Resveratrol and Hair Loss

There is a website called www.hairloss-research.org which has some great natural hair loss information. They note that an Italian company patented resveratrol for a male pattern baldness remedy. The site also notes studies on the positive synergistic effects of various substances like resveratrol, turmeric, cinnamon, and green tea.

Back to resveratrol. I’m the guy who always complain that massive amounts of soy made me hypothyroid. I recently Googled resveratrol and goitrogen and came across a study that notes resveratrol has goitrogenic effects on the thyroid, or it suppresses thyroid hormone. Check out this site.

It notes at least one study from King Saud University I believe. I know that resveratrol is found naturally in red grapes, red wine, and peanuts, and that it’s hard to “overdose” on natural foods eaten in relative moderation, but I’m worried about taking a resveratrol supplement now. I started taking resveratrol in May 2009, about a year after my problems started, so resveratrol didn’t cause them, but perhaps it’s exacerbating things. Yet I assume many people out there take resveratrol on its own and feel perfectly fine, or nothing noticeable.

I came across studies about resveratrol’s potential anti-aging benefits, which look promising, so I don’t want to shortchange my youthful looks by stopping the supplement. Any thoughts?

I don’t know how the patent process works in Italy, but if its anything like the patent process in the US, ridiculous things can slip through the cracks. So just because something is patented, it doesn’t mean it is proven to work or has any science to back up the claims. I haven’t seen the patent you’re referring to, so I’m just speaking in generalities.

I found the King Saud University study you referenced, which was carried out as a student’s Toxicology class requirement, isn’t peer-reviewed, and was based on 4 weeks of testing on rats. It might be interesting reading, but I wouldn’t base any nutritional changes on it. Like I’ve said over and over and over though, it’s a buyer beware market out there. I’m not a thyroid expert, nor am I easily convinced that something will grow my hair (or cure hypothyroidism) just because a website with “great” natural hair loss info run by a guy with no medical background told me it would do so… but perhaps I’m alone in that way of thinking. That website also just happens to sell those very same herbal treatments they claim will grow your hair, so keep that in mind when you’re reading about how great the newest “hair loss miracle cure” is.

I couldn’t possibly know how various supplements will react in each and every person, so of course, I think you should discuss this with your physician, who will have a better understanding of your health needs and concerns. As for us, Dr. Pak says he gets his dose of resveratrol from a good bottle of wine with a juicy rib-eye steak, while I (Dr. Rassman) take resveratrol in pill form daily. This will not regrow hair, though.