Emu Oil and Minoxidil: What the Experiments Show

An experimental foam containing minoxidil and emu oil produced a promising result in rats: after 30 days, 96% of examined follicles were in the growth phase, compared with 70% using a marketed minoxidil solution.

The formulation study also reported 48% of follicles in the growth phase with the foam without minoxidil and 42% without treatment. Total follicle density was similar across the groups. The difference concerned how actively the existing follicles were growing.

This makes the formulation worth investigating. Several ingredients and the delivery system differed from the marketed solution, however, so the result does not isolate emu oil’s contribution. It was an animal study, not a human trial.

How the older comparison went wrong

An earlier version of this article presented percentages from separate mouse experiments as if they ranked emu oil against minoxidil and ketoconazole. That comparison was not justified.

The minoxidil–ketoconazole mouse study did not test emu oil. Minoxidil produced the largest measured regrowth response among its treatment groups.

Michael Holick’s earlier patent described more visible hair after 19 days in three mice receiving emu oil than in two receiving corn oil. That small observation helped build interest in emu oil, but the patent does not report the “80% hair growth” figure previously used here.

The more useful comparison is the experimental foam against marketed minoxidil within the same study. Our detailed foam review shows the treatment groups and explains what the growth-phase measurements mean.