Demand for hair treatment soars to combat side effects of fat jabs
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Growing demand for weight-loss drugs has boosted sales of hair products, according to Superdrug and Boots.
The drugs - sold under brand names Mounjaro and Wegovy in the UK - are taken as a weekly injection and trick the body into thinking it is full.
But users can suffer from hair thinning or hair loss and are now seeking help.
Online doctor appointments for hair loss have grown 14.9 per cent over the past year while sales of medicated hair care are up 28.8 per cent over two years, according to Superdrug.
The chemist also said that hair treatments have risen 27.7 per cent since 2024, coinciding with an increase in fat jab usage.
Around 6 per cent of households now have at least one user of the appetite-suppressing drugs, compared to 2.3 per cent in 2024, according to researchers at Worldpanel by Numerator. Some 1.9million Britons are thought to be using the jabs.
Shoppers are increasingly looking for products that claim to keep their hair healthy - including tackling side effects of weight-loss drugs.
Chelsey Saunders, director of haircare, skincare and fragrance at Boots, said: ‘As conversations around GLP-1 medications continue to grow, we’re also seeing an increased interest in hair and scalp health, reflected in the types of products customers are seeking within the haircare category.’
Hair products with helpful amino acids - such as keratin and collagen - are flying off the shelves as customers are ‘increasingly ingredient-led’, Saunders added. This is similar to a trend for skincare, she said.
‘Concerns around thinning hair, shedding and density have pushed customers to seek out targeted solutions,’ she said. ‘As a result, demand for efficacy-led products is accelerating.’
Boots is also seeing more shoppers seeking products or routines they have discovered on social media.
Influencer and hair expert Abbey Yung - who is known for sharing an elaborate 11-step routine to her 3.1million followers - has caused certain products, such as a £21 ‘anti-hair loss scalp serum’ from Pantene, to do well.
Saunders added: ‘We’re seeing trichologists, dermatologists and pharmacists becoming the new influencers, and their impact is very real.’
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