'Genetically, I should be bald': Anti-aging millionaire Bryan Johnson reveals how he grew his hair back

Pictures shared by Bryan Johnson before and after his hairfall treatment. (Image credit: @bryan_johnson/X)

American entrepreneur and venture capitalist Bryan Johnson who has spent millions on "reversing" his age has claimed that he has also managed to reverse his balding. He said on Tuesday that he had begun to lose hair and go grey in his late 20s, but now, at 47, he has a full head of hair, and 70 percent of his greys are gone.

"Genetically, I should be bald," Johnson wrote on X. "Contrary to popular belief, you can maintain your hair well into your 40s and beyond. In 12 months, I went from a Norwood 3 to a Norwood 2."

Contrary to popular belief, you can maintain your hair well into your 40s and beyond.In 12 months, I went from a Norwood 3 to a Norwood 2. Norwood is a hair loss scale, as indicated in the image.Heres how I achieved these results: pic.twitter.com/gMUefGjpZz
Bryan Johnson /dd (@bryan_johnson) October 22, 2024

He then listed how he grew his hair back in five steps.

1.) Start early

"Don’t wait for visible loss. Many lose up to 50 percent of their hair before they even realise it. The best time to work on your hair is before you start losing it," Johnson said.

2.) Nutrition

The millionaire listed a list of nutrients he recommended taking to prevent hairfall.
Protein: including collagen peptides and sufficient methionine, cyteine, and lysine in addition to taurine, to support collagen, keratin, and elastin synthesis.
Omega-3 fatty acids: for antioxidant effects and improving scalp circulation.
Key vitamins & minerals: including iron, selenium, and biotin.

3.) Customised topicals

"I use a personalized Rx formula based on my genetics to prevent and reverse hair loss," Johnson said, requesting people to monitor some of the side effects that include itchy skin, headaches etc.

4.) Red light therapy

"Six minutes a day and you can be doing your morning routine as you wear it. A study on 44 males (age 18-49) showed that treatment with 655nm laser cap for 25 minutes every other day for a duration of 16 weeks resulted in a 39 percent increase in hair growth compared to placebo," the tech mogul said, adding that his company Blueprint is working on launching a red light cap coming soon.

5.) Oral minoxidil

Johnson also suggested taking 3.75 mg of minoxidil orally every day. He said that he had started with consuming 2.5 mg and was evaluated for side effects.

"In a double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial involving 90 men with androgenetic alopecia AGA, oral minoxidil (5 mg daily) was found to have similar efficacy to topical minoxidil (5 percent solution applied twice daily) after 24 weeks." he wrote on X. "Oral minoxidil is generally considered safe at low doses, but it can have side effects such as hypertrichosis (excessive hair growth) and headaches."

The "age-reversing" millionaire also noted that one should start slow, introduce one product at a time and monitor closely for side effects. "Give each addition three months to show results," he said. "
Five percent minoxidil alone is sufficient for many. Consider personalization based on your genetic profile, health, diet type, and nutritional condition to reverse any deficiencies (e.g. omega3, protein...) revealed by blood testing."

At the end of the thread, Johnson said that he has been working on a hair growth for two years and added that "hair loss may no longer be a thing we have to think about".