It’s one of the most annoying parts of any beauty regime – getting rid of unwanted hair.
But the age of getting a wax or shaving using a razor could nearly be over, thanks to a new discovery.
Experts have found that applying a common food additive to hair follicles can activate ‘taste receptors’ and prevent hair growth in lab tests.
And it could one day lead to a new hair removal treatment for humans, they said.
While taste receptors are usually associated with tastebuds in the mouth, they are found throughout the body and perform various functions linked to metabolism, regulating the immune system and reproduction.
Although taste receptors have previously been found in the skin, it is unknown what their purpose is.
In this study researchers found that human scalp follicles – the tiny factories that produce hair – have a bitter taste receptor called TAS2R4.
When stimulated with a natural, stevia-like sweetener, the taste receptor sends signals to the follicles that suppress hair growth.
It’s one of the most annoying parts of any beauty regime – getting rid of unwanted hair. But the age of getting a wax or shaving using a razor could nearly be over, thanks to a new discovery (stock image)
When stimulated with a natural, stevia-like sweetener, the taste receptor sends signals to the follicles that suppress hair growth (stock image)
It works by reducing cell division in the hair and by producing a protein known to stop hair from growing.
Lead author Professor Ralf Paus, from the University of Miami, said: ‘Despite the name, and their historical association with tastebuds, taste receptors crop up in unexpected places.
‘These findings identify specific taste receptors in human hair follicles, demonstrate they are active, and that they can be triggered to control hair growth.
‘Given that, paradoxically, a sweetener can tickle bitter taste receptors so that they send signals which halt hair growth makes one wonder: Is this the bitter-sweet end of unwanted hair?’
Tests on donated human scalp skin found that the stevia-like sweetener, called rebaudioside A, worked on hair follicles from both males and females.
Professor John McGrath, Editor-in-Chief of the British Journal of Dermatology, said: ‘Activating taste receptors in hair follicles with natural sweetener to prevent unwanted hair growth is not a combination of words I necessarily expected to see before reading this research, and yet here we are.
‘We don’t know for sure that activating these taste receptors in hair follicles could reduce hair growth in people – but it’s the type of research that could one day lead to a new type of hair removal product.
‘The concept is that activating the receptors alters the way a hair cycles through its growth phases, promoting what is known as “apoptosis”, where the hair follicles start to die, stopping hair growth in its tracks.’
There are ‘limited treatments’ for people with excess hair on the NHS, and private care can be ‘costly’ with ‘variable success’, the team added.
The findings were published in the British Journal of Dermatology.
