Key Ingredients: Amino acids, antioxidants, peppermint oil | Best For: Oily scalp and hair
Best Drugstore: OGX Thick & Full Biotin & Collagen Shampoo
Why It’s Worth It: It’s all about that texture with this OGX pick that Dr. Sadick stands behind. This paraben- and sulfate-free shampoo helps each hair feel thicker immediately post-wash day. The affordable drugstore price can’t be beaten, especially if you go through shampoo quickly.
Editor Tip: Despite being free of SLS, this plumping formula lathers rather nicely, and as a bonus, gives off notes of bergamot, jasmine, and vanilla for an aromatherapeutic shower.
Key Ingredients: Vitamin B7 (biotin), collagen, hydrolyzed wheat protein | Best For: Fine, flat hair
For a Grease-Free Finish: Isdin Lambdapil Hair Loss Shampoo
Why It’s Worth It: Dr. Mariwalla also recommends this strengthening shampoo because of its nourishing formula, which “really makes the hair look and feel thicker and fuller.” Ginseng promotes scalp circulation, and you’ll also find hydrolyzed wheat protein, a quiet superhero for strengthening hair inside and out.
Editor Tip: Isdin’s Lambdapil formula contains conditioning agents and gentle cleansers so you can use it daily. (Though, for most hair types, hairstylists don’t recommend you wash so frequently.)
Key Ingredients: Zinc, biotin, ginseng, hydrolyzed wheat protein | Best For: Dull hair, Product buildup, fine hair
What Causes Hair Thinning?
Connecticut-based board-certified dermatologist Mona Gohara, MD, says that thinning hair can be linked to many things. “It could be from over-processing color, medication, medical conditions like anemia and vitamin deficiency, menopause, or it could just simply be your genetics,” she says.
And more recently, your hair loss may be due to COVID-19, according to Papri Sarkar, MD, a board-certified dermatologist who is based in Brookline, Massachusetts. “Everyone whom I’ve had any contact with throughout the pandemic has seen a huge, huge increase in hair loss,” she says, referring to the many primary care physicians, allergists, and pediatricians who have reached out to her for consults on their telogen effluvium cases.
Telogen effluvium is a form of temporary hair loss from excessive shedding due to a shock to the system, and it “does not discriminate,” says Corey L. Hartman, MD, an assistant clinical professor of dermatology at the University of Alabama School of Medicine. “It can be seen across races, ethnicities, skin types, and hair textures,” he affirmed.
What Ingredients Should I Look For?
New York City board-certified dermatologist Neil Sadick, MD, says an ideal shampoo for thinning hair needs to not only improve the volume of your strands but also encourage the growth and circulation of hair follicles. “Amino acids provide the building blocks to build new strands, while biotin, part of the B-vitamin complex, is required by hair to metabolize amino acids and can help strengthen hair,” he says. Additionally, Dr. Sadick notes that antioxidants, such as vitamin E and ginseng, are beneficial for promoting hair growth “because they reduce free radicals from sun, stress, or overprocessing and have anti-inflammatory properties.”
