When you're experiencing thinning hair and shedding, you can feel like the only person in the room enduring it. But up to 8 million women in the UK grapple with female pattern hair loss, and while at-home solutions and prescription treatments like finasteride and minoxidil are effective and available, not everyone feels comfortable using some of them.

Sure, there are folk remedies and alternative medicine options to try, but the research on them isn’t as robust. But now, a new study may change that. A scientific review published in the Journal of Holistic Integrative Pharmacy makes the case for Polygonum multiflorum, a medicinal herb used in traditional Chinese medicine, for male and female pattern hair loss (known as androgenic alopecia).

Meet the experts: Cindy Wassef, MD, is a dermatologist at Premier Health Associates in Randolph, NJ. Cynthia Bailey, MD, is a dermatologist and diplomate of the American Board of Dermatology.

The science behind this ancient herb is still evolving, but dermatologists say there may be something to it. Here’s what they want you to know.

What is Polygonum multiflorum?

Polygonum multiflorum is a root used in Traditional Chinese Medicine to darken hair and enhance its lushness. For the review, scientists broke down lab studies and clinical reports on the herb, noting that it works through several pathways to “nourish hair” and block cell death, says Cindy Wassef, MD, a dermatologist at Premier Health Associates in Randolph, NJ. One of those pathways invovlves helping to block dihydrotestosterone, a hormone that shrinks hair follicles. It also helps to protect follicle cells from dying and switches on regrowth signals to support fullness and may even support better blood flow to the scalp to help deliver more nutrients to follicles.

What's more, the research also suggests it promote hair growth. “Recent laboratory studies have been done looking at the potential mechanism of action of Polygonum multiflorum on hair follicles have shown an elongation of the growth cycle,” says Cynthia Bailey, MD, a dermatologist and diplomate of the American Board of Dermatology. It may also help to slow or reverse some of what happens in the hair follicle that leads to hair loss and greying, she adds. “That said, we don’t entirely know why hair follicles slowly transition to gray hair or slow and stop making hair,” so Polygonum multiflorum's role in combatting that is hard to prove.

How is Polygonum multiflorum used?

It comes in several forms. “It is a plant and oftentimes has been crushed and used topically on the skin,” Wassef says. It’s also available in a tonic and a tea, she adds. You can even find Polygonum multiflorum in some facial creams and cosmetics. “When taken orally, there are serious concerns about toxicity,” Bailey says. “Topical application appears to be less risky.”

What to do if you’re dealing with hair loss

It’s fair to be curious about Polygonum multiflorum, especially if you’d rather not use medication. But, while dermatologists say the data around the herb is interesting, they stress that more work is needed before you should dive right in. “It is not known how much is needed to see the benefits for androgenic alopecia and how much is safe to ingest,” Dr. Wassef says. “It is also not regulated and not all teas or tonics are of the same concentrations.” Ultimately, she says, “I would caution against use until more studies and data is available.” Until then, it's probably best to rely upon more well-studied options to combat hair thinning and loss.