A 50-Year Gap in Women’s Hair Loss Research and the Peptide Breakthrough That Finally Starts With Women: IFP-131™

Minoxidil is the most widely used hair growth treatment in the world. It’s been in use since the early 1970s and was originally developed as an oral drug for high blood pressure, and hair growth was discovered as a side effect.¹

By the early 1990s, women began using it, first off-label, then in a lower-dose topical version approved for female pattern hair loss.² That history is part of why so many women still ask if Minoxidil is safe for for their use. In fact, nearly 40% of women experiencing hair loss have used Minoxidil. And yet, despite its widespread use, it comes with tradeoffs: daily application, a required six-month window before visible results, and an initial shedding phase in the first six weeks that can feel destabilizing even if the user is aware of the cause.

Now, 2026, we’re finally seeing the first large-scale, late-stage clinical trial of Minoxidil specifically in women. That’s 50 years later. 

As someone who has dedicated my life’s work to the intersection of beauty, biology, and innovation (and who has navigated my own hair loss journey) I find that both encouraging and frankly more than a little unsettling.

Because it means that for decades, women have been using a treatment that was never truly designed, optimized, or studied for us. And while this new study is absolutely a step in the right direction, it’s  long overdue.

What Minoxidil Actually Is (And Isn’t)

Minoxidil is often positioned as a hair growth solution. But it’s important that we understand what it actually does. At its core, Minoxidil is a stimulant. It pushes the hair follicle into the growth phase and keeps it there longer.³ It does this by increasing blood flow, activating potassium channels in follicular cells, and upregulating growth signals like VEGF.⁴, a signaling protein that stimulates the growth of new blood vessels. 

To be clear, it works. You can see more hairs growing and the natural growth cycle is extended. But what I’ve come to understand is that Minoxidil is only part of the picture and doesn’t address these key factors:

• Why the hair is shedding in the first place

• Whether the follicle itself is strong

• How well the hair is anchored

• Or what’s happening at a deeper biological level

Essentially it pushes the system to work harder, but it doesn’t necessarily support it, and the effects end if you stop using it. That limitation is especially important when comparing oral treatment with topical Minoxidil for women and trying to understand which approach actually fits their lives.

Why This Matters More for Women Than Men 

Men and women experience hair loss differently; male pattern hair loss ( the classic thinning at the hairline and crown) is tied to genes and androgens. For women, hair loss is is more diffuse and holistic: tied to stress, hormonal fluctuations, inflammation, aging, and other internal shifts that occur over time.⁵

When you introduce a systematic stimulant like Minoxidil you’re working within a much more complex biological landscape. This is where we start to see the difference play out. When I talk to women about Minoxidil, I hear the same themes over and over:

• “I’m noticing results, but I don’t understand how it works—and I’m nervous to miss a day.”

• “The side effects feel out of alignment.”

• “It feels like a trade off.”

Those concerns are why the question as to whether Minoxidil is safe for women keeps coming up in real conversations, not just search bars.

The Minoxidil Trade Off: Side Effects and Uncertainty 

Using a product that can cause side effects is stressful, and can make you question whether it’s worthwhile or not. These trade offs are some of the most common, and they can be off-putting and disruptive: 

• Fluid retention

• Unwanted facial hair growth 

• Heart palpitations

• Dizziness

• Heart palpitations 

• An initial shedding phase that can feel emotionally destabilizing

• Scalp irritation with topical use

These side effects aren’t random. They’re a direct extension of how the drug works. And for many women, it becomes a question of hair growth, but at what cost. That’s also why searches around Minoxidil side effects in women have become so relevant.

What This New Study Actually Represents

This new clinical study on VDPHL01 is important because while it’s still Minoxidil, it’s been reformulated as an extended-release version designed to deliver a more consistent signal over time. This is important because one of the biggest challenges with traditional Minoxidil is fluctuation, and those peaks and drops that can contribute to both side effects and inconsistent outcomes.⁴ Instead, it offers a more stable delivery system that could: 

• Improve tolerability

• Create more consistent follicle signaling

• Better align with how the biology of the hair cycle actually functions

But for me, the most important part of this study isn’t the formulation, it’s the fact that it exists, and that for the first time, we’re seeing this level of research done in women, for women, at scale.That’s the shift, and it’s an important one.

But it also highlights something we can’t ignore: it’s decades late.

For women still weighing oral Minoxidil against topical Minoxidil for women, that delay matters because it shaped the treatment landscape for years before women were truly centered in the research.

The Peptide Breakthrough That Starts With Women

Minoxidil represents an earlier model: Stimulate the follicle. Push it to grow. Keep stimulating daily. But hair isn’t just something you stimulate, it’s something you support. To me, this is where the conversation around women and hair growth evolves. And as I’ve spent the past five years studying hair biology, one thing has become clear: The future of hair growth isn’t about pushing harder. It’s about supporting smarter.

Hair growth peptides like IFP-131™ represent a fundamentally different approach—one that works with the biology of the follicle itself. Instead of forcing growth, this approach focuses on:

• Improving how well the follicle anchors the hair

• Supporting the structural integrity of the strand

• Enhancing the signaling environment that regulates growth

In other words, not just making hair grow, but enabling it to grow stronger, healthier, and more resilient. What I find most meaningful is that this approach has been studied in controlled clinical studies conducted exclusively in women, where the results have shown:

• Up to 47% reduction in shedding within 90 days

• 10% increase in the growth cycle

• 18% improvement in hair strength and quality

Because if we’re serious about solving hair loss for women we have to start with women.

What This Moment Means for Hair Growth 

To be clear, I don’t see this as a competition. Instead I see it as an evolution in hair growth science. So while Minoxidil showed us that hair can be stimulated to grow, this next generation of science is neither purely pharmaceutical nor nutraceutical.

It’s the science of peptides, and it’ s showing us something more powerful: that hair can be supported to grow better, that we’re moving from:

• Forcing growth → Enabling healthier growth

• One-size-fits-all → Biology-first, precision approaches

And for the first time that shift is starting with women.

—Naomi 

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Minoxidil safe for women?

Minoxidil can work for many women, but safety depends on the format, dose, side effects, and personal health history. That’s part of why newer women-focused research matters so much.

What are the side effects of Minoxidil in women?

The most common concerns include early shedding, irritation, dizziness, fluid retention, heart palpitations, and unwanted facial hair. These side effects are one reason many women start looking for options that feel more aligned with their biology like OMI Hair Growth Peptides.

How is topical Minoxidil for women different from newer peptide-based options?

Topical minoxidil for women helps stimulate growth, but it does not directly address anchoring, follicle strength, or the broader biological environment around the hair. Peptide-based approaches aim to work more closely with those root-level factors.

Can women use Minoxidil if their hair loss feels hormonal, stress-related, or diffuse?

Yes, many women do use Minoxidil, but women’s hair loss is often more complex than a single trigger. That’s why results can feel mixed, and why a more targeted, biology-first approach may feel more relevant.

What are oral Minoxidil side effects women should be aware of before trying it?

Oral Minoxidil side effects women may experience can include fluid retention, dizziness, heart palpitations, and unwanted hair growth in other areas. It can still be a useful option for some people, but it is important to weigh the tradeoffs carefully.