PHYTO RE30 Review: Does Really Reverse Gray Hair? Evidence-Based Review

Joe Cannon

6 years ago

Update 8/24/20. Keep the gray at bay. Delay the gray. These are phrases that describe PHYTO RE30, touted to be the first anti-grey hair treatment that brings back color to your hair. At the heart of this cosmetic is the RE30 peptide which I'll discuss below. I was alerted to this anti-grey cosmetic by Pia who left a comment in my review of Hair Regenerers by Serovital. This PHYTO RE30 review will focus on research. NO fluff and NO hype. Is PHYTO RE30 a scam or does it really work? Here is the evidence. You decide.

Related Hair Reviews

How Does PHYTO RE30 Work

PHYTO RE 30 works two different ways, according to this YouTube video below:

produce melanin in hair.
stops graying process by hydrogen peroxide.

Both claims are pretty bold. Let's investigate the evidence.

What Does The Name Mean?

If I were to guess, the RE refers to reverse, as in reverse grey hair. As for number 30, I have no idea what that refers to. Maybe because each bottle will last only 30 days?

PHYTO RE 30 Research

PHYTO.com mentions these two clinical studies:

Clinical test on 32 volunteers for 3 months
Clinical test on 32 volunteers for 12 months

But, they don't give specifics about these studies. I cannot locate them. Searching for “phyto Re 30 research” does not turn up anything relevant. This makes it impossible to analyze the studies.

I also saw no before and after pictures on the PHYTO.com website either. If it worked so well, you'd think they would post pictures.

PHYTO RE 30 Ingredients

Each bottle of PHYTO RE30 contains these ingredients:

Water	Alcohol Denat	Glycerin
Lecithin	Fragrance	Phenoxyethanol
Panthenol	Pyridoxine HCL	Decyl Glucoside
Chlorphenesin	Triethanolamine	Ethyl Ester of Hydrolyzed Silk
Maltodextrin	Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-20	Tulipa Gesneriana Flower Extract
Citric Acid	1393A

Read the table from left to right. This tells you which ingredients are present the most and least. For example, since water is the first ingredient, it makes up the most of PHYTO RE30. The ingredient called “1393A” last so it makes up the least of the product.

Next, let's break down the ingredients are and pay special attention to:

How the ingredients relate to melanin production in hair
Which of these might be the active ingredients in RE30

I'll leave out the first ingredient – water -because we all know what that is.

Denatured Alcohol

They call this alcohol denat on the PHYTO RE30 ingredients list. This is alcohol that has chemicals added to it to stop people from drinking it (think alcoholics). I doubt it has any effects on hair re-pigmentation.

Glycerin

Also called glycerol. Glycerol is used in cosmetics because it prevents evaporation. It has no role in PHYTO RE 30s anti-grey effects.

Lecithin

Lecithin is a fatty substance found in cosmetics and even some supplements. Like alcohol and glycerin, it is a supporting ingredient. Lecithin helps the other ingredients spread well when RE30 is rubbed into the scalp.

Fragrance

The fragrance simply makes the product smell nice. They don't tell us what the ingredients in the fragrance are.

Phenoxyethanol

As you can see, ethanol (alcohol) is part of this name. The Environmental Working Group website tells us phenoxyethanol is used a preservative. It likely plays no role in restoring melanin to hair follicles.

Panthenol

This is another name for vitamin B5, also known as pantothenic acid. I often see B vitamins added to hair growth supplements. The Environmental Working Group website tells us panthenol may be used as a skin conditioner. In this case, it may help the scalp feel good after PHYTO RE30 is rubbed into the scalp.

Some researchers have noted taking pantothenic acid supplements can increase the growth phase of hair follicles. This tells us the vitamin plays a role in hair growth.

Pyridoxine HCL

Also called vitamin B6 and pyridoxine hydrochloride. This is another B vitamin found in hair skin and nails supplements. Like all vitamins, B6 does many things, including helping maintain strong hair.

