Changes in Hair Condition of Women in Their 20s After 8 Weeks of Using a Shampoo Containing Fermented Lactic Acid Bacteria-Derived Ingredients

This study investigated changes in hair condition among women in their 20s after eight weeks of using a shampoo containing fermented lactic acid bacteria-derived ingredients and examined the change patterns in a control group using a conventional shampoo. Fifty women were assigned to an experimental group (n=25) using the test shampoo and a control group (n=25) using a conventional shampoo. Both groups shampooed once daily in the evening and refrained from using additional scalp or hair products during the study period. Hair density, hair count, and hair thickness were measured at baseline and after eight weeks using the ASM-202 (AI-Scalp Grader, Aramo Huvis, Korea) at six sites: the left hairline, front hairline, right hairline, frontal center, vertex, and occipital region. In the experimental group, hair density and hair count increased significantly at five sites, excluding the occipital region (p<.05 to p<.001). Hair thickness also increased significantly at the left, front, and right hairlines and the vertex (p<.01). No significant pre-post changes were observed in the control group. These findings indicate that significant favorable within-group changes in several hair condition parameters were observed after eight weeks of test shampoo use, whereas no significant pre-post changes were observed in the control group. As the present analysis focused on pre-post changes within each group, direct comparison of the magnitude of changes between groups warrants further investigation. The findings suggest the potential utility of the multi-ingredient test shampoo containing fermented lactic acid bacteria-derived and botanical ingredients as a hair-care formulation. However, because the test shampoo was a multi-ingredient formulation, the observed changes cannot be attributed solely to fermented lactic acid bacteria-derived ingredients. These findings provide preliminary evidence for the potential use of such formulations in hair care.