How to Wake Up Your Hair Follicles

A common complaint among women experiencing menopause is seeing more and more hair strands falling out each day. Hair that doesn’t grow as long or as fast as it once did is another issue they face.

But even though some of your hair follicles may eventually go dormant and stop producing new hairs altogether, these sleeping follicles are not a lost cause. Regular scalp massages and topical hair products with the right stimulating ingredients can effectively wake them up and trigger hair production again. 

What Do Hair Follicles Do?

There are thousands of microscopic pockets in your scalp’s epidermis, or outer layer of skin, which are your hair follicles. Each follicle is located in close proximity to blood vessels that supply the raw materials to create one strand of hair.

Inside the follicle, protein cells are layered over each other to form the hair shaft. By continuing to layer new cells at the root of the shaft, the follicle pushes the hair through your skin’s surface and makes it grow longer. Round follicles produce straight hair, while oval-shaped follicles make curly hair.

Eventually the hair falls out at the root. After a brief resting phase, the follicle should begin actively manufacturing a new hair shaft. However, if the follicle goes dormant, it does not enter this growth phase again and just continues to rest.

Why Do Hair Follicles Go Dormant?

Hair production can slow or stop at any age due to factors like stress or nutrient deficiencies. However, the most likely culprit for thinning hair after you reach menopause is shifting hormone levels.

As your ovaries release less estrogen and progesterone, other predominantly male hormones that have been present in small proportions begin to take on a more significant role. Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is one of these androgen hormones that, in higher concentrations, can shrink your follicles and push them into the resting phase.

It can also become harder with age for your follicles to get the nutrients they need to produce thick, lustrous hair. Your metabolism is not processing vitamins and minerals as efficiently, and blood flow to your follicles is often not as robust.

Can Scalp Massages Wake Up My Hair Follicles?

Scalp massages can be beneficial for stimulating the vessels beneath the skin’s surface and increasing otherwise paltry blood flow. They can also help nutrients including the proteins that serve as your hair’s building blocks get to your follicles more efficiently, enabling them to create healthier hair again.

A scalp massage feels great, plus it invigorates your follicles and the nearby sebaceous glands that produce and distribute sebum oil. This natural oil is necessary to protect, moisturize and strengthen your strands.

You can massage your scalp with your fingertips or with a massaging tool designed to wake up your follicles. One such tool is Better Not Younger’s Superpower Liquid Comb Massaging Serum Applicator. The rounded tips reach through to your scalp and provide a stimulating yet gentle touch that feels luxurious.

What Products Can Help Boost My Hair Health?

In addition to kickstarting your follicles through targeted scalp massages, certain topical hair-care products like serums and scalp cleansers can help prompt your follicles to get back to work. They contain ingredients that, when applied directly to your scalp, work to stimulate and nourish your follicles.

Superpower Fortifying Hair & Scalp Serum

This powerful liquid hair and scalp serum contains a formulation specially designed to meet the needs of your aging strands. It targets dormant follicles with ingredients like:

• Ginger: Extract from the ginger root stimulates your follicles and blood vessels while softening and feeding your hair with a range of essential oils and minerals.
• Centella asiatica: This herb can improve blood circulation and promote healthy skin thanks to its healing properties.
• Apigenin: Apigenin is an herb found in chrysanthemum extract. It has been clinically proven to reduce the skin inflammation that may be hindering your normal follicle function.

New Dawn Activated Charcoal Scalp Cleanser

A clean scalp is a healthy scalp. Use our scalp cleanser regularly to exfoliate, deep clean and stimulate your follicles. It clears away buildup and clogs that could be contributing to dormant follicles using ingredients like:

• Lactic acid: Lactic acid breaks the bonds holding dirt and other buildup in place. Impurities are loosened and washed cleanly away to uncover and unclog your hair follicles.
• Activated charcoal powder: Activated charcoal has supercharged absorbing qualities that allows it to draw out the impurities hiding under the surface. Your follicles will experience a deeper clean.
• Caffeine: Just as the caffeine you drink acts as a stimulant, topically applied caffeine also works to stimulate your follicles and blood vessels.

Wake Up Your Hair Follicles with Better Not Younger

Your hair naturally becomes thinner and grows slower as you age, but dormant follicles are not inevitable. Wake them up with scalp-stimulating products like the scalp serum and cleanser from Better Not Younger.

Find out what our formulations can do to improve your hair biology. Visit our Shop page today to learn about our complete line, with each product geared to address the needs of aging hair.

Tell Us: What benefits have you seen from giving yourself a scalp massage? Share in the comments below!