Drinking coffee help cure baldness as caffeine blocks the effects of a chemical known to damage hair, say researchers. To bias Fisher of the University of Jena in Germany took scalp biopsies from 14 men in the early stages of hair loss. He extracted hair follicies and placed them in test tubes with solutions containing different levels of caffeine. The samples were left in the laboratory for up to eight days to monitor growth, it was reported.

At the end of the experiment, it was found that caffeine had boosted the length of the hairs by 33-40 per cent other test tubes containing hair follicles mixed with testosterone showed that they grew at a much slower rate. The scientists believe caffeine affects hair cells in such a way that they are able to resist the damaging effects of dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a chemical that contributes to baldness. Most baldness is caused when hair follicles are exposed to too much DHT, the researchers said ?Hair follicles treated with caffeine should a highly significant growth rate as 24 hours, and still showed further significant growth at eight days, ?said Fischer


However, drinking plenty of coffee may not be the best answer. Scientists estimate up to 60 cups a day would be needed for significant amounts to reach follicies in the scalp. Instead, German cosmetics firm, ?Alpecin? has developed a caffeine ? rich solution than can be rubbed on the scalp. ?Caffeine is a well known substance. Yet, little is known about its effect on human hair follicle growth?, said Dr. Tobias Fisher, who carried out the research at the University of Jena in Germany.