That’s the advice given by former Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) president H Krishna Kumar.
He told FMT that untested hair regrowth formulas could be dangerous and that some could even worsen a balding problem.
He said cosmetic products, unlike medical products, were not all tested and approved by pharmaceutical authorities.
He said while hormonal imbalances and genetics played a big part in hair loss, using a lot of chemicals could also cause baldness.
“Even switching shampoos too often and using many different hair products could cause hair loss. So beware that you’re not using something that may actually make your balding situation worse.”
However, he said that there had been studies going back to the 1980s showing that certain medical drugs could help regrow hair.
“One of these is a antihypertensive drug called minoxidil. It wasn’t very good for hypertension, but it was found that one of the side effects was hair growth. So they started making creams which people would use on their heads to help their hair grow again.”
US pharmaceutical company Upjohn launched minoxidil as Regaine Topical Solution 2% in the UK in 1988, but it was then available only on private prescription. At first the focus was on male baldness, but in 1990 the drug’s licence was extended to cover female hair loss as well.
In 1995, Regaine became a pharmacy medicine and customers could at last buy the brand of topical minoxidil that had passed UK safety and efficacy tests.
MMA president John Chew told FMT promoting hair regrowth was possible if the hair follicles were still alive.
“It is true that some formulas promote hair growth by improving the circulation, but once the hair follicles die off then there is no growing back,” he said.
According to Real Health Magazine, finding out whether hair follicles are still alive is easy.
“To know if your hair follicles are still active, just take a look at the scalp on your head,” it says. “If you see any hairs on your scalp – no matter how sparse, thin, short or fuzzy – your hair follicles are still alive and kicking and sprouting new hairs.”