Here's Pyrixoxine HCL on Amazon

Decyl Glucoside

The Environmental Working Group website describes decyl glucoside as a cleansing agent often used in shampoos, bubble baths, and body washes. It helps those products to make foam. It appears to have no role in follicle melanin production.

Chlorphenesin

Chlorphenesin has antibacterial properties and is likely used in cosmetics as a preservative. It has also been used as a muscle relaxant but not used much anymore. It appears to play no role in melanin production.

Triethanolamine

Triethanolamine (tri-ethyl-an-oh-la-mine) is an emulsifier so it helps the other ingredients mix well together. It may also be a foaming agent.

US patent number US4508706A describes how triethanolamine was involved in the process of increasing melanin production in skin and hair. Triethanolamine does not cause melanin production. Rather, it's a part of a process that might do this.

I don't believe triethanolamine plays any direct role in PHYTO RE30s effects. I believe it's used to help the other ingredients mix together well.

Ethyl Ester of Hydrolyzed Silk

This is just a silk protein. It's used in cosmetics like shampoos and skin conditioners. It may add strength to hair but has no effect on melanin production.

Maltodextrin

Maltodextrin is a type of sugar and often used as a food additive and sweetener. In cosmetics, it helps the other ingredients combine together well.

An article appearing in Cosmetic Business described a “tan accelerator” composed of maltodextrin and Mucuna pruriens seed extract. This combination formed a compound, called “Melactiva” which is in some tanning lotions.

This tan accelerator also contained acetyl hexapeptide-1 which is an ingredient in SeroVital Hair Regeneres, a product also touted to reverse gray hair.

Maltodextrin, by itself, probably has minimal-if any- effects on stimulating melanocytes' production of melanin.

As an aside, mucuna pruriens (also called velvet bean) is sometimes also used in testosterone supplements like Nugenix and weight loss supplements like QuickTrim.

PHYTO RE30 Video Review

Here's a video review I created to help you understand the research. The video summarizes the research on the active ingredient. If you watch the video first, it will make all the stuff in the next section easier to digest 🙂

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-20

I believe Palmitoyl tetrapeptide-20 is the key anti-grey ingredient in PHYTO RE30. Could this be the “Peptide RE30” that's said to be the active ingredient?

I think it might be.

There is a clinical study on Palmitoyl tetrapeptide-20 and the restoration of hair color. Let's break the study down so you can understand it better. This may get a bit technical so skip to the next section for the lowdown.

The Lucus Myer Cosmetics company published a clinical study that found Palmitoyl tetrapeptide-20 could increase melanin production by 39% in human melanin-producing cells (melanocytes).

Researchers also state Palmitoyl tetrapeptide-20 increased the transfer of melanosomes to keratinocytes by 50%. Melanosomes are little bundles of melanin. Keratinocytes are skin cells that make keratin, an important protein in hair, skin, and nails. This could lead to darker hair and skin.

These researchers also stated Palmitoyl tetrapeptide-20 reduced hydrogen peroxide by 30%. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) generates free radicals. Too much hydrogen peroxide in hair follicles can cause hair to turn gray and white.

And if things couldn't get any better, the researchers also state after 7 days of use, the bulbs of hair follicles increased pigmentation by 35%. In other words, they started churning out darker-colored hair again.

Recap Study Results

Here are the cliff notes of the study:

39% improved melanin production in human melanocytes
50% improvement in melanosome transfer to keratinocytes
30% reduction in hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)
35% improvement in hair follicles melanin pigmentation

All this sounds great, but…

But, There's a Problem

There's a problem… The results tell us what happened when cells were exposed to Palmitoyl tetrapeptide-20.

Humans are more complicated than cells sitting in a Petri dish.

Another possible problem: The researchers state, “catalase was decreased.” Catalase is the enzyme that breaks down hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Reduced catalase levels are thought to cause hair to turn white.

But they also said there were 30% lower levels of hydrogen peroxide too. That doesn't compute. If catalase levels decreased, this would lead to higher hydrogen peroxide levels.

