When someone experiences hair loss – be it hair thinning, patchiness, receding hairline, or other loss – they usually begin to explore options for preventing or reversing it. Sensibly enough, this research always starts with nonsurgical options… including hair loss shampoo. Is there a best shampoo for hair growth? What is the best shampoo for thinning hair?
Which Shampoo Is the Best for Hair Loss?
Many shampoos make all sorts of claims about thickening hair, encouraging hair growth, etc. The only shampoo that may benefit in male pattern hair loss are shampoos that contain ketoconazole, an anti-fungal. The mechanism of action is thought to be the reduction of dihydrotestosterone (DHT), which is the main culprit for male or female pattern hair loss.
DHT is an androgen, a hormone that is responsible for what are considered to be sex traits of humans assigned male at birth – deepening voice, increased muscle mass, and so on. Body hair is one of these traits. An overabundance of DHT flowing through your bloodstream can cause shrinkage of the hair follicles in your scalp, making them less capable of supporting a healthy head of hair. Use of a DHT blocker can help keep these hormone levels in a more reasonable range.
Does Hair Loss Shampoo Work?
DHT-blocking shampoo (primarily through the use of ketoconazole) is the only variety that may have an impact on hair loss. Otherwise, most other claims of efficacy for hair growth shampoo tend to be overrated, if not outright harmful.
Which Ingredients in Shampoo Cause Hair Loss?
Many ingredients found in common shampoos – even those that supposedly promote hair growth – can be detrimental. Sulfates, formaldehyde, and dimethicone have all been considered harmful, but there are others even more directly deleterious.
Products with problematic ingredients like DMDM Hydantoin are the focus of numerous lawsuits against shampoos linked to hair loss. Olaplex, for example, is a sadly typical scenario for these products. A shampoo for hair loss that has seen its reputation and stocks plunge over the past two years.
Not only did it provide no measurable positive results, but was the target of lawsuits from 28 women alleging quite the opposite. Plaintiffs claimed that the products damaged their hair and led to hair loss.
Another example is Monat shampoo. Monat has been sued on 10 different occasions and is the subject of hundreds of complaints to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Better Business Bureau.
The First Step is Proper Diagnosis
Each person is unique and so is each case of hair loss. Since myriad factors contribute to every case, each solution must be tailored to that individual. Once the causes are identified, we can determine your effective options for moving forward. Contact PNW Hair Restoration today, and let us get you on the road to a full and healthy-looking head of hair!
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