Supplements can contain a variety of nutrients and minerals which can aid healthy, hair growth. Which supplement should you be looking for?
There are so many supplements currently on the market advertising their benefits on hair growth.
A specialist from the Dermatology Research and Practice said: “Nutritional deficiencies are a known cause of hair loss and may include inadequate intake of proteins, minerals, essential fatty acids, and vitamins.”
Researchers from the University of California investigated whether a hair growth supplement actually works.
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They designed a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind study, that recruited healthy women aged from 21 to 75 years old.
All the women involved in the study held the subjective view that their hair was thinning.
The participants agreed to maintain a consistent shampooing frequency, and the cut and colour of their hair.
Additionally, they committed not to change their diet, medications or exercise regimes throughout the duration of the study.
Subjects were randomly given either the hair supplement or placebo twice daily for 180 days.
To measure hair growth, a 4cm area of the scalp was selected for hair counts performed after 90 and 180 days of treatment.
Additionally, the participants were asked to complete a self-assessment questionnaire before and after treatment.
The average hair count (in the 4cm scalp area) for those who were taking placebos started at 256.
After 90 days of treatment with the placebo, the number of hair strands diminished from 256 to 245.
The number of hair strands gradually decreased further after 180 days, falling to 242 hair strands in the same area of the scalp.
Those who took the hair growth supplement had an average of 271 strands of hair to begin with in the 4cm scalp area.
After 90 days of supplementation this increased to an average of 571 strands of hair.
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After 180 days of supplementation, the number of hair strands continued to increase to 609.
In the questionnaires, those who had taken the hair growth supplements also recorded a perceived improvement in overall hair volume, scalp coverage and thickness of hair after 90 days.
Another great thing to note is that there were no reported adverse effects from taking the hair growth supplements.
From these results, the scientists concluded that oral supplements “safely and effectively promotes significant hair growth”.
So what was in the hair supplement used in the study outlined above? The answer is Viviscal Maximum Strength – available at health store Holland and Barrett.
The researchers noted that the supplement contains “a blend of shark and mollusk powder”.
It also contains “an organic form of silica derived from horsetail, vitamin C from acerola cherry, magnesium stearate and glycerol”.
The placebos revived consisted of “inert tablets with similar appearance”.
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