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Hello,

Thank you for putting time into this website. It has proved helpful. I had a few questions about finasteride.

1. Does exercise have any effect on increasing or decreasing side effects?>
2. Does exercise have any effect on how well it would work?
3. What do you think of taking iron supplements to get finasteride to work better? (I am iron deficient, but I am not sure if it is enough to effect my hair. Going to a doctor soon to get my iron checked again.) Link
4. Since I am 21, I have the best chances of finasteride to work. Do you see it work with almost everyone my age, especially at the very beginning of MPB? What about how common the side effects are at my age?
5. I am going to see a hair transplant doctor soon. If miniaturization is found and the doctor is not willing to give me a prescription for generic proscar, can you? (Not sure of the legality of this. I hope I am not putting you in a bad position.)

Thank you for your time.

1. No. Exercise won’t increase or decrease side effects if you happen to get them.
2. No. Exercise won’t mess with the effectiveness of finasteride.
3. Get your iron checked and be under the care of a good doctor. I don’t see any value in trying to make finasteride work better, though.
4. Finasteride works well in young men, but a few who are destined to develop advanced balding may find it doesn’t work as well. Side effects are possible, but it is a very slim chance. There are reports on the internet that are overblown.
5. You should do a miniaturization study and take pictures of various parts of your scalp. The presence of significant miniaturization will indicate genetic causes of hair loss.
6. You aren’t putting me in a bad position by just asking, but let’s get a telephone consultation (call 800-NEW-HAIR) and see what’s happening. Any doctor can write the prescription so once you know the diagnosis (miniaturization pictures taken by you and sent to me), you can start finasteride if it is in your best interest. Your family physician will often prescribe it for you.

i decided to quit propecia after a 1.5 years of medication. today its the 8th month without any dosage. after quitting from drug, i have lost my crown area hair but not much. i have still got no bald patches until this time. my maturing hairline, frontal area has no change but i feel a itchy feeling on my crown area. i feel like losing hair from there, other areas of my scalp feeling good; no dandruff etc.

my question is the propecia still blocks me from losing hair? im 22 now and im slowly losing hair from my crown area. its most likely to my maternal grandfather, maybe as same as him.

thanks

Stopping Propecia will cause you to lose any benefits you had from taking it. It sounds like the benefits were mainly in your crown. Please be aware that you will undergo the natural hair loss your genes have ‘planned’ for you. Do you really want to experience progressive hair loss? I warn men about short term thinking so it does appear that you have some time to think this through.

Dear Doctor,

I’ve bought a bottle of liquid Regaine and read the booklet, which said that the max. temp at which I can keep it is 25 C degrees. I figured that I should put it in the fridge then…so it spent about 14 hours in the fridge, when I googled for a booklet in English and they said that it has to be kept at 20-25 C (some say 15-25). I have no idea how cold the inside of a fridge is, but i guess its below 15 C…so, have I totaled 50 dollars?

I doubt you harmed the medication effectiveness, but I would follow the instructions on the bottle and not different language instructions you’ve found on the web (there might be slightly different formulations or packaging). My gut tells me you’re worrying about this too much.

The temperature warnings might just be safety notices so you’re not shocked if the medication’s container explodes under pressure created by fluctuating temperatures, though it also will likely contain some wiggle room on the exact temperature (which is why you’ve seen the range move so drastically). If you don’t know how cold it is in the refrigerator, get a thermometer so you don’t have to worry about this anymore.

(male) i use minoxodil & have for the past 5 yrs. for the past 2 weeks i got into the habit of using it once a day rather than twice. & for about a week i have noticed increased shedding. did i do anything that could potentially accelerate any hair loss? & will the shed hair grow back?

thank you

Based solely on the limited information you’ve given, the only thing that changed was applying minoxidil once a day from twice a day. Maybe there is a correlation, but perhaps there are other things you forgot to mention or do not know of. I wouldn’t expect your hair to be so dependent on the twice a day minoxidil application that you’d notice significant loss in just 2 weeks, but if you think that is the cause I would just start using it twice a day again. A simple solution! Twice a day is the recommended dose anyway. Unfortunately, I have no way of knowing if the shed hairs will grow back.

I have been taking generic Finasteride for nearly a year and a half with what I consider to be great results. My hair has always been thin, even from the age of 14 (as a barber once told me), and all the men on my mother’s side of the family are at Norwood 7 (Grandfather, two Uncles; father’s side isn’t as dramatic, there is thinning, but no classic MPB). The medication has brought back a considerable amount of volume back to my scalp, and I have been able to grow my hair out with excellent results. So for I have stabilized at Norwood 2; where I plan to keep it.

I am considering switching to generic Dutasteride, which as you know inhibits two types of the 5-alpha-reductase enzyme (as opposed to just just one type with Finasteride). My question is simply this, what are your thoughts on Dutasteride vs. Finasteride? Is there anything I should be aware of or put into consideration if I make this decision?

