Share on PinterestNew research investigates luteolin’s potential in preventing hair graying. Maskot/Getty Images
- Developing gray hair is common with increasing age, although some people want to avoid these hair changes.
- One recent study in mice found that internal and external treatments with the antioxidant luteolin helped minimize hair graying.
- Future research can confirm if luteolin has similar effects in people, but the study does highlight another benefit of the antioxidant.
Is there anything we can do to prevent gray hairs? Experts are interested in discovering the answer to that question.
One study published in Antioxidants explored how three antioxidants affected gray hair outcomes in mice: hesperetin, diosmetin, and luteolin. While the antioxidants hesperetin and diosmetin did not mitigate hair graying, luteolin did.
With confirmation of future research, people may use luteolin to prevent gray hairs in the future.
Comparing 3 antioxidants for hair graying
This research used mice created to develop gray hair with age in a way that is comparable to how people develop gray hair.
The authors of this study first explain important aspects of what takes place in these mice when hair turns gray. There are two important types of stem cells in the bulge of the hair follicles: follicular keratinocyte stem cells and follicular melanocyte stem cells. The keratinocyte stem cells experience a decrease in endothelins, a type of peptide, and the follicular melanocyte stem cells experience a decrease in the receptor for these endothelins. These components are similar to what happens to people’s hair, and this was confirmed via a previous study.
They note that if experts can find a way to suppress this process, we could potentially minimize hair graying. One potential candidate they were interested in was luteolin, a flavonoid found in plants like parsley and celery.
For this research, the mice received internal and external luteolin treatments daily for sixteen weeks. Another group of mice received external hesperetin or diosmetin treatments for 16 weeks.
There were noticeable effects for the mice who received external luteolin. First, researchers observed a decrease in cells with a certain marker, which suggested that the luteolin treatment suppressed the aging of keratinocyte stem cells.
They further observed a lower percentage of gray hairs among the mice treated with luteolin. This and other observations suggested that luteolin helped to fix the signaling problems between the endothelins in keratinocyte stem cells and the endothelin receptors in the melanocyte stem cells, leading to fewer gray hairs.
In contrast, external treatments with hesperetin and diosmetin did not appear to affect hair graying.
Internal luteolin treatments also suppressed hair graying. The results suggested that luteolin did so in a way similar to external luteolin treatments. However, the treatment with internal luteolin had a weaker effect than external treatments.
Could luteolin be the solution to developing gray hair?
Researchers also analyzed the effect of luteolin on human skin keratinocytes. Luteolin helped to decrease the transcript expression levels of an aging marker while increasing the “transcript expression level of endothelin-1.” The authors noted that this may indicate that endothelin-1 signaling in keratinocytes is involved in “mediating the effects of luteolin.”
Researchers also wanted to test how oxidative stress promoted hair graying and if luteolin could offer benefits in this situation.
They tested wild-type mice that received tert-butyl hydroperoxide, which induces oxidative stress. Mice who received tert-butyl hydroperoxide developed gray hair, but mice also treated with luteolin experienced less hair graying. These results suggest that in the author’s model mice, hair graying may be reduced by decreasing oxidative stress.
The study’s findings support the idea that luteolin may become an effective way to minimize gray hair.
“We have found a drug candidate to prevent hair graying, which is often considered a negative symbol of aging. This study demonstrated that luteolin, a natural antioxidant, can suppress hair graying in model mice. Our findings suggest that luteolin could be a viable candidate for developing therapeutic interventions aimed at maintaining original hair color.”
— Study author Masashi Kato, MD, PhD, speaking to Medical News Today
Study limitations
This research was only conducted in mice and human cells, so it’s unclear if luteolin would have the same impact in people. Two of the authors noted competing financial interests, and these conflicts could have impacted the results.
Future research can confirm if luteolin helps minimize gray hairs in people as well as what amounts and routes may be most effective. The authors also note that more research will need to be done to determine safe dosages for people.
T.C. Theoharides, PhD, MD, director of the molecular immunopharmacology and drug discovery laboratory in Boston, Massachusetts, who has studied luteolin but who was not involved in the study, noted that “There are issues with using these compounds, and the most important one is that luteolin is yellow. So, on a mouse you might be able to put as much as you want. On a human, it will be a little tricky.”
Kato noted the following about continued research:
“Research on age-related changes, including prevention of hair graying, is a long-term process. Identifying luteolin’s anti-graying effects may mark a step forward in anti-aging research. With further confirmation in humans, effective strategies for preventing and treating gray hair could become a reality.”
The question of why remains unanswered
This study also does not explain why exactly luteolin had the effects it did in the study while hesperetin and diosmetin did not. Additional research into the underlying mechanisms involved in all aspects of the study will likely be useful.
Theoharides noted the following components of what future research could address:
“Following up on this paper is worthwhile if someone has the funding to do it…I would not necessarily jump into clinical study. I would want to assess and get a better model that best reflects humans…[Next] Come up with a better preparation of luteolin, as I said, that doesn’t have color and is more likely to reach where you want it to reach. And then potentially, find out if there are some populations, for whatever reason whose hair turns gray earlier than not so that you might have a more homogeneous population to work with should you go into [a] pilot clinical trial.”
Luteolin’s health benefits
This research emphasizes another potential benefit of luteolin, adding to the list of possible benefits. For example, luteolin may help with pain management and could potentially help with cancer treatment. It may also have cardioprotective and neuroprotective benefits.
People seeking to get more luteolin have a number of food sources to choose from and can increase luteolin consumption with appropriate guidance.
Registered dietitian nutritionist Karen Z. Berg, MS, RD, CSO, CDN, who was also not involved in the study, shared great food sources of luteolin with Medical News Today.
Sources of luteolin
“Luteolin is an antioxidant found in many plant foods that has anti-inflammatory properties as well. Radicchio has the highest amount of luteolin, followed by many green peppers, including sweet green peppers, hot peppers, serrano peppers and jalapeno peppers. Artichokes, pumpkin, and celery also have luteolin.”
— Karen Z. Berg, MS, RD, CSO, CDN
“It is important to note though that the density of luteolin in each food varies greatly on the way the produce was grown. Like other flavonoids, it is best to get this one through foods rather than supplements or powders,” she added.
