In 80% of all cases, it is “androgenetic alopecia“ that worries men: Hereditary hair loss due to supersensitivity of the hair roots to the hormone testosterone (DHT). On the one hand, testosterone makes beard hair grow but also weakens predisposed hair roots in the scalp. They die prematurely, because testosterone cuts off their energy supply. Based on an active ingredient combination containing caffeine, Alpecin has succeeded in stopping this negative testosterone effect and therefore effectively fighting the cause of hereditary hair loss. To understand the effect of caffeine, one needs to take a closer look at the hair’s growth cycle: Normally, the hair root is active for up to 8 years (growth phase), followed by a resting phase. The hair root releases the hair and it falls out without the threat of alopecia. Subsequently, the hair root starts another growth phase and does so about 14 times before dying.
With the corresponding genetic predisposition, testosterone (DHT) prevents the generation of c-AMP, a messenger compound for energy, which is required for the hair roots’ metabolism. This shortens growth phases and the hair roots’ lifetime ends prematurely. If more and more hair roots die this way, male baldness will be the result.
The caffeine-containing ingredient of Alpecin protects the hair roots against this testosterone attack. This prolongs the growth phases, which means that hair growth is possible well into old age.
Recent dermatological tests by the university clinics of Hamburg-Eppendorf and Jena have confirmed the efficacy of caffeine against testosterone.