The Science of Healthy Hair, Hair Loss and How to Regrow Hair

In this episode, I explain the biology of hair, hair growth, why hair growth slows and what causes hair to stop growing and/or “fall out.” I discuss the essential role of hair stem cells and other supporting biological factors for healthy hair growth. Then I describe various approaches (mechanical and chemical) to slow hair loss by increasing blood flow to hair stem cells, including minoxidil, tadalafil, PRP, microneedling, Botox and ketoconazole treatments. I also discuss how age-related hormone changes cause hair loss and explain the effectiveness of treatments such as caffeine, saw palmetto, growth hormone, finasteride and dutasteride. For all hair growth options, I describe potential side effects, how soon to expect results and the amount of hair regrowth to expect and I highlight effective combination treatments for hair regrowth even in hair “dead” (bald) zones. For many listeners, thinning, brittle hair, or pattern baldness are a source of anxiety and stress. This episode explains the mechanisms underlying hair regrowth tools and the science behind them so that you can evaluate potential treatments and associated side-effect profiles and select the best one(s) for you.

For the full show notes, visit hubermanlab.com.

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Timestamps

(00:00:00) Hair

(00:04:29) Sponsors: LMNT & Waking Up

(00:08:04) Psychological States & Hair

(00:13:19) Hair Anatomy & Stem Cells

(00:26:05) 3 Phases of Hair Growth

(00:32:06) Sponsor: AG1 (Athletic Greens)

(00:36:55) Minoxidil & Blood Flow

(00:45:37) Increase Blood Flow: Massage, Tadalafil, Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP), Microneedling

(00:56:10) Microneedling, Minoxidil & “Dead Zones”

(01:01:25) Botox Treatments

(01:06:27) Androgens, Hair Growth & Pattern Hair Loss; Scalp vs. Beard Hair

(01:15:46) Topical Caffeine & Slowing Hair Loss

(01:21:06) IGF-1: Growth Hormone & Sermorelin; Insulin Sensitivity: Myo-Inositol

(01:25:52) Iron & Hair Growth

(01:27:04) 5-Alpha Reductase & Saw Palmetto; Curcumin

(01:33:22) Ketoconazole & Offsetting Hair Loss

(01:38:46) Topical & Oral Finasteride

(01:51:00) Post- Finasteride Syndrome

(01:56:01) Dutasteride

(01:58:53) Mechanical & Chemical Stimulation for Hair Growth

(02:02:46) Zero-Cost Support, YouTube Feedback, Spotify & Apple Reviews, Sponsors, Momentous, Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter

Title Card Photo Credit: Mike Blabac

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