In other words, low catalase levels = more hydrogen peroxide. More hydrogen peroxide leads to more gray /white hair. So how did both catalase and hydrogen peroxide decrease? If catalase levels went down, this would be expected to cause higher hydrogen peroxide levels.

This doesn't make sense to me. If this is true, it may be other antioxidants in RE30 (like Palmitoyl tetrapeptide-20) helped keep hydrogen peroxide levels low.

Now, let's look at the human part of this study.

The Human Part Of The Study

These same researchers also mention a 3-month investigation involving 15 men with prematurely gray hair. The men applied a 2% solution of Palmitoyl tetrapeptide-20 to their heads each day for 3 months. The researchers say this resulted in “a decrease in L Factor by 5.3.”

What the heck is “L factor?”

I have no idea. I searched for the answer and even consulted a former esthetician (my niece) but could not figure out what it is. If anyone knows, I'm all ears.

Regardless, L factor is irrelevant because the researchers did NOT state the men had darker hair color. That's the REAL test of Palmitoyl tetrapeptide-20 ability to improve melanin production.

Remember, the study lasted 3 months. That's long enough to see improvements in hair pigmentation.

Study Problems

I was not impressed with this study for the following reasons:

All researchers are associated with Lucas Myer Cosmetics.
The study is published as an abstract. Abstracts are summaries of research – not full research papers. Abstracts don't necessarily have to be peer-reviewed which weakens their significance in my opinion.
The human part of the study only had 15 men. That's not much.
The study only included men. What about women? How do we know Palmitoyl tetrapeptide-20 also works for women with gray hair?

Tulipa Gesneriana Flower Extract

Tulipa gesneriana is also known as the garden tulip. Like all plants, tulips have many extracts. What extract of tulips is in PHYTO RE30? I am not sure. The PHYTO company tells us tulip extract is used to strengthen hair from the roots.

Citric Acid

Citric acid, found in citrus fruits, is also called an alpha hydroxy acid. I'm not sure what role it plays in PHYTO RE30 although in cosmetics, it may be used to promote skin peeling. In theory, this might improve cell turnover, which might help the melanin re-pigment process. I'm speculating here of course.

1393A

I have no idea what the ingredient called “1393A “is. The company does not give any indication of what this stuff is. Searching online for “1393A” does not reveal anything about it.

What Is Greyverse?

Greyverse is an anti-gray product made by Lucus Myer Cosmetics. It's a combination of:

Glycerin
Water
Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide 20

Since starting this review, I've suspected Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide 20 was the secret sauce in Re30. Now I have confirmation. As I was informed by Judy (see comment below), PHYTO Re30 contains GreyVerse. Lucus Myer Cosmetics does not sell to the public. Rather, their ingredients are sold to different companies – like PHYTO.

PHYTO Re30 is the 1st finished product to contain GreyVerse (Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide 20). I'm sure other products will too, as time goes on.

Who Makes PHYTO RE 30

PHYTO Botanical Power is the name of the company. The Better Business Bureau tells us the company address is 301 Cottontail Ln Somerset, NJ 08873-1132. This address corresponds to Barrett Distribution Centers. Barrett Distribution may be where PHYTO cosmetics are shipped from.

PHYTO BBB Rating

The Better Business Bureau gave PHYTO Botanical Power a rating of C when this review was updated. See the BBB file for updates and more information.

Contact PHYTO Botanical Power

PHYTO Botanical Power customer service can be reached at 800-557-4986. Call M-F 9 am-5 pm.

How Much Does PHYTO RE 30 Cost?

A bottle of RE30 costs $58. Online, the price ranged from $40 to $60. A bottle will last you 1 month if you use it once per day. At $58/bottle, this comes to $696 per year.

Where To Buy PHYTO RE 30

RE 30 can be purchased directly from Phyto.com. Ulta Beauty has it too.

Here it is on Amazon also.

