A chemical found in McDonald’s french fries may lead to a baldness cure

If you’re looking for a way to be fat, happy, and hirsute: A new study has found that a chemical in McDonald’s french fries may one day successfully regrow hair in humans.

A research team from Yokohama National University took some dimethylpolysiloxane, which is the silicone that McDonald’s uses to stop cooking oil from frothing, and added it to their efforts to successfully mass produce “hair follicle germs” (HFG) in mice. HFG are the cells that drive hair follicle development and, according to Newsweek, the “holy grail in hair-loss research.” Soon, enough HFG were embedded in the mice that they sprouted new hair on their backs. (Hopefully, the scientists then waxed the tiny mouse backs so they still looked good at the beach.)

According to the study, released in the Biomaterials journal last Thursday, preliminary tests indicate that the groundbreaking method could be as successful in humans. No word on whether rubbing McDonald’s french fries on your head will work, so you may as well give it a try.

 

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