My Thoughts On Nioxin
March 3, 2019
124 Comments
Keranique is one of the most popular hair regrowth treatments out there. In fact, it’s the number one selling hair regrowth treatment in the US. But as you’ll see in Lady Alopecia’s full review, the products aren’t for everyone – often because of what’s inside its pretty pink bottles. In this post, I’ll chat about those Keranique ingredients.
Emma’s ‘not a doctor’ disclaimer
Hi there, I’m an alopecian, I’m not a doctor! Any advice I give is based on my own research and personal experiences. This site is however reader-supported. When you buy through external links, I may earn a tiny affiliate commission. Learn more here.
Although the company offers a wider range of products than the ones I’ll mention here – including styling mousses, serums and hair brushes – it’s famous for its “Hair Regrowth System”. And that system contains:
Each product has a different job to do. The shampoo is supposed to remove debris, dead skin cells and excess sebum (oil) from the scalp while promoting microcirculation. The conditioner aims to strengthen and repair each hair shaft with a dose of the protein keratin.
The spray provides volume and bounce, plus added protection against environmental factors and styling-related damage. While the regrowth treatment contains the only FDA-approved, non-prescription ingredient proven to regrow hair and revitalize hair follicles.
That’s the idea, anyway. I haven’t used all of these products before – only the shampoo – so I’m going by what the Internet tells me!
Unlike one of its main competitors, Nioxin, Keranique does not contain sulfates or parabens – see this post for more sulfate-free options! But it does contain antioxidants, dimethicone (a smoothing agent), biotin (aka, Vitamin H), amino acids and panthenol – an ingredient used in lots of “skin healing” products.
The formula also includes ginseng root, an ancient herbal remedy which, studies have shown, can promote hair growth among people with alopecia.
LA Says: It’s probably a cheaper way of nabbing some ginseng root, too. I had a friend bring me some powdered stuff from his home in China and it was NOT cheap!!!
Finally, Keranique shampoo includes peppermint oil to promote scalp circulation, encouraging hair regrowth and leaving your head feeling minty fresh! Now, I didn’t realise how effective this natural oil could be until I came across this study – it actually seems to work even faster than minoxidil!
Keranique has both peppermint oil and minoxidil… maybe double the power?
Water (Aqua), Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Lauramidopropyl Betaine, PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Decyl Glucoside, Polyquaternium-7, Polyquaternium-11, Panthenol, Disteareth-100 IPDI, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Glycerin, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil, Methoxy PEG/PPG-7/3 Aminopropyl Dimethicone, Menthol, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Sodium Lauroyl Oat Amino Acids, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein PG-Propyl Silanetriol, PEG-12 Dimethicone, Biotin, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Zea Mays (Corn) Starch, Zinc Gluconate, Ornithine HCl, Niacinamide, Hydrolyzed Ceratonia Siliqua Seed Extract, Glucosamine HCl, Calcium Pantothenate, Arginine, Citrulline, Arctium Majus Root Extract, Acetyl Tyrosine, Quaternium-95, Dipropylene Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Propanediol, Citric Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Potassium Sorbate, Chlorphenesin, Methylisothiazolinone.
More peppermint oil, more biotin, more ginseng root. Plus an advanced amino acid keratin complex, which is supposed to work with your hair’s natural keratin (or give you some more, if you’re short of this key structural protein).
Perhaps a safer option than the other keratin treatments I’ve read about!
Water (Aqua), Cetearyl Alcohol, Behentrimonium Chloride, Cetyl Alcohol, Isododecane, Cetrimonium Chloride, Quaternium 91, Polyquaternium-7, Polyquaternium-11, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Panthenol, Glycerin, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, PPG-3 Benzyl Ether Mryristate, Menthol, Methoxy PEG/PPG-7/3 Aminopropyl Dimethicone, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein PG-Propyl Silanetriol, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Quaternium-95, PEG-12 Dimethicone, Hydrolyzed Keratin, Keratin, Stearamine Oxide, Biotin, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Amodimethicone, Hydrolyzed Ceratonia Siliqua Seed Extract, Octocrylene, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane, Sucrose Laurate, Inulin Lauryl Carbamate, Zinc Gluconate, Zea Mays (Corn) Starch, Ornithine HCl, Niacinamide, Glucosamine HCl, Citrulline, Calcium Pantothenate, Arginine, Arctium Majus Root Extract, Acetyl Tyrosine, Propanediol, Dipropylene Glycol, Citric Acid, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Benzyl Alcohol, Potassium Sorbate, Chlorphenesin, Methylisothiazolinone.
All the lovely Keranique ingredients mentioned above – including panthenol for added hydration and frizz-fighting actions and keratin fibers to thicken and strengthen each strand. The spray also contains hydrolyzed vegetable protein called “PG-Propyl Silanetriol” (also known as Keravis protein), that’s designed specifically to strengthen, fortify, and revitalize dry and damaged hair.
