Can you add a hair-growth active ingredient to an anti-hair-loss serum?

You lose hair every day, and that’s normal. This is the telogen phase of the hair growth cycle, which lasts around three months. What’s less normal is when hair loss is more severe than usual. That’s when it’s worth looking into the causes of hair loss, and investigate what might have caused this loss three months earlier. 

The most common causes are:

• Stress : whether psychological or physiological, it disrupts the telogen phase of the hair cycle. This category includes: hormonal imbalances (menopause, postpartum, endocrine disorders, etc.), nutritional deficiencies (particularly in protein, vitamins, iron and zinc) and psychological trauma (loss of a loved one, divorce, etc.) (1)

• External aggressors: mechanical (hair pulling) (2), UV radiation, air pollution, etc.

• Genetic predisposition: this is often referred to as androgenetic alopecia. It affects both men and women. 

Stress and external factors can cause low-grade inflammation, which may accelerate hair loss. 

The hair growth active ingredient, designed to effectively stimulate hair growth

Extracted from an active microalgae known as Nannochloropsis oceanica, rich in phytosterols, this hair care active ingredient has an oily texture. Its mechanism of action: to boost the proliferation of hair follicle fibroblasts. 100% natural sapote vegetable oil, sustainably grown and traditionally used to strengthen and beautify the hair, has been added to the microalgae.

This active ingredient is oil-soluble and blends very easily into hair oil formulations, such as oil treatments and oily serums. It should be used at a concentration of between 0.5 and 5 per cent of the total weight of the formulation.

It is suitable for all hair types, and in particular for tired, brittle hair or hair where growth is to be stimulated. 

Proven effectiveness

After 150 days of treatment with a lotion containing 3% of the hair growth active ingredient, it was observed that this active ingredient:

• Increases hair density by up to 10% in 70% of panellists*

• Increases the number of hairs in the anagen phase (growth phase) and reduces the number of hairs in the telogen phase (shedding phase) in 100 per cent of panellists

• Reduces hair loss** by up to 42 per cent in 90 per cent of panellists***

*Instrumental test using a trichoscan on 20 test subjects

**Instrumental test using a trichogram on 20 panellists

***Assessment following a combing test on 20 test subjects

Discover the hair-growth active ingredient

The anti-hair loss serum with peptides and pea extract, formulated to thicken and strengthen hair right from the root

This leave-in hair serum combines peptides with pea and red clover extracts. It prolongs the growth phase, promotes hair anchoring and slows down chronic hair loss – whether androgenic, stress-related, caused by nutritional deficiencies, hormonal changes or seasonal factors. With a light, watery texture that isn’t greasy and is free from fragrance and allergens, it is suitable for all hair types. It should be applied once a day to the entire scalp, massaging it in gently.

A synergy of powerful active ingredients with proven efficacy

Following a 90-day treatment programme involving a total of 20 people, an instrumental test using a trichogram and trichoscan showed that:

• 100 per cent of participants experienced an increase in the hair growth phase

• 100% of panellists experienced a reduction in the hair shedding phase

• Hair density increased by up to +17% for some participants

• +3,900 new hairs were counted.

Discover the anti-hair loss serum with peptides & pea extract

Water and oil: two immiscible media

The hair-growth active ingredient is an oily serum. Being oil-soluble, it blends easily into hair oils, oily serums and oil treatments.

The anti-hair loss serum Peptides & pea extract has an aqueous texture.

Just as with a salad dressing, where oil cannot mix with vinegar without mustard, in cosmetics, an aqueous phase cannot mix with an oily phase without a surfactant.

Thus, in the case of the two products in question, adding a hair-growth active ingredient to the serum bottle would result in two separate phases within the bottle. Even if the bottle were shaken to make these two phases miscible, their chemical properties mean that they will not mix.

Why can’t an aqueous phase and an oily phase be mixed in cosmetics?

In cosmetics, the immiscibility between an aqueous phase and an oily phase is mainly due to fundamental differences in molecular structure and intermolecular interactions. Water is a polar molecule, capable of forming a dense network of hydrogen bonds between its molecules, which gives it strong internal cohesion. Conversely, oils consist mainly of non-polar molecules (hydrocarbons) incapable of forming this type of interaction. Consequently, water–water interactions are energetically much more favourable than water–oil interactions, causing the two liquids to separate naturally. Recent work in physical chemistry thus shows that this separation results from a thermodynamic compromise in which each phase tends to maximise its internal interactions whilst minimising unfavourable contacts at the oil–water interface (3).

An accumulation of active ingredients

Our serums are products with a high concentration of active ingredients. Adding an extra active ingredient to the formula can present several risks:

• A loss of efficacy: by combining different active ingredients from different products, it is not always straightforward to guarantee the benefits of these combinations. Sometimes, the formulations themselves can even prevent certain active ingredients from working (particularly if there are two different phases)

• A loss of skin tolerance: A combination of active ingredients, which has not been evaluated in a laboratory, can lead to cumulative toxicity or the creation of novel mixtures on the skin, the skin tolerance of which is unknown.

We always recommend opting for minimalist routines, rather than routines that are overloaded with active ingredients. 

“Apart from the fact that the hair-growth active ingredient is oily and cannot be incorporated into a water-based serum, we recommend not adding any active ingredients to the anti-hair loss serum. This is because no regulatory or toxicological validation has been carried out on the customisation of this serum. The serum is intended for use as a ready-to-use product.”

Orianne Valentin, Head of Cosmetic Formulation at Aroma-Zone

Active ingredients that stimulate hair growth

The active ingredients contained in anti-hair loss serum:

The active ingredients contained in the hair growth treatment:

Active ingredients that reduce hair loss

The Aroma-Zone anti-hair loss serum contains several exceptional active ingredients:

Medical advice is always required in cases of severe hair loss. Your doctor may recommend blood tests and further investigations to identify the causes of your hair loss. 

Diet plays a key role in hair health, particularly certain nutrients such as Iron, Zinc, vitamin D, biotin (also known as vitamin B8, which plays a role in protein synthesis in hair follicles), and fatty acids (4). An anti-inflammatory diet rich in antioxidants also protects against hair loss (5). Generally speaking, it is strongly advised against undertaking extreme or highly restrictive diets, as these quickly lead to nutritional deficiencies and cause stress to the body, creating conditions conducive to hair loss. 

Emilie is a biochemistry and natural active ingredients engineer, as well as a naturopath, nutrition consultant, and writer specialising in health, food, and well-being. She spent over 10 years working in the pharmaceutical industry and scientific communication, giving her a broad, well-rounded view of health, one she's able to speak about with both rigour and clarity. Science is her foundation, words her tools. She champions an approach to health that's more preventive, more considered, more scientific, and, of course, more natural!