This is a short write up of my research for a cure for male pattern baldness. The concept fits the facts well (and better than most) but I have not had time to test it properly!
- Adequate blood flow is needed to keep hair healthy.
2. Oxygen and nutrients are needed to keep active hair follicles growing in their Anagen phase.
3. Oxygen and nutrients are needed to turn hair follicles in the Telogen (dormant) phase back in to active hair follicles.
4. Insufficient oxygen means the hair follicles do not start growing again.
5. Male Pattern Baldness (MBP) only occurs on the top of the head, nowhere else on the body.
6. Where does hair continue to grow on the scalp? Round the edges — closest to the blood supply.
7. The scalp area of the body is very poorly served by the circulatory system.
8. Blood circulation can suffer for a variety of reasons:
* Aging — Lessening of skin blood flow due to thinning skin
* Stress — Skin tension restricts blood flow.
* Genetics — personal development changes hair growth duration and flow
* Cold — acts as a vasoconstrictor (reducing blood flow)
* Unhealthy lifestyle — reducing blood flow
* Exercise — which reduces skin blood flow to help support muscle activity
9. Existing hair loss drugs (such as Minoxidil) are vasodilators (increase blood flow) but cannot be targeted just at the scalp.
10. Theory: To encourage hair regrowth what is needed is localised vasodilation for just the scalp (especially just the affected parts) to:
- Create a temporary increase in blood flow
- Trigger Arteriogenesis to increase the diameter of existing scalp arterial vessels
- Trigger Angiogenesis to create new blood vessels in the scalp
- Improve hair strength and thickness through better nutrient delivery
- Provide a kick start to cause dormant hair follicles to start growing again
11. Supporting fact: Cold cap treatment temporrarily vaso-constricts the blood supply to the scalp to protect hair follicles from chemotherapy drugs.
12. Supporting fact: In wound treatment an artificial boost in blood supply is recommended to speed up the healing process.
13. Supporting fact: it’s been occasionally noted that alcoholic have less than average hair loss which had been put down to a lowering of testosterone. Alcohol is in fact a known vasodilator with a proven effect of boosting blood flow in the skin (see note), which is why people when drunk look flushed.
14. Two methods can be used for localised vasodilation
* Application of chemicals such as camphor or menthol to trigger a response through nerves in the skin
* Localised heating of the skin
15. Heating should be to 42 degrees C as the optimum temperature to maximise flow without causing damage to the skin. This should be on a resting body as exercise reduces skin blood flow.
16. Wound treatment suggests heating for 30 minutes at a time four times a day is helpful.
17. Suggested treatment: Local scalp heating can be managed with a heating pad, thermistor and an insulated hat to maintain heat levels.
* Wear cap for 15 minutes to bring to normal head temperature
* Start heating process
* Maintain for 30–45 minutes
* Unplug and remove
* Repeat twice a day
* Increase daily frequency if no effect
18. Resting and forced blood flow levels can be measured via Laser Doppler. This only works on a scalp with very short or no hair.
This proposed treatment is unproven, try with caution
Progress to date
I’ve made a prototype scalp warmer and had the effectiveness tested by Moor Instruments, a manufacturer of laser doppler blood flow measurement products (thank you to them!). The monitor was placed on the top of the scalp and then the warmer switched on. As you can see from the readout below, in just a few minutes there was a significant increase in scalp blood flow. So the basics work!
What Next?
Well, more testing really to check long term effectiveness. The initial aim would be to measure blood flow periodically and see if a long term increase in blood flow in the scalp could be set up.
After that? The real test is will dormant hair follicles start growing again?
Background images
Research Links
Wound Care Can Make All The Difference
Camphor Induces Cold and Warm Sensations with Increases in Skin and Muscle Blood Flow in Human
Temperature Of A Healthy Human (Skin Temperature)
Effect of local heating and vasodilation on the cutaneous venoarteriolar response
How is body temperature maintained by vasodilation?
Non-invasive measurement of skin blood flow
Balding men offered hope of waking their ‘sleeping’ hair