Oh, and it includes castor oil, too – which many peeps believe is a helpful treatment for hair loss. Yay!
Water (Aqua), Polyester-5, PEG-12 Dimethicone, Glycerin, Quaternium-95, Xanthan Gum, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein PG-Propyl Silanetriol, Chondrus Crispus (Carrageenan) Extract, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Laminaria Digitata Extract, Behentrimonium Chloride, Hydrolyzed Ceratonia Siliqua Seed Extract, Zea Mays (Corn) Starch, Polyquaternium-7, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Keratin, Hydrolyzed Keratin, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Cystine Bis-PGPropyl Silanetriol, PPG-26-Buteth-26, Dipropylene Glycol, Polyquaternium-11, PEG-12 Dimethicone, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil, Panthenol, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane, Octocrylene, PPG-5- Ceteth-20, Menthol, Calcium Pantothenate, Niacinamide, Inulin Lauryl Carbamate, Acetyl Tyrosine, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Glycogen, Mannitol, Biotin, Arginine, Arctium Majus Root Extract, Zinc Gluconate, Ornithine HCl, Citrulline, Propanediol, Glucosamine HCL, Sucrose Laurate, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Potassium Sorbate, Benzyl Alcohol, Chlorphenesin, Sodium Benzoate.
No need for a big list of ingredients here – this product keeps things simple. Its active ingredient is 2% minoxidil (20mg in 1ml). While its inactive ingredients are: alcohol, propylene glycol and purified water. That’s it.
Minoxidil is the only over-the-counter, FDA-approved medication that’s been clinically proven to help with male and female hair loss. It’s also known as Rogaine, which you’ve probably heard of before.
And while the 5% treatment shows significantly better results than the 2% solution, it can still be very effective.
But at what cost?
I ask this because, when I used minoxidil (prescribed to me by a trichologist, or hair doctor), I experienced dizziness, fatigue and headaches. It caused a little hair to grow back, initially at least – but the negative side effects weren’t worth it!
Clearly, minoxidil isn’t for everyone. Read my post about these side effects to learn more.
Maybe you can enjoy all 4 products without any negative side effects. And that’s great – for you, Keranique ingredients might only produce positive results. But if you have a bad reaction to the hair regrowth treatment – ie, to minoxidil – you can still benefit from Keranique’s other products. Yay!
Remember those other ingredients I mentioned, like ginseng root, peppermint and caster oils, and those added proteins to repair and protect your hair? Focus on those instead and see what a difference they can make!
In the meantime, your questions, comments, feedback and stories – as always – are more than welcome.
Good luck!
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6 Responses
Is the lift and repair treatment a protein or amousturiser
Thanks for your question, Lisa! Well, it’s kind of both: as it contains a vegetable protein to revitalize damaged hair, plus keratin fibers to strengthen bonds. But it also contains moisturizing ingredients like castor oil and panthenol for extra hydration. Either way, you just leave it in as you would any moisturizing spray! I hope that helps 🙂
I have been using this collection for almost two months now, my hair is falling more than it used to, it got more dry and didn’t seem to improve. I really enjoy how my scalp feels after application but it doesn’t seem to help and might even be making my hair worth. I am going to give it few more weeks and if there’s no improvement I will discontinue. Only problem is I can’t find any convenient manufactured products that works. I tried expensive and cheap products. Non is good enough. For hair loss I also tried Aveda for almost six months.
One product consistently give good response is Biosilk therapy serum. I always keep it on the side.
Hi Lola, I’m so sorry to hear about your bad experience with Keranique. It’s quite common for a change in hair texture and even more hair fall when you switch to a new treatment but that really should stop after 2-3 weeks. If you’ve been using it for this long and you’re still experiencing hair loss, I think you’re right to switch to something else. Bear in mind, most hair growth treatments take at least 3 months for results so if you can bear it, maybe continue to this time if you can. I haven’t used Biosilk before but 2 of the treatments I’d recommend most are Revita shampoo (read my review here) and also nanoxidil is fast gaining popularity…supposedly just as effective as minoxidil, without the bad side effects! You can read my review on that here.
I hope that helps, Lola and that you start to see an improvement in hair growth!
Take care,
Emma / Lady Alopecia x
If you use products with minoxidil, what happens if you stop using them, does your hair fall out all over again?
Hi Rose, unfortunately that can be the case, yes. Not always but it’s one of the many reasons I’m not a fan of minoxidil. It can offer a ‘quick fix’ but often comes with the negative side effects of headaches and dizziness…and wouldn’t be something I’d recommend in the long-term. Then, like you say, your hair can fall out again after using it so what’s the point?? My advice is to use a more natural shampoo that won’t be quite so dramatic if you stop using it…one of my favourites is Pura D’Or (full review here) or Revita (full review here). Good luck!