{"product_id":"caffeine-scalp-serum","title":"Caffeine Scalp Serum","description":"\u003cp class=\"q-lead\"\u003eA light, fragrance-free leave-in serum for the scalp, with caffeine, niacinamide and\nrosemary. It exists because a lot of men want something they can do for their scalp every day without\nstarting on a drug, and this is the honest version of that. It is a cosmetic product whose ingredients\nhave real research behind them, all of it several rungs below minoxidil on the evidence ladder.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat is in it\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCaffeine is the ingredient the product is named after. In human follicles kept alive in the\nlaboratory it counteracts the growth suppression caused by testosterone and raises IGF-1, which is a\nsignal associated with keeping a follicle in its growing phase. That work is ex vivo, at concentrations\nwell below what a leave-on cosmetic delivers, and it has never been shown to translate into hair on a\nhead. Caffeine does at least reach the follicle and stay there for up to twenty-four hours, which\nsettles the question of delivery rather than the question of effect.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou will see caffeine sold on the back of one six-month trial in which a 0.2 per cent caffeine\nliquid was reported non-inferior to 5 per cent minoxidil. It is worth knowing how that trial was run\nbefore anyone quotes it at you. It was open-label by design, it was funded by the company that sells\nthe caffeine lotion, with a company employee among the authors, and the single endpoint was the\nproportion of hairs in the growing phase on a trichogram rather than a hair count or a photograph.\nRoughly a quarter of the people enrolled were left out of the final analysis. We do not treat that\nstudy as showing caffeine matches minoxidil, and neither should you.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNiacinamide is vitamin B3. Its evidence is strongest and least controversial on facial skin, where\nit supports the barrier, reduces water loss and calms irritation. The scalp is skin, so the read-across\nis reasonable, though it is a read-across and not a scalp trial. It is here for comfort on a scalp that\nis being washed often and, in many cases, treated with something drying.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRosemary rests on a single randomised trial from 2015 that compared rosemary oil against 2 per cent\nminoxidil over six months. Both groups had more hair at the end and the difference between them was not\nstatistically significant. Two small groups failing to separate is a long way from the two being shown\nequivalent, and that trial was neither designed nor sized to demonstrate equivalence. It is also one\ntrial, against a comparator at less than half the strength people actually use, with no placebo arm,\nand with scalp itching reported more often in the rosemary group. A rosemary extract in a water-light\nserum is a different preparation again from the oil used in that study.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhy it belongs here\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the daily scalp product for men who are not on minoxidil. That covers people who tried it\nand could not tolerate the alcohol or the propylene glycol, people who are taking a break, and people\nwho are not ready to start a drug and would rather begin with something cosmetic. It is fragrance-free\nand minoxidil-free, so it also layers happily into a routine that already contains a treatment, as long\nas the two are kept apart in the day.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBe clear with yourself about what you are buying. If regrowth is the goal and you are able to use it,\n\u003ca href=\"\/products\/minoxidil-topical-solution-5\"\u003eMinoxidil Topical Solution USP, 5%\u003c\/a\u003e is the only thing\nin this range with strong evidence for it, and nothing on this page competes with that. If you want the\nsame three actives in something you rinse out, that is the\n\u003ca href=\"\/products\/anti-hair-loss-shampoo\"\u003eAnti-Hair Loss Shampoo\u003c\/a\u003e, and the two work well together\nbecause a leave-in has hours of contact time that a wash never gets. For a heavier weekly treatment on\na dry scalp, the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/rosemary-hair-oil\"\u003eRosemary Hair Growth Oil\u003c\/a\u003e covers that job\ninstead.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eHow to use it\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOnce a day, on a dry scalp.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eStart with dry hair. The evening is the simplest slot for most people, after a wash once the hair\n    has dried, because the serum then sits undisturbed overnight. Wet hair thins it out and carries it\n    onto the lengths, where it does nothing.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003ePart your hair into rows to expose the scalp across the area you are treating.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eDispense about 1 mL, roughly one full dropper, a few drops at a time along each parting rather\n    than into one spot.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eMassage it in with your fingertips for about thirty seconds, until the skin feels wet and the\n    hair does not.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eLeave it in. It absorbs in a minute or two, and it does not get rinsed off.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eLet it dry fully before a hat, a pillow or any styling product.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOrder matters if you also use minoxidil.\u003c\/strong\u003e Minoxidil takes two to four hours to dry\nand it works best with the scalp to itself, so put the two at opposite ends of the day. Minoxidil in\nthe morning and this at night is the simplest arrangement, and applying both at once mostly means you\nwash one of them off the skin with the other.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat to expect\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNothing visible in the first few weeks, and it is better to know that in advance. What you should\nnotice early is cosmetic and small: a scalp that feels less tight and itchy, and hair that carries a\nlittle more body once it is dry. That is worth having and it is the part of this product you can rely\non.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAny effect on shedding or density, if you get one, is slow and modest. Hair cycles in months, so\nthree to six months of daily use is the earliest point at which there is anything to judge, and you\nwill need photographs taken in the same light and the same parting to judge it honestly. Do not expect\nit to hold a receding line the way minoxidil can. Concluding after six months that it has done nothing\nfor you is a reasonable outcome, and it is one of the reasons we would rather you heard the state of\nthe evidence up front.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWarnings\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor external use only, on the scalp. Avoid contact with the eyes, and rinse with cool water if it\nhappens. Keep out of reach of children.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePatch test before your first full application.\u003c\/strong\u003e Put a small amount behind an ear or\non the inner forearm and leave it for twenty-four hours. Rosemary is a recognised cause of contact\nirritation, and the 2015 trial reported scalp itching more often in the rosemary group than in the\nminoxidil group.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDo not apply it to a scalp that is broken, sunburnt, inflamed or infected. If you use the\n\u003ca href=\"\/products\/dermaroller-0-5mm\"\u003eDermaroller 0.5 mm\u003c\/a\u003e, leave twenty-four hours before the next\napplication, because microneedling raises the absorption of anything you put on afterwards. Stop using\nit if you develop a rash or persistent itching.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is a cosmetic product and it is not a medicine. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or\nprevent any condition, including hair loss. If your hair loss is sudden, patchy, or comes with scalp\npain, redness or scaling, see a doctor before you treat it with anything from a shelf.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eStore below 25 degrees Celsius, away from direct sunlight, with the dropper cap closed.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Quintéa","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57981122347390,"sku":"QN-CAFFEINESCALPSERUM","price":26.99,"currency_code":"RON","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1019\/9849\/4078\/files\/caffeine-scalp-serum.png?v=1790587649","url":"https:\/\/quintea.eu\/products\/caffeine-scalp-serum","provider":"Quintéa","version":"1.0","type":"link"}