Unlike other forms of hair loss, trac­tion alope­cia is a con­di­tion caused by exter­nal pres­sure and strain on the hair, rather than hor­monal or dietary rea­sons. This is one of the rea­sons why many suf­fer­ers pre­fer to use herbal treat­ments, rather than opt for chemically-derived ones, which can seem a bit extreme at this stage.

Although minox­i­dil, a chem­i­cal treat­ment, is the only FDA approved drug for treat­ing hair loss, there are many tra­di­tional, nat­ural treat­ments for hair loss that have sig­nif­i­cant anec­do­tal evi­dence behind them. Some nat­ural treat­ments are cur­rently being tested for effec­tive­ness with increas­ingly pos­i­tive results.

Nat­ural treat­ments are gen­tler on the hair and scalp, less likely to pro­duce neg­a­tive side effects and have fewer con­traindi­ca­tions. It’s impor­tant to remem­ber, though, that nat­ural med­i­cine is med­i­cine nonethe­less and the more potent a treat­ment is, the more likely it is to pro­duce adverse side effects in some peo­ple. Always read the instruc­tions in full and con­sult a med­ical prac­ti­tioner if in doubt.

Here are a few nat­ural hair loss treat­ments in use today:

Caf­feine

Using caf­feine top­i­cally (rather than drink­ing it!) has been shown in a clin­i­cal study to stim­u­late the fol­li­cles to pro­duce new hairs and reduce the effect of testos­terone on the fol­li­cles (testos­terone is the cause of hair loss in male pat­tern bald­ness). Although fur­ther study is needed to fully assess the effect of caf­feine on hair loss, there are already sev­eral prod­ucts on the mar­ket that con­tain caffeine.

Rose­mary essen­tial oil

Rose­mary is a stim­u­lat­ing essen­tial oil that has been used for hun­dreds of years in the treat­ment of hair loss. It’s meant to work by increas­ing cir­cu­la­tion to the treated area, thus stim­u­lat­ing the fol­li­cles and aid­ing with the deliv­ery of nutri­ents.

White lupine

This stim­u­lat­ing, hor­mon­ally bal­anc­ing plant extract is used in sev­eral hair loss prod­ucts and has been clin­i­cally proven to increase hair growth in men. Sup­port­ers claim it may actu­ally be proven to be more potent than minox­i­dil, and while the jury’s still out pend­ing fur­ther research, it is cer­tainly gain­ing pop­u­lar­ity as a hair loss tonic.

Cop­per pep­tides / amino acids

Nour­ish­ing the hair fol­li­cles is just as impor­tant as increas­ing cir­cu­la­tion when treat­ing hair loss and there are sev­eral com­pa­nies that make hair loss treat­ments infused with copper-derived amino acids and pep­tides such as Tri­comin. They claim these give the fol­li­cles what they need to start pro­duc­ing new hairs after lying dormant.

Eclipta Alba

A trop­i­cal plant heav­ily used in the Indian Ayurveda sys­tem of tra­di­tional med­i­cine. Used both top­i­cally and inter­nally, it is said to pro­mote thick, lus­trous, healthy hair growth and pre­vent pre­ma­ture bald­ing. Hav­ing been in use for thou­sands of years, it is now gain­ing pop­u­lar­ity as a hair tonic in the west as well and recent clin­i­cal stud­ies have shown it may actu­ally be as effec­tive as tra­di­tional med­i­cine claims. This is another nat­ural hair loss cure that’s said to be “more pow­er­ful than 2% minox­i­dil” and if recent evi­dence can be dupli­cated, this grand claim may prove to be at least some­what accurate.

Read more about the best herbal and organic sham­poos for hair loss.