June 6 2005, 7:34 pm PT | Posted in: Age + Drugs
Hi, My son, who is 23, has very thin hair on top of his head and a high forehead. He tried avacore and it’s hard to say if it helped or not. He has very thick hair on the sides-we are prone to high foreheads in our family but the thin hair on top of his head is distressing him (which I’m sure doesn’t help). Is there someone he can see to access his problem-we live in New Jersey and are a train ride from Manhattan. Thanks so much for your help.
Is your son balding now? I would guess from what you are describing is most probably genetic hair loss. Avacor is overpriced and has minoxidil as its active component; I would have been surprised if it would have worked. The marketers of Avacor do a hell of a job promoting the ‘benefits’ of their product and as a result, they have one of the most popular sales efforts ever and it appears to be priced over 10 times that of minoxidil. Propecia, which is made by Merck (pharmaceutical company), is under FDA and FCC regulation so Merck can not promote claims that are ill defined or vague. In a 23 year old male, genetic hair loss comes from the ‘workings’ of DHT on the growth center of the hair follicle. Propecia is the only substance that has been clearly documented to block the effects of DHT on the hair follicle. It has documented benefits on retarding, stopping or reversing hair loss. A competent doctor would make the diagnosis and appropriately manage the problem for you. To answer your request for a doctor on the east coast, I would recommend Dr. Robert Bernstein at 201-585-1115, who has offices in Fort Lee NJ and Manhattan NY. He is as good as they come and I would not hesitate to have my son treated by him.
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Balding Forum
Saw palmetto blocks dht well. Comes from saw palmetto berries. Similiar to propecia but no side effects. The FDA is a corrupt organization.
They dont want any competition for thier drugs. Its all about money. Natural remedies will always be shot down so they sell more drugs!
The comment re Saw Palmetto is suspect at best.
Points:
1) Saw Palmetto can have side effects such as loss of libido and limp noodle syndrome.
2) As a famous medical practitioner once remarked, “anything with proven efficacy has side effects”.
3) Saw Palmetto has never been shown to grow hair.
4) Conspiracy theories are generally quite tiring. Go grow some Saw Palmetto berries on the grassy knoll. You’re doing others here a disservice.
[Editor's Note: Comments edited to remove personal attacks. If it happens again, you will be banned from posting further.]
The comment is not suspect. Saw palmetto is one of the main ingredients in avacor. I never said it grows hair I said it blocks DHT which is known to cause hair loss. How is it that I am doing people a disservice. Why would I waste my time. If drug companies didnt care about money then why do they spend so much on advertising. Id rather try an inexpensive herb than take a drug that might give me a limp prick.
One other thing mypal. I have suffered hair loss also. I have tried every product since 1990 to stop it. I finally found something that stopped it. I like to help people by sharing information FREE of charge. You however are doing people a disservice by triing to tell them not to bother triing something that might help them. I didnt just read about saw palmetto somewhere and it worked for me. I dont apprieciate you insinuating that I would try to mislead people that have the same affliction as I did. I hope that some people will at least look into it.
Wow…nice rant. Nice personal attack too. Too bad it was edited out.
A few points:
1) Avacor is overpriced minoxidil and a borderline scam. Who’s holding this snakeoil up as the standard?
2) Correct, you didn’t say it grew hair. However, to claim you didn’t mean that when you stated “similar to Propecia” which is a product proven to both stop hair loss and in some cases regrow hair is disingenuous at best.
3) You’re doing a disservice by spreading falsehood, innuendo, and unproven theories.
4) Why would you waste your time? Nothing better to do maybe?
5) The FDA doesn’t make any money from Propecia or any other drug for that matter. They’re a regulatory body. Merck makes Propecia.
6) In a capitalist system the first rule is to make a profit. Who said making money was bad? Advertising is simply a way to get the word out. Maybe Cuba would be more to your liking.
7) I’d read up on Saw Palmetto’s side effects before claiming it’s free from them.
9) Being an optimist, I’ll assume the best and that your motives are not mean spirited. However, because your statements are opinions presented as fact, I thought it appropriate to point this out to less knowledgeable readers less they go down a path they might regret.
Saw Palmetto Herb Extract Benefits
Of the many benefits associated with Saw Palmetto, treating BPH is obviously the most significant. Below are some health benefits of Saw Palmetto.
Saw Palmetto inhibits testosterone action on the prostate, thus is used widely for BPH treatment
Saw Palmetto also prevents binding of DHT to androgen receptors, hence helps with hair loss
It inhibits androgen and estrogen receptor activity and helps both men and women to balance hormones
Saw Palmetto herb helps treat bladder inflammation and helps with urinary flow
Women also use Saw Palmetto herb to stimulate breast enlargement and also to treat uterine irritability.
Saw Palmetto is also used to treat impotence, frigidity, and also used as an aphrodisiac
Some new evidence shows that Saw Palmetto may also help with thyroid deficiencies
Saw Palmetto is used to clear chest congestion, treat coughs, asthma, and bronchitis
Saw Palmetto Side Effects
There are no documented significant side effects of using Saw palmetto. However, it lacks conclusive research documenting its long term side effects. If you have any concerns, the best thing to do is to consult your doctor before using Saw Palmetto herb extracts.
Generally, many men over the age of 50 experience BPH to some extent, and hence supplementing Saw Palmetto can be very beneficial. The recommended dosage is at least 160mg per day - usually in the ranges of 160 to 320mg per day is sufficient.
LOL…last response to you.
Good to see you’re capable of cutting and pasting a self serving description off a site that sells “alternative” herbs, etc. When you are able to attach links to real studies that show real results such as have been shown with both minoxidil and finasteride (as well as dutasteride) you might have a shred of credibility. Until then, you have none.
Perhaps you should give it up - you really are seriously outgunned.
That’s an interesting discussion. I thought I would write because of an experience my brother had while taking saw pametto. Because he heard there were possible sexual side affects with propeca he wanted to go with something natural. He got some pametto at GNC in hopes of helping his thinning hair. Well two years later he has almost no hair left and is much worse than when he began. Seems it didn’t help him at all.
I wouldnt take any advice from this guy.
Which guy?
Hey, im am 21 years. I recently noticed my hair thining just in the front about a year ago. My scalp has always been very itchy for about 2 years now and cant be from the cause of dandruff because i have tried shampoos such as head and shoulders and nizoral. My scalp seems still to be vey itchy in the front. I’ve been taking propecia for 5 months now and havent noticed anything. The doctor also gave me clobetasol which is for itchy scalp, which didnt work. Should i continue taking propecia or try somthin else like follicare? Have you heard any good new about rogain foam? Do you think the itchy scalp is the main cause.
^^i got the exact same shit as you man. seeing a derm soon. i dont see wut the cause is.
Hi! I just wanted to add to the heated debate above, just to say I have been using saw palmetto for just under a month and have noticed new hair growing on the front of my head! I dont want to get anyones hopes up yet, however Im quite excited by the results so far in this short space of time.