Hair Loss News

Navigation

Hair Loss News Archives


March 2005

Hair loss cures grow into 55 bil. yen market


March 2005
The Yomiuri Shimbun



An upswing in the hair-growth stimulant market has boosted the morale of pharmaceutical manufacturers, which have produced a series of new hair tonics, including one for women--the first of its kind in Japan--that Taisho Pharmaceutical Co. will begin selling in April.

Each pharmaceutical manufacturer has studied the mechanisms of hair growth in an attempt to develop new products capable of preventing hair loss.

According to Fuji-keizai Co., a private market research company, the hair restoration market grew by 3.2 billion yen to 55.3 billion yen from 2003 to 2004, its first expansion in five years.

New hair restorers released since last year, including the launch of Karoyan Gush in June, the first addition to Daiichi Pharmaceutical Co.'s Karoyan line in 14 years, have apparently fueled consumer interest in hair growth products.

Daiichi has pioneered developments in the hair-growth stimulant industry.

In addition to new drugs that have drawn consumer attention, a major commodity manufacturer attributed higher sales of hair-growth tonics to a pick-up in the economy, which allowed consumers to think about their hair.

Boosted by RiUP, a hit item released by Taisho in 1999, the hair-growth stimulant market expanded to nearly 70 billion yen, but dwindled when RiUP's novelty wore off.

The new products feature ingredients to stimulate hair growth based on analysis of the hair-growing mechanism by manufacturers.

On March 21, Shiseido Co. released a hair-growth substance, Adenogen, as a treatment for hair loss.

Shiseido claims to have found that adenosine, a substance that exists in the human body, affects hair papillae, a key in hair production, and consequently increases hair growth. A Shiseido employee said hair growth could be restored by directly supplying adenosine to the scalp.

Mouhatsuryoku Innovate, manufactured by Lion Corp., comprises constituents designed to amplify hair growth by promoting signals from papillary cells in the hair root and enhancing the hair-growth environment, which the company claims make the hair bulb larger and hair thicker for prevention of hair loss.

Many new products use natural ingredients, such as herbs.

After researching 2,000 types of animal and plant extracts, Kao Corp. claims to have found that astilbin, a constituent in St. John's Wort, which has been used in the West as medicine for a long time, stimulates hair growth.

Kao launched Success Flavacyte, a hair restoration tonic, after developing an active ingredients based on research.

Tsumura & Co. used its expertise in Chinese medicine to produce Incent Mouga hair tonic by mixing three herbs, including swertia, which the company says generate a synergistic effect to improve blood circulation to grow hair.

Taisho will release on Friday RiUP Lady, the first hair-growth product for women.

RiUP Lady contains minoxidil, an ingredient also used in RiUP for men, which Taisho says it found in clinical experiments to be effective in helping women grow hair.

According to a Taisho survey, 57 percent of women surveyed were concerned about hair loss, which is believed to be caused by lifestyle factors, such as sleep deprivation and poor nutrition.

Women under greater stress tend to worry about hair loss, indicating men are not alone in this aspect.

Daiichi's Karoyan Resetta is not targeted at women only, but the bottle is shaped like a lipstick to attract female consumers.

Lion has a section on its Internet site offering shampoos and rinses to women that the company says can be used with hair-growth substances.