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I searched for a bit to try and find if there was already an answer to this. I believe my hair is thnning, my parents deny my claim. I am an actor/mdoel so my looks are very important. Just recently I started to use Rogaine Foam.

1. If I don’t have thinning hair will it harm me?
2. I use it on damp hair and rub it all over the my scalp the blow dry 15mins later, is this proper?
3. I have only been using it once a day, should I do two? (Should I shower twice a day?)
4. Is there anything else I can do for faster and better result to thicker set of hair?

You should see a doctor to determine if you’re thinning. For example, I would be able to map out your hair for miniaturization and give you an idea of what is happening. Then I’d follow the measurements of any miniaturization and use drugs that are appropriate. If you are a model and your looks and livelihood are linked, why not approach your hair correctly by an expert?

To answer your questions:

1. No one should take any medication that they do not need.
2. The Rogaine website has application information. See their FAQ.
3. The proper dosing is twice a day to see the full benefits (once in the morning, once at night).
4. You can use something like Fullmore or Toppik.

Hello doctor. i been taking propecia for about 2 years its been working alright for hair loss however i always have had side effects from it like erectile dysfunction, headaches, stomach problems, all kinds of stuff. i don’t see any hair solution coming soon so i decided to stop taking this medication that is doing so much harm to my body. do you suggest to start rogaine or it wouldnt help since propecia is much more efficient? i’m 25 and i’m starting to give up on this battle

i cant believe nobody can find a solution to this horrible disease

I am not your doctor and you are asking for a medical opinion with only a limited amount of information supplied to me and no opportunity to examine you. I really can not help you without a direct examination and interview to get to know more about your medical history and experiences. If you have headaches and stomach problems (and “all kinds of stuff”) you might have something else going on, but you’re attributing it to the finasteride. I really don’t have a clue in your case, and that is why an exam is important.

If you’ve been taking Propecia, you hopefully have a prescription and should go back to your prescribing doctor with the question you posed to me.

Just a quick question, I am 23 years old and no one in my family is bald, uncles,cousins, grandparents, everyone has a full head of hair, and it is from both sides of the family. I have noticed for the past few years I have been going bald and this past year I have a peak and Im loosing my hair really quickly. I have tried nioxin and svenson products nothing seems to work.

What would be the reason, they said i do have MPB but I dont know where it could come from. And I do know my Father is my Father, LOL.

Cheers thanks

Sometimes, the gene is carried by many generations and not expressed. In your case, it is being expressed.

I’ve not seen hair regrowth from Nioxin, and I don’t even know what Svenson products you’re talking about. It’s not surprising those haven’t worked to regrow your hair, though. There are only 2 FDA approved products to treat hair loss — minoxidil and finasteride. At 23 years old, you should see a doctor and ask him/her about a prescription for finasteride (Propecia). I’ve seen that medication work wonders in men your age (and in older men… though the earlier the hair loss, the better it tends to work).

I’m an all around hairy guy, and I was just wondering is there any connection what so ever between loosing head hair and getting loads of chest,arm pit,upper leg and for arm hair. i mean I started getting a receding hair line around the same time i started getting loads of body hair! so is my body hair starving my head hair of nutrients???

…..and on that note, if I used lazer hair removal on my body would that help my head hair stay intact whats so ever??? Thanks

It is common to get more hair on the back of your body as you lose hair on the head… if you are so genetically inclined. Body hair develops as you age, and in some men the DHT effect causes you to lose your scalp hair around that same time. However, even if you used laser hair removal on your hairy back, you will still continue to lose your head hair. Your back hair (or any other hairy part of your body) isn’t killing off your head hair.

Dr. Rassman. Always a pleasure. I would be interested to know what Clinical Laser Unit you had in your office, and the treatment protocol you had your patients follow. For example were patients just using it whenever they happened to be in the office, or were they on a strict schedule of using the machine 3 times a week etc….

Myself and other LLLT advocates know that LLLT is a moderately effective treatment so long as it is used as directed, that being on average 3 times per week and longterm, not just several months.

It’s like applying minoxidil once, every other day, results if any would be minimal.

I believe the machine was a Revage 670, but I’m trying to get confirmation and will update this post if I discover the name or model is incorrect. As for actual use, I left the decision up to the patient, but recommended three applications a week. About half of those using it stuck to the 3 times a week schedule with no results seen by me. The laser was available in my office for over a year.

I’m using Minoxidil for eye brow hair loss. I just started. Can I expect to lose some eyebrows at first, and if so, for how long?

Minoxidil should not negatively impact the existing hair from the eyebrows.

Hi Dr. Rassman,

You may have gotten this question before… I just received an order of finasteride from 4rx.com. The drug is called Finotop-1 and is manufactured by Ind-Swfit. I tried to go to the manufacturers website to verify the validity of the drug and to read a little bit more about it, but I couldn’t find any information at all. I complained to 4rx.com and they assured me that it was legit and that all of their manufacturers are FDA approved. I guess I’m just concerned because I don’t really feel good about taking a med that I can’t be absolutely sure of. I suppose my question is whether or not you have heard of this specific med and if you could give me any advice.

