Generality
The use of chilli and capsicin contained in it against hair loss is a practice that has its roots already in the distant past.
Action mechanism
As mentioned, the use of chilli against hair loss is carried out due to the vasodilatory properties of which the capsicin (or capsaicin, if you prefer) contained in it is equipped.
The increased blood flow resulting from vasodilation, in fact, would bring with it nutrients and oxygen available to the hair follicles, which would thus have all the substances necessary for their metabolic activity. The local blood supply is also stimulated by the regular scalp massage, a practice generally recommended to combat hair loss.
However, the hypothesis that baldness may have an ischemic origin is currently considered to be scarcely reliable, or in any case of marginal importance. Together with oxygen and nutrients, the increased flow of blood into the scalp, guaranteed by the local application of capsicin-based shampoos and lotions and similar substances, also brings with it greater quantities of testosterone, which is transformed within the hair bulbs from 5-alpha reductase enzymes to dihydrotestosterone (DHT). This testosterone derivative is still considered the real responsible for most cases of hair loss, both in men and women. Just to underline this hormonal origin of the problem, but also a certain predisposition due to the sensitivity of the hair-like bulbs to the action of androgens, we talk about androgenetic alopecia.
Effectiveness
Despite the observations made so far about the actual cause of hair loss, capsicin and rubefacient substances in general (including the esters of nicotinic acid, phenol, resorcinol, rosemary essential oil) continue to be widely used ingredients inside shampoos and anti-hair lotions.
Their application, in fact, together with the scalp massage, can - by elasticizing the galea capitis and stimulating the blood flow - prove to be a useful aid to delay hair loss thanks to the better trophism of the bulbs.
The presence of chili pepper extracts in a shampoo or lotion therefore makes sense within a broader formula, in which also vegetable extracts rich in vitamins (with biotin and pantothenic acid in the foreground), amino acids (mainly sulphurized ), trace elements and antioxidants, along with substances able to counteract the local production of DHT, such as azelaic acid, Serenoa Repens (Saw palmetto), Pygeum africanum (African pigeo) and Urtica dioica (nettle, roots).
To support the use of capsicin and rubefacient substances in general, we recall how the anti-hair loss efficacy of minoxidil (together with finasteride, one of the two medicines approved by the FDA against hair loss), applied topically, could be linked precisely to its vasodilatory activity, once exploited in medicine in the treatment of arterial hypertension.
Do-It-Yourself Remedies
As always happens in the field of hair care, even in this case, there are certainly natural remedies to counteract the fall. Among these, we find several that involve the use of chili peppers.
There are many do-it-yourself "recipes" for the preparation of homemade lotions suitable for combating hair loss. Below are some of them.
Chili pepper and olive oil lotion
This recipe involves the preparation of a anti-hair loss lotion with 500 ml of olive oil, into which 25 grams of dried chilli must be added. This mixture must then be stored in a dark glass container and left to macerate for at least 10 days.
After this time, the lotion can be used in the quantity of one or two tablespoons to be distributed on the scalp performing a massage. At the end of this procedure, the hair should be washed by performing a normal shampoo.
Chili pepper alcohol lotion
The alcoholic chilli lotion against hair loss is prepared by leaving three whole peppers to macerate in 250 ml of alcohol at 95 degrees (like the one used in the production of liqueurs). Also in this case, the peppers must macerate away from the light for a period of 10 days. After this time, the peppers are eliminated and the lotion thus obtained can be applied by performing friction on the scalp once a day.
Warnings
After handling the aforementioned lotions, it is of fundamental importance to wash the hands carefully and not to touch the eyes, mucous membranes or other areas of the body, as it can lead to very serious irritations.
However, in general, it is always good to avoid resorting to the use of do-it-yourself remedies and home recipes, since - however common the ingredients used are - you cannot in any way know the actual concentration of active substances (in this case, of capsaicin) present in these domestic preparations. This concentration, in fact, could be too low, thus resulting ineffective, as could be excessive, leading to various irritations and side effects.
For the aforementioned reasons, in case of baldness and in case you want to resort to the use of chilli and capsicin against hair loss, it is always good to turn to medical professionals who will be able to identify the problem and prescribe the therapies - pharmacological or not - that are best suited to each individual case.
