Hair Loss News

A new study just published in the New England Journal of Medicine has found that certain shampoos and other products containing essential oils like Tea Tree oil and Lavender oil, can temporarily cause some boys to grow enlarged breasts, a condition otherwise known as gynecomastia.

The finding resulted from studying three boys who were brought to their doctors with overdeveloped breasts that looked like those of girls in early puberty.  In one of the cases the boy also experienced soreness in his breast, a common symptom of gynecomastia. 

In each case the doctors were able to tie the problem to their use over several months of products containing these natural-oil products.

The researchers suspected that the oils might be upsetting the boys’ natural hormonal balance.  After doing a series of lab tests to check how these oils work within human cells, they discovered that the oils appeared to mimic estrogen and blocked the male hormone testosterone.  This then led to an excess of estrogen, which is the female hormone responsible for causing enlarged breasts in males. 

Fortunately the effects were not permanent and they all went back to normal when they stopped using skin lotions, hair gel, shampoo or soap containing these natural oils.  It’s unknown how common this condition is and how many people it affects.

It’s important for people to know that natural products are not immune from causing side effects in people using them.