Encyclopedia · growth stimulant
Diazoxide
A potassium-channel-opening drug related to minoxidil that causes heavy fine body hair as a side effect and regrew hair on bald macaques, but has never been tested for human hair loss.
What it is
Diazoxide is an oral drug for low blood sugar caused by excess insulin. Its US label lists fine "lanugo-type" hair growth on the forehead, back and limbs as a frequent reaction, most commonly in children and women, resolving after stopping. Like minoxidil it began life as a blood-pressure drug, and hypertrichosis is a common effect of cyclosporin, minoxidil and diazoxide (Tosi 1994). It is not approved for any hair use in the US, EU or UK and is prescription-only.
How it works
It opens ATP-sensitive potassium channels, the channel family also proposed as minoxidil sulfate's target. Hair bulb tissue carries such channels, which the author of a hypothesis paper links to diazoxide hypertrichosis (Newfield 2015).
What the studies show
- In a macaque model of baldness, topical minoxidil and diazoxide both induced significant regrowth on bald scalps (Uno and Kurata 1993).
- A 2015 paper proposed a topical potassium-channel blocker to switch off diazoxide-induced and other excess hair (Newfield 2015).
- No randomised or controlled human trial of diazoxide for hair loss turned up in PubMed. The human evidence is the side-effect observation only.
How it's used in studies
- Not used clinically for hair. The macaque work was topical; doses are not in the abstract.
Side effects and safety
- It is a serious systemic drug. The label lists fluid and sodium retention (frequent and serious) and, rarely, diabetic ketoacidosis and hyperosmolar coma, so patients are monitored for days because of a long half-life.
- Alopecia and lanugo hypertrichosis have been seen in infants whose mothers took oral diazoxide in late pregnancy.
Bottom line
Diazoxide is interesting as proof that potassium-channel openers grow hair and as context for why minoxidil works, but it is not something to take or apply for hair. Oral minoxidil is the studied option in this drug class. Discuss with a doctor.
Fun facts
- Diazoxide hypertrichosis is troublesome enough in children that a topical blocker was proposed in 2015 to switch the hair growth off locally (Newfield 2015).
Studies 3
Uno H, Kurata S. Chemical agents and peptides affect hair growth. J Invest Dermatol. 1993
Tested: topical minoxidil and diazoxide
Result: Both induced significant regrowth on bald scalps.
Read the study ↗Tosi A et al. Drug-induced hair loss and hair growth. Drug Saf. 1994
Tested: various drugs
Result: Hypertrichosis is a common effect of cyclosporin, minoxidil and diazoxide.
Read the study ↗Newfield RS. Topical sulfonylurea as a novel therapy for hypertrichosis secondary to diazoxide. Med Hypotheses. 2015
Tested: topical potassium-channel blocker
Result: Proposes a topical blocker to switch off diazoxide-induced excess hair and links hair-bulb potassium channels to the effect.
Read the study ↗Related
- MinoxidilThe most widely used hair-growth treatment, available as a cheap over-the-counter lotion or foam and as a prescription tablet, with a mechanism that is still only partly understood.
- Topical cetirizineThe common allergy antihistamine, made up as a 1% scalp solution, has several small trials suggesting a modest effect that is weaker than minoxidil.
- Hair growth pipeline (2026)What is in clinical trials for hair loss as of October 2026, how far along it is, and how much to trust the early numbers.