A Japanese study published in 2024 claims that cinnamon could play an unexpected role in combating baldness. Despite the promise of hair regrowth and liver risks, researchers still urge caution.
Could the spice you sprinkle on your rice pudding really slow down baldness? A recent Japanese study suggests that cinnamon could promote hair growth, offering a natural boost to those experiencing hair loss.
In France, hair loss affects not just a handful of worried forty-year-olds. According to an IFOP survey, around 13% of the population is affected by baldness, leading to excitement over every anti-hair loss promise. Between hope and scientific reality, it’s worth taking a closer look at what this cinnamon story really entails.
Baldness: Why Cinnamon is Making Waves
In the vast majority of cases, it’s androgenetic alopecia, the “male pattern baldness,” linked to the sensitivity of hair follicles to hormones. Hair thins, shortens, and ultimately disappears in certain areas. For those experiencing it, the issue goes beyond mere aesthetics and affects self-confidence.
Current treatments mainly rely on medications to apply or take orally, and hair transplants. They can slow down hair loss or densify certain areas, but require consistency, sometimes have side effects, and remain costly or inaccessible for many. Hence the interest in natural alternatives like cinnamon.
What the Japanese Study Really Shows About Cinnamon and Hair
In February 2024, a team from Yokohama National University published a study in Scientific Reports focusing on cinnamic acid, a key component of cinnamon, especially Chinese cinnamon. Researchers tested this molecule on “hair follicle organoids,” small hair structures cultivated in the lab that mimic miniature hair.
In this study, at concentrations below 500 micrograms per milliliter, cinnamic acid stimulated genes involved in hair growth and further activated an oxytocin receptor, a hormone known to impact hair follicles. When the researchers increased the dose to 1,000 or even 2,000 micrograms per milliliter, cells showed signs of toxicity. Everything was done on 3D models, without animal or human trials yet.
Cinnamon in Food, Supplements, Care: What to Do
All this doesn’t mean that sprinkling your desserts with cinnamon will magically regrow a rockstar’s mane. The doses used in the lab have nothing to do with what we consume daily, and no study has shown that cinnamon lovers are less bald than others.
Another crucial point: cinnamon, especially Chinese one, is rich in coumarin, a molecule that can strain the liver at high doses. According to Anses, the tolerable daily dose is 0.1 mg of coumarin per kilogram of body weight, about 6 mg per day for a 60 kg person, a threshold that some supplements can quickly reach.
In practice, it’s better to consider cinnamon as a pleasure spice, used in a dash in sweet or savory dishes, among other foods rich in interesting compounds like cocoa, grapes, or spinach. For pampering your hair, a varied diet and advice from a professional are still your best allies.
