A new scientific breakthrough could soon help people regrow their hair naturally without any surgery, transplants, or heavy medications. Yes, you read that right! A recently published study in the journal Stem Cell Research & Therapy shows that the most common type of hair loss, known as androgenetic alopecia, may not be permanent. Instead, hair stops growing because the body’s signals that control hair growth stop working properly. But the good news is this process might be reversed.
Hair follicles ‘go to sleep’
Researchers found that hair follicles don’t actually die. They just become inactive or “go to sleep” when certain signals in the body stop communicating with each other. If scientists can fix these signals, hair growth can begin again without any expensive treatments.
“This changes everything,” said Dr. Debraj Shome, a facial plastic surgeon at The Esthetic Clinics and one of the lead authors of the study. “Hair follicles don’t die, they just go silent. And now we know how to make them active again,” he said.
What controls hair growth?
The team identified five key systems in the body that control the hair growth cycle. When these systems stop working together smoothly, hair growth slows down or stops. But by boosting the right signals, blocking the ones that interfere, or repairing faulty genes, scientists believe it’s possible to “wake up” dormant hair follicles and restart natural growth.
Dr. Depti Bellani, another lead researcher, said, “We’re not just trying to stop hair loss anymore, we’re trying to restart growth.”
Most hair loss treatments today only slow down the process or try to hide the hair loss. This new approach could actually help people grow their own hair back.
Personalised hair loss treatments
The study says that future hair loss treatments may become more personalised. Doctors might use a person’s DNA and body signals to find out the exact reason for their hair loss and offer a treatment that suits them best.
Some of the new methods being tested include using small molecules like valproic acid and CHIR99021 to turn hair growth signals back on. Scientists are also looking at gene editing tools like CRISPR to fix genetic issues that lead to hair loss.
In more serious cases, stem cell therapy and tissue engineering could be used to rebuild or regrow hair follicles from scratch.
Early tests on animals have shown promising results, and human trials are expected to start within the next two years. If successful, this could lead to natural and long-lasting hair regrowth solutions, giving new hope to millions struggling with hair loss.
