Highlights
- Wound healing promotes hair follicle formation, and hair follicles contribute to healing.
- Through wounding, we reboot the genetic program of the skin. We then need to “reprogram” it to grow new hair.
- Someday, we may be able to regenerate hair through wounding and growth factor serums.
- Propecia can help you retain your hair right now.
Scientists have long known that there is a link between wound healing and hair growth. This link could someday allow us to reverse hair loss and regrow long-lost hair.
Some of the currently studied hair loss solutions, such as those based on PGD2, aim to regrow hair in patients who haven’t yet experienced complete hair loss. The hair follicles of such hair loss sufferers are still active, albeit “asleep.”
If we understand the link between wound healing and hair loss, we may be able to regrow long-lost hair on completely bald scalps. We might even use this technology to regenerate skin in burn victims, and eventually, entire organs like some frogs and lizards do.
The Wound Healing-Hair Growth Link Works Both Ways
Scientists have known about this link since 1945. Nowadays, we know that wound healing promotes the generation of new hair follicles in mammals. We also understand that hair follicles play a role in wound healing.
This link points to the presence of regeneration when a wound heals. Until recent studies concerning wound healing in mice, scientists believed that healing happened by repair rather than regeneration.
When the body regenerates an organ or a mini-organ like the hair follicle, it creates something out of nothing — in this case, hair follicles where there were none.
How the Wound Healing Process Reverses Hair Loss
A highly publicized 2007 study revisited the issue of wound healing and hair growth.
Through that study, researchers aimed to pinpoint the origin of the hair follicles that almost magically appeared with wound healing. They had assumed that new follicles would come from the stem cells of existing follicles, but they were wrong.
The newly created follicles appeared right out of the skin, with no obvious connection to other, nearby follicles. It was as if the skin had reprogrammed itself to sprout hairs out of nowhere. And the new hairs cycled through their growth phases just like existing hairs.
The process of new follicle formation within wounded skin is a lot like a reboot of the genetic program of the skin. With the old program gone, scientists may be able to reprogram the skin through a gene so it will act as it did at birth.
The idea that we can reprogram skin cells to become scales, feathers, or other appendages is not new. The same principles may apply to reversing hair loss through wounding.
How do we “reprogram” bald scalp to start producing new hairs?
In 2013, researchers identified a compound that increased follicle formation significantly in the skin of wounded mice. A growth factor called Fgf9 triggered a two- to three-fold increase in new hair follicles forming in the skin.
The study provides two valuable answers for doctors looking to reverse hair loss: It explains why we can’t normally regenerate hair follicles by scraping our skin, and it provides an intriguing possible solution for reversing hair loss.
Are There Any Hair Regrowth Solutions Based on Wound Healing?
Scientists have begun experimenting with skin wounding and topical growth factors in 2020. The process seems to work well in the context of skin rejuvenation, but although promising, the results are far from conclusive.
One day, you may be able to grow new hair on your shiny noggin by rolling a spiked cylinder over it and smearing it with a cream. For now, however, the best solution for retaining and regrowing some of your hair is Propecia (generic name finasteride). Propecia reduces the formation of DHT in your body, sparing and protecting your sensitive follicle receptors.
eDrugstore Can Help You
At eDrugstore, we carry both Propecia and the generic finasteride. Call us at 1-800-467-5146 and speak to one of our U.S.-licensed physicians to find out if Propecia is right for you. We’ll issue your prescription and ship it discreetly to your door. Virtual health visits and shipping are always free. To learn more about Propecia, visit our hair restoration page.
James West is a seasoned health and wellness writer with a focus on topics related to physiology, sleep, and men’s health. He has contributed articles on a range of subjects, from erectile dysfunction treatments and sleep aids to hair loss, providing well-researched insights to help readers make informed health decisions.