Vitamin B6, zinc and azelaic acid have each been shown to have some positive effects on treating hair loss when used separately. When used together, the efficacy appears to be increased over what can be achieved by using any of the three alone. While zinc, azelaic acid and vitamin B6 are frequently used for hair loss, none are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for this, and you should discuss use with your doctor first.
Vitamin B6
Vitamin B6 is a member of the B-complex family of vitamins, which play many important roles in your body and are needed for healthy hair and skin. Vitamin B6 is also needed for the production of your red blood cells and cells that serve the immune system. A serious vitamin B6 deficiency is rare, as it is contained in many foods or can be taken separately as a supplement. The University of Maryland Medical Center recommends if you are suffering from hair disorders that you take B-complex vitamins.
Zinc
Zinc is a mineral that, in most cases, a given person will receive sufficient amounts of in her diet, but deficiencies can occur. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, one of the symptoms of zinc deficiency is hair loss. Zinc has been shown to help with hair growth during clinical studies. One study that appeared in the February 1996 issue of Obesity Surgery found that 47 of 130 patients who underwent a vertical gastroplasty, a surgery for obesity, suffered from hair loss afterward. After being given 600 mg of zinc sulfate daily, hair loss ceased on all 47, and they began to see hair regrowth.
Azelaic Acid
Azelaic acid has been a frequently used topical treatment for hair loss, although there have been few studies to support its use as a hair growth stimulant. One of the first scientific looks at this use involved a pilot study that was reported on in a 2005 American Journal of Clinical Dermatology article, which stated that no controlled trials had been tested on azelaic acid for alopecia, which is the medical term for hair loss. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of using azelaic acid on patients suffering from alopecia areata, which is patchy hair loss, and compare its effectiveness to anthralin, a drug prescribed to treat psoriasis and frequently used for alopecia areata. The study concluded that azelaic acid gave similar results to anthralin for regrowth, but that further testing was needed.
Combination
A study that appeared in the November 1998 issue of the British Journal of Dermatology was designed to test zinc and azelaic acid as mechanisms to eliminate the activity of 5-alpha reductase, which is the enzyme responsible for pattern hair loss. Both zinc and azelaic acid did slow enzyme activity and zinc was shown to be more effective when mixed with vitamin B6, while azelaic acid was not. When the three were used together at low doses that had no positive effects when used alone, there was a 90 per cent reduction in 5-alpha reductase activity.
