learn Melatonin
Hormone that regulates sleep, sold as a supplement
- Is melatonin better as a supplement or applied to the scalp? No study has compared oral and topical melatonin head to head. Topical melatonin has one small placebo-controlled pilot trial in 40 women plus a set of mostly uncontrolled studies of a cosmetic solution; oral melatonin has no published hair-loss trial at all.
- Melatonin: Does it work the same for men and women? No trial has compared melatonin's effect on hair in men versus women. The only placebo-controlled scalp study enrolled 40 women, and the single reported sex difference — shedding fell in women but not men — comes from one uncontrolled 60-person observation, so any difference is unestablished.
- Does melatonin only prevent hair loss or also help it grow new hair? Evidence is weak. One small trial in 40 women found a higher share of growing-phase hairs in some groups using topical melatonin, and no study shows it grows new hair follicles.
- All 5 questions on Melatonin →