PHYTO RE30 Side Effects

I believe PHYTO RE30 is safe in the majority of people. Here are a few things to think about when using this product.

Start with less than recommended for the first week. This is to see how you respond. Triethanolamine has been associated with skin irritation.
Don't use it more than once per day.
If you are pregnant or nursing, speak to your doctor first.
Stop using the product at least 2 weeks before having surgery.

A dermatologist or esthetician may have additional insights.

PHYTO RE 30 FAQ

1 How Do You Use It?

Apply 8 sprays of RE30 to the head and massage into the roots. You can do this after shampooing or on dry hair. Do not rinse it off. Leave it on the scalp. Use once per day.

2 How Often Do You Use It?

PHYTO RE30 is to be used only once per day. Each bottle will last a month. Each bottle contains 1.69 fl. oz.

3 Does It Contain Sulfates?

The Phyto.com website tells us RE30 contains no sulfates, paraben, silicon, phthalates, petrochemicals, talc, or mineral oil. The product is also cruelty-free.

4 What's The Active Ingredient In PHYTO RE30?

I believe Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide 20 is the active ingredient. At least one published study on this substance shows it might reverse gray hair. See above for more on that investigation.

5 Does It Work Better With PHYTO Hair Vitamins?

The PHYTO company also makes a hair, skin, and nail supplement called PHYTO Phytophanere. The PHYTO Phytophanere supplement contains various foods providing a mixture of omega 3 and omega 6 fats along with vitamins A, B, C and E.

Does RE30 work better if you also take PHYTO Phytophanere? Your guess is as good as mine. There is no proof either way.

6. Can RE30 Be Used By Redheads?

Probably, but I'm not sure. Red hair contains pheomelanin, which looks slightly different from the darker melanin pigment we usually see in hair and skin. I am not sure if RE30 research involved redheads.

PHYTO RE30 vs. Hair Regeneres

Hair Regeneres by SeroVital is another anti-gray product that touts to restore hair to its natural color.

One big difference is the price. Hair Regeners cost more ($99/month). Also, Hair Regeneres is a two-product system – a serum and dietary supplement – and you have to purchase both. That's an advantage to PHYTO RE30 which costs less and is just one product.

What is interesting is both RE30 and Hair Regenerers contain ingredients Lucas Myer Cosmetics claims can reverse gray hair.

PHYTO RE 30 contains water, glycerin and Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide 20
Hair Regeneres contains water, glycerine Acetyl Hexapeptide-1

Lucas Myer Cosmetics calls these “Grayverse” and “Melitane” respectively.

So what's the difference between Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide 20 and Acetyl Hexapeptide-1? I have no idea. I don't know which would be better at reversing gray hair.

See the Hair Regeneres Review for more insights.

Lesser Expensive Options

Both of these cost less than RE30 and have the advantage of working faster. On the downside, these options only mask gray/white hair. Neither product restores natural melanin production to hair, as RE30 is claimed to do.

Even though the Control GX Shampoo is marketed to men, women can use it too. The video below gave some good tips on how to use it:

My Suggestions

If you want to try PHYTO RE30, I suggest only purchasing for 1-3 months. This should be long enough to see if it's working. If you don't see any changes in 3 months, I don't think longer time periods will make a difference. If it does work, do let me know.

Here it is on Amazon

PHTO RE30. Pro and Con

Here's a quick summary of what I liked and didn't like about RE30

Pro	Con
Company says research has been conducted	No before / after pictures posted on company website
Company has been around many years	Full clinical studies on product cannot be located
Product is cruelty-free	Company has a poor BBB rating
	Product is expensive
	Active ingredient seems to have limited proof

These are my opinions. Your thoughts may be different.

Does PHYTO RE30 Work?

If it really works, PHYTO RE30 would be a game-changer. But I'm not ready to call it that just yet. For now, I remain skeptical of PHYTO RE30. I am intrigued but I want to see better evidence -and before and after pictures -proving it provides the results they say.

Here It Is On Amazon if you want to see what others are saying about it