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- By age 50, up to 40% of women will experience noticeable hair loss, according to research, though shedding can occur at any age.
- Commonly used topical and oral medications can help for many, but some not work on all patients.
- Scientists may have discovered a new treatment to tackle hair loss that preliminary research suggests may be more effective than common solutions such as minoxidil and finasteride.
You’ve got options when it comes to treating hair loss, but you’re also probably aware that there’s no magic fix. Even the most effective treatments don't work for certain people (and some of them come with risks). But there’s a new topical treatment for shedding that’s getting a lot of early buzz—and it has some science to back it up.
It’s called TH07, and it’s a combination of finasteride, minoxidil, and latanoprost. A pilot study (which is small-scale, preliminary research) suggests that this topical solution could be more effective than other popular OTC options currently on the market. Big news!
Meet the experts: Ife J. Rodney, MD, founding director of Eternal Dermatology + Aesthetics; Gary Goldenberg, MD, assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital; Cindy Wassef, MD, a dermatologist at Premier Health Associates in Randolph, NJ; Joshua Zeichner, MD, director of Cosmetic & Clinical Research in Dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital
Again, this is preliminary research, but the early findings are pretty promising. Here’s what you need to know, plus what dermatologists who treat hair loss want you to keep in mind.
What did the study find?
The study, which was published in the International Journal of Trichology, followed 34 men with light to moderate androgenetic alopecia (the most common form of hereditary hair loss) who were randomized to get a topical treatment once a day of TH07, 0.1% finasteride, 0.03% latanoprost, or 5% minoxidil. The daily treatments took place over six months.
At the end of the study the researchers found that the majority of the participants who used TH07 reported moderate hair growth and said they were more satisfied with how their hair looked than those who were treated individually with minoxidil, finasteride, or latanoprost. In fact, more than half—or 52 percent—of people in the TH07 group reported dense hair growth, while 30 percent said they had moderate hair growth. Most people in the other groups didn’t report hair growth.
“The data of the current study demonstrated that the topical administration of TH07 resulted in an improved efficacy in the treatment of the androgenetic alopecia compared to treatment with each of the ingredients administered separately,” the researchers wrote in the conclusion.
Why might this help combat hair loss?
It’s important to get a few things out of the way first. This study was small (only 23 of the participants took TH07) and the comparison groups were also small. In the latanoprost group, for example, only three people completed the study from start to finish. The study was also conducted by researchers from Triple Hair Inc, which makes TH07.
With that, it’s hard to draw too many conclusions. Still, it’s pretty clear that the OTC hair loss treatment market could use some help. Minoxidil has an average of 38 percent effectiveness for hair regrowth, while finasteride tops out at 66 percent. Latanoprost is actually FDA-approved as an eye drop for glaucoma, but it’s been linked to eyelash growth.
Why might mixing them together help with hair re-growth? It’s likely because these medications are targeting different areas of hair loss, says Ife J. Rodney, MD, founding director of Eternal Dermatology + Aesthetics. “Generally in medicine, when you treat conditions by targeting different mechanisms, you tend to get a better result than each individual agent,” she says.
That's certainly the case with the compounds that make up TH07: Each of the ingredients targets hair loss through a different mechanism, says Cindy Wassef, MD, a dermatologist at Premier Health Associates in Randolph, NJ. Minoxidil is thought to help with hair loss by opening up blood vessels and allowing more blood and nutrients to reach the hair follicle, while finasteride blocks DHT, which causes progressive thinning or miniaturization of the hair until hair loss is seen. Latanoprost, on the other hand, is found to improve the growing phase of hair and shifting some of the hairs from resting to growing, Dr. Wassef adds. “The findings find what we see in real life—hair loss patients that combine many treatments with different mechanisms of action see better results,” she says.
The multi-pronged approach is something that many dermatologists use when working with hair loss patients. “The best way to treat hair thinning is to address as many of the causative factors as possible,” says Joshua Zeichner, MD, director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital. “Combining multiple treatments is ideal, so it is not surprising to me that a combination of finasteride, minoxidil, and latanoprost performed better than the individual ingredients.”
In fact, many dermatologists are already using topical minoxidil in conjuction with topical finasteride, says Gary Goldenberg, MD, assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital. “It is thought that latanoprost may stimulate follicular stem cells, induing hair growth,” he says. But Dr. Goldenberg stresses this: “A larger study is clearly needed to confirm the findings of this pilot study.”
What to do if you’re dealing with hair loss
While Dr. Rodney calls the study's results "really promising," she points out that it's too soon to recommend trying this combination on your own. Still, dermatologists have several options for treating hair loss, making it important to get checked out. “To the lay person, hair loss can all look the same. But there are so many different types,” Dr. Rodney says. “A dermatologist can help figure out your exact type and suggest the proper treatment from there.”
Just don’t sit on hair loss. “Don’t wait until it's too late to do something about it,” Dr. Goldenberg says. “See your dermatologist at the first site of hair thinning. There are many treatments available.” Some of the most effective at-home options, recommended by dermatologists and Women's Health editors are here:
Proven Ways To Battle Hair Loss At Home
This solution contains 2% minoxidil, the only FDA-approved topical ingredient to deal with hair loss. A great first-line treatment.
Research shoes that laser light can reverse hair loss. Run this comb through your hair three times a week for eleven minutes to get results.
Just two tiny capsules a day can net you longer, stronger, thicker hair in just three months, courtesy of a patented peptide blend.
Dandruff shampoo helps to quell inflammation and scalp yeast at bay—and may help improve hair loss too.
Korin Miller is a seasoned freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Everyday Health, Food & Wine, and more. She has a master’s degree from American University and lives by the beach.
Brian Underwood is beauty director at Women’s Health, where he oversees content strategy for the brand across all platforms, including digital, print, and social. Underwood previously served as beauty and wellness director at Oprah Daily and O, The Oprah Magazine. During his tenure leading beauty content for the Oprah brand at Hearst, stories Underwood commissioned were awarded the Skin Cancer Foundation Media Award and a Fragrance Award for Editorial Excellence (his second). He was the launch Beauty Director of Dr. Oz THE GOOD LIFE, and has held additional editorial positions at Fitness, Organic Style, Good Housekeeping, Life & Style Weekly, and Woman’s Day and has written for Self, Shape, Seventeen, Redbook, Cosmopolitan, and many more. Underwood previously served on the Skin Cancer Foundation’s gala committee and as partnerships director of the Trans Beauty Clinic, a New York-based charitable organization that provided beauty services and workshops to the city’s trans community.
