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Having COVID makes you feel… pretty rubbish. What’s more rubbish? For many, a bout with COVID can even prompt hair loss.
Sure, it’s not the most severe side effect of COVID. Brain fog, tremors, dramatic weight loss and fatigue were far more upsetting side effects of extended COVID recovery for me. But, sweeping my usually thick hair into a ponytail only to realise… 40% of it was missing? It was a bit of a kick in the guts.
Why Does Hair Loss Happen After Covid?
While not everyone experiences hair loss following COVID, many people do. Indeed, The Atlantic published an article titled “The Year America’s Hair Fell Out” referring to the pandemic as a “near-perfect mass hair loss event.”
I initially thought COVID hair loss was a bit of a myth. But, it turns out that hair loss following a stressful physical or mental event is pretty common. Viral infections, surgery, hospitalisation, childbirth, medications that affect hormones, thyroid dysfunction, menopause, and significant emotional stress can all prompt “telogen effluvium” or, hair loss.
Why does our body add insult to injury when we’re already under pressure? According to the University of Utah, 90% of the hairs on our head are in a “growth phase”, which lasts two to six months at any given time. The other 10% are in a resting phase. When we are under extreme stress and “telogen effluvium” is triggered, our body moves 50% of our hair into the “resting” phase. While research can’t exactly tell us why this happens, it makes sense. If your body is busy battling a life-threatening illness, maintaining a luxuriant mane is the least of its priorities.
Can Hair Products Treat Hair Loss?
Stress-induced hair loss will resolve itself — but can topical products help it? Shortly after noticing my hair loss, I was sent the Virtue’s new 3 month Hair Rejuvenation Treatment ($153). I love Virtue products, so am always interesting in their new releases.
However, I’m sceptical of beauty products that pop up in moments of high consumer demand and, as pointed out by Dazed Beauty, many hair care companies are slapping “volumizing” and “thickening” on their products because of the aforementioned COVID-induced demand.
It’s important to note that Minoxidil is the only drug that has been medically demonstrated to cause hair growth. In America, the Flourish range is available with or without a Minoxidil based product. Because of the US’ strict regulations, products containing Minoxidil are strictly regulated, and Virtue Labs Minoxidil is unavailable on Australian shores.
However, there are clinically trialled natural alternatives.
We have the Virtue, Flourish Density Booster — a serum applied directly to the scalp post-wash. The key active is Larch Wood Extract — which was demonstrated to rival the performance of Minoxidil in a double-blind trial conducted by Virtue.
The serum also contains a probiotic ferment that supports the scalps microbiome, cellular oxygenation, and biomimetic signal peptides. Peptides are a great addition to scalp care products because they easily penetrate the hair follicle, increasing moisture and strength where it matters most. On their own, biomimetic peptides have been demonstrated to have statistically significant impacts on hair growth in alopecia patients.
The serum is accompanied by the shampoo and conditioner. I describe these two as a blowdry in a bottle. The results of washing my hair were instant. Blonde at the time, my locks dull, damaged hair was suddenly smooth and shiny. The Flourish range is also perfect for those who want hydration, but don’t want to weigh their hair down.
I describe myself as having “combination hair.” It is thick and thin (thin strands, lots of them), oily and dry (limp roots, coarse, unruly ends). The Flourish shampoo is perfect if you are also enmeshed in this battle.
The Flourish, Shampoo for Thinning Hair ($60) has a light, gel texture enriched with alpha and gamma keratin proteins to strengthen the hair shaft. Meanwhile, sodium hyaluronate, red algae extract rice-based humectants for a lightweight hydration and biomimetic signal peptides. To provide a deep cleanse to the scalp, it contains coconut-derived sodium lauroyl methyl isethionate, a gentle alternative to (perhaps unfairly maligned) sulfates.
Flourish, Conditioner for Thinning Hair ($63) also contains alpha and gamma keratins, high levels of green tea and probiotics, and lightweight cyperus root oil for shine.
Results With Virtue, Flourish
The results of the shampoo and conditioner are immediate and pretty dramatic. I always judge shampoo and conditioner by how your hair blowdries afterwards — and my hair, looked like I had had a professional blowdry and treatment — not another tangle with my broken Parlux. I would recommend the shampoo and conditioner on that basis alone.
In terms of hair growth — I have now been using the Flourish range every second day (yes, that is how frequently I wash my hair, don’t @ me) for 1.5 months. The quality of my hair has dramatically improved. It is not only fuller and thicker but significantly shinier, despite having yet another colour treatment.
While you shouldn’t stress about COVID-induced hair loss as it will resolve itself, a clinically trialled range like Flourish will help speed things along. Plus, even if you’re not struggling with hair loss — the shampoo and conditioner are just very good.
I trialled it three months back and would say it will take another month and a half for me to work through it with three times a week use. Still, I will definitely be repurchasing it and would recommend it to anybody else.
