Seven proven ways to prevent thinning hair: Ditch dry shampoos, try scalp stimulation

Forty per cent of people seeking treatment for hair loss are women. Photo / Tim Mossholder, Unsplash

News that the Olaplex haircare company is being sued by 28 women in the US who claim its products cause hair loss, blisters and other conditions will shock millions. Barely a year ago Olaplex was the latest darling in the haircare market which, in 2022, was valued at US$82.3 billion (NZ$132b) globally.

Marketed as a bond-building range, the before and after pictures were compelling. For millions like me, searching for The One that will give them silky, lustrous, abundant locks, Olaplex, with its stylishly clinical looking line-up, offered not one, but seven products, cleverly designed to be used in sequences.

In the end, I didn’t use it much, despite being sent the range to try. The ingredients listed on Olaplex No 6 and 7 included silicone, great for creating instant shine, but drying in the long run and terrible for the environment.

But I’m no scientist. The best I can do is interrogate experts from both sides of an argument and draw my own conclusions. Olaplex always maintained they were “good” silicones. In a landscape where 40 per cent of those seeking treatment for hair loss are women, Olaplex was heavily pimped in lavish editorials as the second coming by believers who were convinced it had transformed their hair.

In the short term, maybe it had. In the four years I’ve been writing about beauty, the single immutable truth I’ve gleaned in a shifting kaleidoscope of “facts” is that clever marketing and instant results trump integrity and long-term good habits every time.

The more I’ve delved, the more convinced I am that many of the problems we encounter with our skin and hair are created by certain products – the harsh, stripping ones, the gloopy “seals” – and incorrect, overzealous application.

Does this shame the beauty industry? Does it heck. It simply creates a lovely fat opening for corrective products, the latest of which include fancy scalp exfoliants to remove the gunk you put there in the first place. For the uninitiated, the scalp is the beauty industry’s new locus of intent. Treat it as you would your skin, they say. God help it.

Dr Munir Somji, founder of Dr MediSpa and an aesthetic doctor who specialises in hair, goes further, pointing the finger not just at certain formulations, but also mainstream practices such as regular use of hair extensions. “They may feel ultra light, but like tight ponytails, cumulatively they pull on the scalp, causing hair to fall out and breaking the follicles,” he says.

Certain re-growth formulations work – but only while you use them. Minoxidil, for instance, a popular medical product sold over the counter (usually under the brand name of Rogaine), has no cumulative effect. “When you stop applying it, hair growth returns to its old patterns. Massaging a few drops of high-quality rosemary oil onto the scalp could be just as effective,” says Dr Somji.

Somji is one of the UK’s first proponents of Calicem, a new Singaporean stem-cell treatment not without its own controversy since it takes plasma from red deer and injects it into the scalp.

But he knows his stuff and is not averse to recommending products he doesn’t stock, such as Virtue Labs, Philip Kingsley and inexpensive olive and castor oil. Much on the market, he says, is either useless or harmful – and costly. There are plenty of simple, effective ways to look after your hair.

Here’s what you should and shouldn’t be doing:

Culprit 1: Hard water

Hard water is water that contains a high percentage of metals and minerals such as calcium and magnesium (which sounds good, but fades clothing and is harsh on skin and hair). A 2016 study by the UK’s National Institute of Health showed that after just 30 days of using hard water, all 15 participants had thinner hair with a rougher texture. A build-up of metals and minerals produces a fine film on the hair, making it harder for moisture to penetrate, and can block pores, erode the hair’s elasticity and dull colour, leading to brassiness and brittleness.

Solution: Invest in a water softener. These aren’t expensive and be easily attached to your shower head. Consider weekly use of a gentle detoxifying shampoo such as George Northwood’s Unpolluted, which is one of a handful I’ve found that makes a real difference to the feel of my hair.

Culprit 2: Dry shampoo

These seemed like a godsend when they appeared on the market 20 years ago, but, according to Dr Somji, they’re demons because they block pores, which can impede new growth. “Fact: anything that sits on the scalp for a long time should be avoided,” he says, “including root lift sprays.”

Solution: When using hairspray or other body-builders, use sparingly and aim away from the scalp. Try pastes and gels which are easier to target onto specific areas away from the scalp. To avoid build-up, wash your hair every day, or every other day.

Hairspray, dry shampoo and root lifters can block pores on the scalp. Photo / Adam Winger, Unsplash

Culprit 3: Leaving in conditioners and hair masks for longer than recommended

We’re all tempted to do this, thinking that more application equals more results, but that’s often not the case. “They can even end up degrading the hair’s health,” says Dr Somji.

Solution: Follow the instructions.

Culprit 4: Lack of Vitamin D

We all know iron, protein, the Omega threes, collagen and Vitamin Bs help encourage hair growth - but so does Vitamin D.

Solution: A healthy diet, which never hurt hair, skin or health. Also, ensure supplements are bio-available (layman’s speak: can be digested and used rather than peed straight out).

Culprit 5: Lack of scalp stimulation

Our great-grandmothers were on to something when they brushed their hair 100 times every night. These days, the emphasis is less on the tresses and more on the scalp.

Solution: Massaging your scalp with a specially designed rubber-bristled brush for 60 seconds, or the pads of your fingers, every night is a healthy-hair habit worth cultivating. As well as helping to clear the follicles, it stimulates blood circulation – all part of a healthy head of hair.

Culprit 6: Heavily fragranced hair masks

These either do little or actively damage hair by leaving behind drying residues.

Solution: Save money by applying organic castor oil or olive oil (or a blend) from the mid lengths down and leaving on for an hour or overnight.

Culprit 7: Certain high-tech treatments, misapplied by inexperienced practitioners

“Lasers are really only effective on fair hair and even then, not always,” says Dr Somji. Infrared, the latest hair wunderkind, “hasn’t really been proven to do much for growth. It won’t hurt, but getting more sleep could be more effective.”

Solution: Think long-term. “The hair growth cycle is between one and two years,” says Dr Somji. “What you do now will affect the head of hair you have in two years.”

In other words, there’s an equation: If hair dryers or highlights are non negotiable, compensate in other ways – and save yourself some money and heartache in the process.