Scientists invented an electric baseball hat to reverse male baldness

An international team of researchers just developed the most sophisticated treatment for male baldness ever: a hat that covers up your hairless head.

Wait, there’s more. It also contains a self-actuating electrical ‘patch’ that stimulates the scalp, regenerates damaged tissue, and regrows hair thicker and quicker than pharmacological treatments.

Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, and Shenzhen University actually developed the electrical stimulation device not the hat. What’s amazing about it is that it’s small enough to fit inside a regular baseball hat, doesn’t use batteries, and actually works.

The team conducted extensive testing on laboratory rats and mice – and at least one scientist’s dad – and determined that the design was a rousing success. Rats who used the patch regrew hair quicker than those who didn’t, it even grew hair on ‘nude mice’ that don’t naturally grow any.

The 💜 of EU tech

The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!

While we’re sure it’ll have to go through some sort of human trial or regulatory testing process before it’s available to bald men everywhere, the researchers are confident this could become a practical solution to male baldness – just not for everyone.

Unfortunately for those who’ve gone entirely bald, it won’t magically bestow you with new follicles. If you’ve been bald for a significant amount of time you’re probably out of luck. This isn’t really a fancy new treatment, it’s a pint-sized version of the classic electrical pulse stimulation that’s been around for decades.

What’s nascent here is that you don’t have to sit still for several hours every day in order to receive your treatment. Men who are balding can stick the patch inside of their favorite baseball cap, slap it on their dome, and go about their business.

According to a university of Wisconsin press release, the device doesn’t require an external power pack or battery:

Small devices called nanogenerators passively gather energy from day-to-day movements and then transmit low-frequency pulses of electricity to the skin. That gentle electric stimulation causes dormant follicles to “wake up.”

So, what do you think? Would you wear a baseball cap on your head for a few hours everyday to receive “gentle electric stimulation” that’ll regrow your hair? What if it had the logo of the sports team you hate the most on it, would it be worth it to get your hair back? Let us know in the comments!

H/t: New Scientist