Microneedling for Skin Rejuvenation and Hair Loss

Although there are many causes of hair loss or thinning in adults, it may signify a hormone imbalance, thyroid disorders, mineral deficiencies, cardiovascular, metabolic or autoimmune issues. There may also be a family history of male pattern baldness that may be passed down genetically in some people. Hair loss can be alarming. It is always important to treat the root cause of the loss by consulting a doctor to get baseline bloodwork and evaluation done.

There are so many different treatment options available to treat hair loss while also benefiting and improving your skin quality. Many treatments can be stacked, based on what your aging skin’s needs are. Many treatments are minimally invasive and can promote your body’s ability to build collagen improving the brightness and skin quality resulting in skin tightening and rejuvenation.

Microneedling is a minimally invasive skin rejuvenating procedure that involves the use of an oscillating needle pen. The mechanical action of the pen allows the needles to puncture the skin at a certain therapeutic depth to induce collagen and elastin production in the dermis. Because of the high RPMs of the dermal pen, the skin is parted, not damaged, allowing for the absorption of hyaluronic acid and other quality serums to enhance the rejuvenation process. Microneedling improves the skin tone by reducing age spots, skin discoloration, pore size and stretch marks, and enhancing brightness and texture while tightening the skin. A series of monthly or bimonthly treatments may be recommended, depending on the area being treated.

Nanoneedling is a branch of microneedling that uses microscopic hair-like cones that turn over cells in the epidermal layer. It can be used in more sensitive, delicate areas like under and around the eyes or upper lip. These treatments can be done weekly as it doesn’t penetrate as deeply as microneedling can.

It is usually recommended to do one treatment per month for a set of four to six treatments to see the best results for areas of the face and neck. Body or scalp hair treatments may need to be two times a month, depending on the response to treatments.

Microneedling and nanoneedling can treat and improve:

• Skin texture, tone and reduces pore size
• Stimulate building of collagen resulting in more supple, tighter skin
• Scar treatments
• Acne
• Hair loss
• Stretch marks

We often combine the microneedling treatments with red light therapy to better improve the chances to stimulate collagen regeneration and improve the skin quality and laxity.

There are many studies that show the benefits of utilizing red light therapy to restore the body as well as benefit the skin. For the skin, it can improve fine lines and wrinkles, reduce skin discoloration and pigment changes, reduce inflammation (acne, cold sores), and damage from UV light and the sun, and also tighten and lift laxed tissue thru collagen/elastin stimulation. For the body, it can reduce fatigue, enhance muscle performance and recovery, stimulate hair growth of hair follicles on the head, reduce fat, reduce inflammation and pain and speed up wound healing.

There are many devices out there for personal use that may not be strong enough or produce the desired results. The professional grade red light therapy device used in my office has 15,000 lumens/1,226 bulbs of therapeutic LED lights that penetrate the cells of the dermal layer as deeply as infrared light can. The red light therapy device is designed for the face or body and is frequently used to support the improvement of:

• Fine lines and wrinkles
• Age spots, sun damage or dull skin
• Fatigue
• Fat reduction
• Inflammation and pain
• Hair growth on the head
• Wound healing

Multiple studies show that microneedling, when added to other hair treatments, can improve hair growth. Microneedling as a single therapy significantly increased total hair count more than topical minoxidil 5% alone by 12%. The combination treatment of microneedling with topical 5% minoxidil increased total hair count significantly compared to just microneedling alone by an additional 7%. Therefore, regular treatments over several sessions shows the most benefit at increasing hair and follicle growth.

Microneedling and red light therapy are non-invasive treatment options that can be used along with addressing and correcting the underlying imbalances with an outcome to promote and stimulate hair growth and improve the quality of skin. FBN

By Christina Kovalik

Dr. Christina Kovalik NMD, LAc, The Vitality Doctor, is a naturopathic physician and acupuncturist specializing in hormone optimization, optimal health and vitality. She is a new Flagstaff resident, practicing since 2004, and opened her second location in Doney Park in 2020.  For more information, visit thevitalitydoctor.com or call 928-863-6086.