Thanks a bunch for the help

First off, you ordered a prescription medication via the web from a site that obviously has no regard for the legal system. That’s a red flag for me. But from what I’ve learned about Ind-Swift, they are a large manufacturer of antibiotics in India. I visited both of their websites and wasn’t able to find anything about a finasteride product or anything called Finotop on either of them (indswiftltd.com and indswiftlabs.com). That doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t make this medication, as their sites could just not be updated. It just makes it that much harder to attempt to verify.

I have not heard of this Finotop brand name before, but a Google search reveals more people asking a question similar to the one you asked… and there doesn’t seem to be too much info on this one. There are better known generic finasteride tablets available if you’re concerned about what you’ve got, but perhaps you should try getting a doctor’s prescription for Proscar (legally available as generic) and cutting the 5mg pills into 4 pieces.

How much should I trust my dermatologist!?

I am a 24 year old male and over the past year I have noticed some subtle signs of hair loss (my hair began to feel slightly thinner when I ran my hands through it, initially just in the front, but then around the back/crown as well… although i’ve noticed that it still feels thicker around the sides and the nape of my neck). Additionally I noticed some very slight recession on the right side of my front hairline.

All these changes were only noticeable to me, and I have asked many friends and family to examine my hair closely and they all think I am paranoid and have a thick head of hair. However, I finally went to the dermatologist two weeks ago and he looked at my head for about 30 seconds with a magnifying glass and said that he did see some slight thinning at either side of the periphery of the crown (so not in the center of the crown area). Interestingly, this is not where I “felt” my hair thinning. He prescribed propecia, and I have started taking it. However, I asked him several questions about what extent of hair loss I should expect should I choose not to take the drug and all I got from him was that I could expect “further thinning” over the “next 20 years”… he did not mention miniaturization mapping as an option and when I asked about heredity he said that it wouldn’t really tell me all that much to look at other males in my family. Anyway, I was wondering if there was any way I could clarify this further… how much hair loss should I expect given the subtle thinning at my age and my family history??

There is little balding in my family as both of my grandfathers died with full heads of hair… my mom has five brothers, only one of whom has any significant hair loss and he is over 60 and the hair loss occurred later in life; my father’s hair has receded a bit and thinned over time, but he is now in his mid 50s and I would say he is a class II/III with some slight thinning on top and (very slight) around the crown, but still with a good head of hair and no one would consider him bald… in addition, he has a brother is in his 60s and has a full head of hair.

Anyway, I was just wondering if from this information there was any way to make a guess at my future hair loss pattern/rate? I will continue to take the propecia, but is it worth getting a second opinion?

Sadly, not many physicians seem to know of miniaturization studies, as I often write about here. Or if they do know of them, they don’t provide it as a service to their patients. One of the reasons I created a guide to mapping your own scalp is so that you will be empowered to evaluate your own miniaturization. And while a doctor may not call it a “miniaturization study”, if they look at your hair under a microscope it is essentially what they are doing. The key is to have this study done annually (or every 6 months or so) and compare the results so you can see where your hair loss is going or if any treatments are working.

You were obviously concerned enough to seek the advice of your family member and a doctor. If both you and your doctor believe there is some early thinning (miniaturization), Propecia may be a good starting point. I can’t tell you who to trust and not to trust. You need to make that decision on your own and if you still cannot decide (maybe from your paranoia), seek a second opinion from another doctor who may give you a better and more believable opinion.

I have a question about the coating on proscar tablets.

If I were to quarter a proscar tablet would it affect the pills absorbtion into my system in a negative way, additionally, would the ingredients be a stomach irritant without the coating? I had wondered if it might be better to crush a proscar tablet into powder and then weigh the powder to one millagram and place it inside a gell capsule.Thank you for your time and consideration

You sound creative and I guess you can try your crushed method. The best way, of course, is the drug Propecia which is pre-measured into 1mg finasteride that you should take daily to treat hair loss. Everything else is a substitute for the best way to take the drug.

I’ve really got no idea about stomach irritation without the coating. If I had to guess, I’d say the coating is there to make the pill easier to handle. If women touch a broken finasteride tablet (particularly without the coating), it could lead to problems with pregnancy and such. Just one of the reasons finasteride is not indicated for women.

Hi your advice would be greatly appreciated. Cant beleive this site if free access.

I had extremely thick hair always had. Just over a year ago my hair started falling out to the extent that I can now see slight parts of my scalp (front and side)but my hair which falls out are still very thick. My scalp is very itchy and I always get dandruff frequently. Majority of my hair has turned wite I am only 28!! which my hair dresser says is a good sign that you will not go bald as white hair is a sign of healthy scalp?? Is this correct?

What medications would you suggest to either reverse the process or stop it from happening? Your help you be very much helpful.

Having white hair or gray hair at an early age just means that you have white hair or gray hair at an early age. It does not mean you will not go bald and it is neither good nor bad. Its just your genetics. Likewise, having an itchy or dry scalp just means your have itchy or dry scalp. It has nothing to do with hair loss or hair growth.

Maybe your hair dresser wants a bigger tip by making you feel better about your hair, but his/her expertise seems lacking on these subjects.