TLDR Ecklonia cava, a type of seaweed, may help hair grow.
In December 2013, a study found that Ecklonia cava, a brown marine alga, and its component dioxinodehydroeckol have hair growth-promoting effects. The ethyl acetate-soluble fraction of E. cava (EAFE) significantly increased the proliferation of human dermal papilla cells (DPCs) and outer root sheath (ORS) cells, elongated the hair shaft in cultured human hair follicles, and induced the anagen phase in mice hair cycles. EAFE also increased insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 expression in DPCs. Dioxinodehydroeckol alone also promoted hair shaft elongation, cell proliferation, and upregulated IGF-1 expression in DPCs. These results suggest that E. cava and dioxinodehydroeckol could be potential candidates for hair-care and hair-growth cosmetic products due to their ability to stimulate cell proliferation and IGF-1 expression. The specific number of subjects used in the study was not mentioned.
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