Hair loss cures grow into 55
bil. yen market
March 2005
The Yomiuri Shimbun
An upswing in the hair-growth stimulant market has boosted
the morale of pharmaceutical manufacturers, which have produced a series of new
hair tonics, including one for women--the first of its kind in Japan--that
Taisho Pharmaceutical Co. will begin selling in April.
Each pharmaceutical manufacturer has studied the
mechanisms of hair growth in an attempt to develop new products capable of
preventing hair loss.
According to Fuji-keizai Co., a private market research
company, the hair restoration market grew by 3.2 billion yen to 55.3 billion yen
from 2003 to 2004, its first expansion in five years.
New hair restorers released since last year, including the
launch of Karoyan Gush in June, the first addition to Daiichi Pharmaceutical
Co.'s Karoyan line in 14 years, have apparently fueled consumer interest in hair
growth products.
Daiichi has pioneered developments in the hair-growth
stimulant industry.
In addition to new drugs that have drawn consumer
attention, a major commodity manufacturer attributed higher sales of hair-growth
tonics to a pick-up in the economy, which allowed consumers to think about their
hair.
Boosted by RiUP, a hit item released by Taisho in 1999,
the hair-growth stimulant market expanded to nearly 70 billion yen, but dwindled
when RiUP's novelty wore off.
The new products feature ingredients to stimulate hair
growth based on analysis of the hair-growing mechanism by manufacturers.
On March 21, Shiseido Co. released a hair-growth
substance, Adenogen, as a treatment for hair loss.
Shiseido claims to have found that adenosine, a substance
that exists in the human body, affects hair papillae, a key in hair production,
and consequently increases hair growth. A Shiseido employee said hair growth
could be restored by directly supplying adenosine to the scalp.
Mouhatsuryoku Innovate, manufactured by Lion Corp.,
comprises constituents designed to amplify hair growth by promoting signals from
papillary cells in the hair root and enhancing the hair-growth environment,
which the company claims make the hair bulb larger and hair thicker for
prevention of hair loss.
Many new products use natural ingredients, such as herbs.
After researching 2,000 types of animal and plant
extracts, Kao Corp. claims to have found that astilbin, a constituent in St.
John's Wort, which has been used in the West as medicine for a long time,
stimulates hair growth.
Kao launched Success Flavacyte, a hair restoration tonic,
after developing an active ingredients based on research.
Tsumura & Co. used its expertise in Chinese medicine to
produce Incent Mouga hair tonic by mixing three herbs, including swertia, which
the company says generate a synergistic effect to improve blood circulation to
grow hair.
Taisho will release on Friday RiUP Lady, the first
hair-growth product for women.
RiUP Lady contains minoxidil, an ingredient also used in
RiUP for men, which Taisho says it found in clinical experiments to be effective
in helping women grow hair.
According to a Taisho survey, 57 percent of women surveyed
were concerned about hair loss, which is believed to be caused by lifestyle
factors, such as sleep deprivation and poor nutrition.
Women under greater stress tend to worry about hair loss,
indicating men are not alone in this aspect.
Daiichi's Karoyan Resetta is not targeted at women only,
but the bottle is shaped like a lipstick to attract female consumers.
Lion has a section on its Internet site offering shampoos
and rinses to women that the company says can be used with hair-growth
substances. |
