There’s a popular saying: “The hardest part of adulthood is everything... except gaining weight and losing hair.”
Hair loss truly feels like a visible and painful struggle, with fallen strands scattered everywhere, and even the simple act of touching your head becomes a source of anxiety, fearing more precious hairs might fall out. Factors such as mental stress, diseases, autoimmune disorders, and medication treatments all contribute to this widespread issue. As a result, understanding how to reduce and repair hair loss has become an urgent concern, reflected by the surge in interest and searches related to hair transplantation in recent years.
Currently, various treatments—ranging from laser therapy, medications, to surgical interventions—are being used. Common drugs like minoxidil and finasteride have proven effective for many patients with androgenetic alopecia. However, these medications often come with significant side effects, such as erectile dysfunction, fetal malformations, and excessive body hair growth, raising serious concerns about their long-term safety.
So, the question arises:
Is it possible to discover new bioactive compounds from natural sources that can both safely and effectively stimulate hair growth?
A research article titled "β-Nicotinamide Mononucleotide Promotes Cell Proliferation and Hair Growth by Reducing Oxidative Stress" was published in the internationally recognized journal Molecules. In this study, domestic researchers found that NMN supplementation can promote hair growth, offering a promising solution to help a large population escape the crisis of hair loss.
The researchers induced hair loss in mice by injecting dihydrotestosterone (DHT)—an endogenous androgen hormone responsible for over 95% of cases of androgenetic alopecia. The mice were then divided into four groups: a DHT-treated group (negative control group), a 5% minoxidil treatment group (positive control group), an NMN treatment group, and a blank control group (BC group). The differences in hair growth among these groups were subsequently observed.
01 NMN supplementation can promote healthy hair growth.
The impact on hair was first observed visually. During continuous monitoring over 5 days after hair removal, the skin of mice in the minoxidil group, NMN group, and BC group began to darken, indicating imminent hair growth. Notably, by day 10, mice in the positive control group (minoxidil), BC group, and NMN group exhibited the growth of short hair, while mice in the negative control group showed almost no hair regrowth.
Moreover, in both the NMN and minoxidil groups, the skin darkened more rapidly, and the skin thickness was greater compared to the control group. This suggests that NMN may have a positive effect on promoting hair growth, with results comparable to those of minoxidil!
In addition, the researchers evaluated the diameter and growth rate of the newly grown hair. The results showed that DHT administration slowed down hair growth and resulted in thin and sparse hair shafts, but NMN effectively improved hair condition.
These findings suggest that mice supplemented with NMN exhibited better hair growth status and that NMN has the potential to promote healthy hair growth.
02 NMN supplementation can promote healthy growth of hair follicles.
The researchers not only observed the effects of NMN on hair growth but also examined whether it could influence hair follicle health. After all, hair grows from hair follicles, and the condition of the follicles plays a decisive role in determining hair quality.
The results showed that the NMN-treated group exhibited a faster hair follicle growth rate, darker follicle coloration, a greater number of hair follicles, and larger follicle size.
03 The Deep Mechanisms by Which NMN Can Help Resolve the Hair Loss Crisis
So, why is NMN so effective, and what are its underlying mechanisms in preventing hair loss and promoting hair growth? This naturally calls for a deeper investigation. As a result, the researchers conducted further studies and discovered:
Cytokines secreted by human dermal papilla cells (HDPCs) play a crucial role in the hair growth cycle. DHT induces hair follicle atrophy, leading to hair thinning, while NMN can repair the damage caused by DHT. Moreover, the repairing ability of NMN increases significantly with higher NMN concentrations.
Hair loss is associated with reduced levels of VEGF, a protein involved in the formation of new blood vessels. A decrease in VEGF indicates that reduced blood flow is a key factor contributing to hair loss. The mechanism of action for minoxidil is precisely to promote hair growth by increasing blood flow to the hair follicles.
Research has found that NMN, like minoxidil, can also prevent the loss of VEGF, which means it can increase blood flow to hair follicles and support hair growth.
Oxidative stress caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS) is believed to damage hair cells, leading to hair loss. Additionally, elevated levels of the inflammatory factor IL-6 have been shown to negatively affect hair growth.
NMN can effectively reduce ROS levels and lower the expression of key regulatory factors related to inflammatory responses. These results suggest that NMN promotes hair growth by reducing oxidative stress and mitigating inflammation.
This study demonstrates that NMN supplementation can promote healthy hair growth by increasing the number and size of hair follicles, stimulating dermal cell proliferation, enhancing blood circulation, and reducing oxidative stress and inflammation.
It was also found that the hair growth-promoting effects of NMN are comparable to those of the mainstream anti-hair loss drug minoxidil, but with superior safety and no observed cytotoxicity.