An Electronic Hat to Grow Hair?

According to a recently published research study in the journal ACS Nano, researchers have devised a technology that harnesses your body’s natural movements and channels them into an electric stimulation device that may grow human hair.  The wearable electronic stimulation device gets charged with the body’s natural motions that occur with daily activity  This device was programmed to stimulate hair bearing skin with low-frequency electronic pulses and activate dormant hair follicles.

The device has the potential of reversing hair miniaturization which occurs in the balding process.  Since it works on dormant hair follicles, it likely will not regrow hair in individuals who have a completely bald scalp (where there are no dormant hair follicles present).   In the ACS Nano publication, the authors showed that this device increased follicle density and increased hair shaft length in rats that were used as study subjects.  In addition, this device was shown to induce the secretion of growth factors such as vascular endothelial growth factor and keratinocyte growth factor.

The mechanism of action of this technology most closely parallels the hair growth stimulation by low level laser therapy devices such as Theradome(TM) or Capillus(TM).  Both types of devices stimulate hair growth by transmitting either light or electrical energy with the goal of revitalizing dormant hair follicles.  The difference is that the electronic stimulation device uses your body’s natural motions to charge up and therefore doesn’t need a battery.  Conversely, battery charging is needed for the low level laser therapy devices.

There are still many steps that need to be taken before electronic stimulation devices can come to market, not the least of which is proving that it works in humans.  While this new technology is exciting and may one day become an adjuvant treatment for mild balding, it is inadequate for treatment of more advanced types of hair loss, for which hair transplantation surgery is the gold standard treatment.  For this reason, I recommend consultation with a hair loss expert who can discuss the whole range of medical and surgery options for hair restoration.