Treatments

What sits in this section

Everything here targets a specific problem rather than everyday washing. Two groups.

Medicated

Topical treatments with active ingredients: minoxidil for pattern hair loss, ketoconazole for stubborn dandruff and seborrhoeic dermatitis, and medicated lotions for scalp conditions.

Supplements

Oral products such as biotin and multivitamins formulated for hair and nails.

Read this before you buy

These take time. Minoxidil needs six months before you can judge it. Supplements need three. If you want a result this month, nothing here will give you one.

They treat some causes, not all. Minoxidil helps pattern hair loss. It does nothing for loss caused by iron deficiency, thyroid problems, scalp infection or severe stress. Treating the wrong cause wastes months.

Supplements only help if you are deficient. Biotin deficiency is genuinely rare. If your levels are normal, more biotin will not grow more hair.

Most are ongoing. Stop minoxidil and the gains reverse within three to six months.

See a doctor first if

• Hair loss came on suddenly, or in patches with clean edges
• Your scalp is painful, bleeding or weeping
• You are pregnant or breastfeeding
• You have low blood pressure or a heart condition
• Hair loss arrived alongside fatigue, weight change or other symptoms

A blood test costs very little and can save you six months of treating the wrong thing.