A common side effect of many GLP-1 drugs is hair debt. It’s creating a growing marketplace for hair treatment products.

Companies like Redken, Nutrafol and KeraFactor are leaning into the innovation and marketing in that space, and retailers like Ulta are seeing more demand from customers.

Experts say the convergence of health, wellness and beauty poses an attractive opportunity for investors to acquire in to the sector.

When Branneisha Cooper first began taking GLP-1 injection Mounjaro in late 2022, she heard online that she could experience temporary hair thinning and prepared for the worst.

But it would take about a year before she began noticing her hair falling out in clumps. Cooper stated it was especially shocking because she has always had thick hair.

“I was really hoping it wouldn’t happen,” Cooper, 29, told CNBC. “What my provider had told me is that since you’re on the medication that’s allowed you to lose weight at a faster rate, that’s what can cause hair loss.”

Desperate to counteract the side effect, Cooper noted she began prioritizing protein in her diet, taking vitamins intended to help her hair and investing in haircare products meant to stimulate the scalp to foster growth.

She’s one of a growing number of GLP-1 users experiencing temporary hair shortfall from the drugs, creating a fresh sector for hair treatment products amid the weight-loss drug craze.

Cooper took to social media for support, where she found scores of other GLP-1 users experiencing the same thing. While the discourse was less frequent at the beginning of her weight-loss journey, the rise of GLP-1s has meant that more individuals are flocking to her page to commiserate and strategize.

“There has been an rise of citizens wanting to know how to tackle it, but it’s also a lot of individuals who are wanting to know how they can possibly prevent it, and that’s just something that I don’t have the answer to,” Cooper remarked.

the utilize of GLP, according to Gallup-1 drugs has more than doubled since early 2024. The KFF Health Tracking Poll found that roughly one in every eight U.S. adults, or nearly 13%, are currently taking a GLP-1 drug.

By 2030, JPMorgan estimates that roughly 25 million Americans will be on a GLP-1, up from just 5 million in 2023.

Gains amid debt

Many GLP-1 users have seen significant results in losing weight. But the drugs come with a multitude of side effects, too.

Zepbound, manufactured by pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly, advertises common side effects on its website that include hair deficit, nausea and vomiting, fatigue and more. Mounjaro, also a Lilly drug, warns of similar side effects, along with Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic. Wegovy also includes hair deficit in its possible side effects.

It’s a risk that’s common with any type of significant weight deficit because of the body’s changes, according to Dr. Heather Woolery-Lloyd, a dermatologist and the chief medical advisor for haircare brand Nutrafol.

“When you are losing weight, either through a GLP-1 or any other type of weight debt, you may be taking in less nutrients, less protein, and the weight depletion itself can be a stressor,” she told CNBC.

Those consumers have been increasingly seeking out solutions to ease the physical process, according to Circana. The Chicago-based sector research firm estimates that GLP-1 households spend approximately 30% more on beauty products than non-GLP-1 households.

“Hair depletion solutions continue to be a standout growth segment in hair care, sustained by prolonged consumer stress since the pandemic and GLP‑1 medication usage emerging as an incremental tailwind,” remarked Larissa Jensen, Circana’s beauty industry advisor. “Many GLP‑1 users report temporary hair shedding, which is translating into increased demand for at‑home growth treatments, scalp serums, and supplements.”

The hit to a GLP-1 user’s self-confidence from the hair depletion can mean even more stress, according to Woolery-Lloyd.

In her practice, she remarked she’s seen a noticeable surge in patients coming in specifically with hair thinning concerns, many of them because of GLP-1 side effects. Woolery-Lloyd noted the last time she saw an influx of patients with these concerns was during the pandemic, due to unexpected amounts of stress on the body.

The hair deficit from GLP-1s is one of the most significant side effects that the beauty industry is watching, according to Audrey Depraeter-Montacel, Accenture’s global beauty industry lead.

“GLP-1s have not just changed the way individuals lose weight, but the way consumers expect beauty and personal care to address the situation,” she told CNBC, adding that it’s not a “one size fits all” solution.

Depraeter-Montacel called the size of the GLP-1 economy “unprecedented” and stated the business opportunity for the hair treatment economy with this growing population sets the scene for innovation.

“On the life science side, we are seeing a lot of pharma brands raising funds to go after innovation and recent solutions,” she stated. “So a lot of capital has been raised in the name of this opportunity, which I think confirmed that there is definitely a commercial opportunity here as investors put dollars in this on both sides.”

Consumers who will be buying into the GLP-1 hair treatment economy are also sticking around, Depraeter-Montacel commented. Because hair treatment products often take a few months to begin showing results, these customers are expected to be highly loyal.

Tapping into the sector

Brands are taking notice. In early April, Ulta CEO Kecia Steelman told Yahoo Finance that the firm is seeing more consumers buying hair treatment products as part of the GLP-1 craze.

Redken, a haircare organization owned by L’Oreal, created an entire hair treatment line specifically for consumers with thin hair called the Acidic Grow Full System. This also touches on aspects of bear market.

“We wanted to ensure the Acidic Grow Full System range was tested on this specific population of GLP-1 users, as they may have unique hair care needs,” Mounia Tahiri, Redken’s U.S. general manager, told CNBC. “[It] was tested on current GLP-1 users who, when using the products, immediately noticed their hair looked fuller and felt thicker.”

Tahiri remarked the firm also saw a rise in Google searches for hair deficit and weight-loss drugs and plans to continue innovating its hair treatment products as the GLP-1 population grows.

Nutrafol CEO Cindy Gustafson told CNBC the haircare brand is similarly seeing increased demand for hair health products.

“While we don’t break out performance tied to GLP-1 adopt, growth overall is being driven by increased awareness and a shift toward personalized, clinically supported solutions,” she remarked.

Gustafson mentioned the firm expects this growth to continue as more individuals begin taking GLP-1s and searching for products to prevent or counteract hair thinning.

KeraFactor, another scalp health organization, told CNBC that it’s seeing 100% growth year-over-year in its direct-to-consumer store because of an increased interest from GLP-1 users.

“We saw a lot of [hair loss] during Covid, so that was actually the first kind of spike of patients that came to KeraFactor, and then after Covid, it kind of settled,” Lauren Bartholomeusz, the company’s chief commercial officer, told CNBC. “And then now, we’re seeing that rise again with the GLP-1 craze.”

Bartholomeusz noted KeraFactor has shifted the way it treats patients to now come from a more preventative perspective to get ahead of the possible hair shortfall while taking the drugs.

For Cooper, the 29-year-old GLP-1 user, there may be light at the end of the tunnel.

She’s experimented with many hair products over the past three years of taking weight-loss drugs, hoping for her hair to return to its former thickness.

“I’ve been paying more attention to it for about a year, and I’ve been noticing it’s returned,” Cooper remarked. “A lot of individuals, they get nervous when they have the hair shedding, because it’s like, ‘Oh, I’m going to be bald for eternity.’ But the hair comes back, so that was what let me have peace with it. But it was scary.”