthy hair an individual has and the person’s expectations. There are two main types of hair replacement surgery. They are:
- Follicular Unit Strip Surgery, which involves a surgeon stripping skin from the donor area and then using a microscope to separate the donor skin into tiny follicle units. Those hair follicles are then inserted into the chosen area.
- Follicular Unit Extraction, which involves a surgeon using a miniscule punch tool to remove hair follicles from the donor area to be used in the latter part of the above process.
The Future of Hair Loss Treatments
Some exciting things are happening in tucked-away laboratories, and the future for hair loss solutions looks very promising. Scientists are currently attempting to make shutdown hair follicles regenerate. Breakthroughs have already happened. For instance, scientists have learnt how to manipulate the stem cells in a test tube.
Other scientists are taking hair follicles out of human scalps. They then grow them with dermal papilla cells. The hope is they can be recombined with skin cells to form new hair follicles. That would mean you could increase the number of follicles used in a hair transplant.
Meanwhile, the Japanese wig manufacturer Aderans is researching hair cloning. However, “cloning” may be a misleading word. Scientists are not creating an entirely new organism. But they are attempting to duplicate follicles. They take follicular stem cells that have the capacity to make a new follicle and package them into follicle-inducing implants.
Another interesting breakthrough is the gene called sonic hedgehog, which is being developed by a company called Curis. Although it is in the early stages, it is hoped sonic hedgehog can control follicle size and growth, and transform resting hair into growing hair.
