The HairMax LaserComb
By Thomas Ricker 
posted Sep 24th 2005 12:03PM
posted Sep 24th 2005 12:03PM
The HairMax LaserComb, the latest magically hi-tech device to prey upon your insecurities offer
thicker and fuller hair. If you believe their pitch, the LaserComb works through the scientific principle of
Photo-Bio-Stimulation, which is "the natural process by which light energy is converted into cellular energy." And hair
cells "like light," see? A quick google tells us that Photo-Bio-Stimulation has also been found to induce
hypoalgesia in rats which is not naloxone reversible. Oh man, no idea what that means but we won't be tossing out
our Ron Popeil fuzz-in-a-can until the FDA weighs in, dig. Hey, is that thing on fire!?
[Via MedGadget]
Uh, can I be the first one to say WTF?!?!?
As if it's any surprise, this appears to be a scam:
http://www.folica.com/HairMax_LaserCo_r1249_1.html
Apparently a lot of desperate people will pay $700 for a little hope...
Argh. Unless there's some surface appearance change that this thing would create, it's ridiculous.
Nice citation for the photobiostimulation though. I don't think this comb would do anything like that, unless you found a way to point it at your follicles as opposed to the hair shaft. Probably not even then.
The operative thing to remember in evaluating all advertising for hair products is that HAIR IS JUST DEAD CELLS. There's nothing that will perk them up, they're dead!
For the record, your citation says that if you hit the base of a rat's tail with a laser, it demonstrates a diminished senstivity to pain that is only partially reversible with drugs.
Hypoalgesia is a reduced sensitivity to pain. Nalaxone is an opioid antagonist, a drug commonly used when someone overdoses on opioids like heroin. Because opioids have strong pain relieving effects, administering nalaxone to even a normal person will reduce the normal, natural levels of opiates, causing them to increase their sensitivty to pain.
It appears that higher doses have nalaxone worked only partially, while lower doses didn't work at all in reversing the hypoalgesia (insensitivity to pain). This means that, as the article says, LPBS isn't stimulating more release of more opioids, as the release of more would have been countered by the lower dose.
Keep in mind these results were replicated with rats, so we don't know if they would have any effect on humans.
for more info about this laser therapy stuff, check out http://www.baldingblog.com/2005/08/10/low-laser-light-therapy/
its a pretty interesting read.
#4 You seem to be a highly intelligent person with sensible, down-to-earth views which are based solely on scientific fact. What the heck are you doing at Engadget?!
It wont work on hair, because hair is protien, not cells, alive or dead (despite common belief that it is dead cells, SEE #3 Strat) And that of course is assuming that it works on any kind of cell. I would also assume that this unnatural exposure would increase your chance of getting cancer. The more you screw with your cells, the more likely the will go into mitosis frenzy, or just die.
How am I supposed to make my hair silky smooth & straight??
My hair is coarse, fine & very delicate.
I've used so many products...L'oreal,Head & shoulders, VO5..
I don't get good results after a while my hair reverts back to its wayaward style!
I really wanna be my hair to be long n' good like tom cruise in MI:2
Help! whta product to use!
Thanks!
Believe it or not I watched a show back in August that did a 1 year research on several different methods of hair growth. Propecia, Rogain, a laser brush, and hair transplants. The best results were from the hair transplants but second place was actually a tie between the comb and propecia.
Personally I think $700 is a little high but since the brush is a one time expense it wouldn't be a bad deal. Believe it or not but I doubt this thing is a scam (at least the laser brush isn't)