I found your blog on google and have been reading ever since. What you and the other Doctors do here and in the patient-care-room is incredible and I hope you have further success with your practice. Thank you for your time.

I have said this many times — if you are destined to be bald, there is no stopping it. Just slowing it down is the best you can hope for. There is no cure for hair loss! Propecia helps, but you need to be followed by a doctor to see what you are actually treating. Just because your family members are Norwood class 7 does not mean you are guaranteed to develop that same class 7 balding pattern.

Dutasteride will not cure or stop hair loss and it is not necessarily better than Propecia. It’s still yet to be FDA approved to treat hair loss, and I’m waiting for safety and dosing information. Do not take drastic actions due to fear. If the current approved treatments you’re using are working, why risk it? Become well informed and educated, but keep in mind that there is no substitute for seeing a physician for a medical issue.

Hi, i started going bald at 19, i’m now 23. I decided to start acting on this 7 months ago and have been on propecia and minoxidil ever since. I am seeing great results, but one thing that has been bugging me ever since i started going bald; My hair on the top of my head doesnt atually grow.

I have stopped smoking, exercise daily, and do not straighten my hair anymore. My scalp is in great condition (i use nizoral twice weekly) and it hasnt grown in over 3 years, yet my sides and back grow so fast. if finasteride is preventing DHT in my scalp, surely the hairs on top of my head should not stop growing?? any ideas?

I am doubting your comment about no growth of your hair on top for 3 years. If the entire top of your head is miniaturized, this could explain the problem, but without seeing you, I can not tell you what you have. You indicated you’re in the UK — and a contributing author to this blog, Dr. Bessam Farjo, is in the UK. You might want to visit him for an examination.

Propecia and minoxidil are great medications, but if you are going bald there is no stopping it 100%! The reason you are taking Propecia and minoxidil is so that it will help slow the balding process down, but the balding will continue probably at a slower rate in the end. Some patients respond well to Propecia and minoxidil , but it does not mean it “cured” their hair loss issue.

Hi,

I’m 31 years old and I’ve been using propecia since early 2007 and I’m still seeing mild to moderate frontal recession of my hairline. I just started using Rogaine foam 5% in the frontal and temporal areas of my hairline this weekend. The manufacturer does not recommend using rogaine in this area, only the vertex. My question for is could using Rogaine in the frontal and temporal region make things worse? In otherwords, do I have anything to lose by doing this? Also, are you aware of any studies on Rogaine being used for the frontal hairline and the temples? Thank you!

Other than the cost of the medication, using Rogaine on the front of your scalp will not harm you, provided that you use it in the proper manner. Keep in mind that using more minoxidil than indicated might lead to an increased risk of side effects (though in your case, it sounds like you just want to use it at the hairline and not all over the scalp). I’m not aware of minoxidil studies specifically in the frontal area.

The manufacturer has not proven value for frontal use, but that does not mean that it will 100% not work in the front of your scalp. It does tend to work the best in the crown, but if you apply Rogaine to the back of your hands, you’ll likely see increased growth there too.

hello doctor.
i had been using minoxidil 5% and got very good results. 18 months back i stopped using it due to scaling. by the time i got control over the scaling, i had lost much of the hair on the crown. my doctor told me to use minox 5% not only on the hair lost crown but also on the entire top of the head including frontal area where i was not having any hair loss. i used it as per he told and the result was, i lost hair from all over the top including frontal area due to itching. i couldnt see any good results after using minoxidil 10% for 1 year but lost my frontal hairs too. 2 months back i stopped using minoxidil 10%.

i am not having any itching sensation now..what should i do now? my frontal hair is receding 1 inch every two weeks, the crown area is more and more visible now. do i have to undergo any tests? i lose around 500 hairs/day. do i have to use minoxidil 5% again? if so..then do i have to apply it on the new hair loss area ie, frontal part? do i have to massage the lotion to skin? please do help me doctor..!! please…!!

Without seeing you I can not comment on the 500 hairs per day you are losing. But at that loss rate, you will be fairly bald in 2-3 years, if it is really true. I can’t give you advice about which medications to use, but if your doctor told you to lose something that caused hair loss, go back to that doctor and talk to him/her. If not, I would see an expert physician to get a diagnosis and then a treatment that works (perhaps you can find a doctor in your area at ISHRS.org).

Hey doc! I’m a longtime reader and follower of your blog and I highly trust your advice and recommendations. I want to thank you in advance for taking your time to provide your insight to my question. I’d first like to provide a short description of my hairloss observations and results from treatment:

I’m nearly 23 yrs of age and have been on Proscar daily (cut into quarters) since January 2006. The efficacy of the pill peaked by the time I turned 21 and so far, all its been doing is maintaining my existing hair. I’m more of a gradual diffuse thinner than a genetic balder. Ever since last year, my head has become rather itchy and I’ve always felt a sore burning spot right in the centre of my vertex. It became quite unbearable to the point where I shaved my entire head last November just to make it stop.

By December I started using Nizoral 2% and Head & Shoulders everyday (I currently use them every other day). Although some soreness is still present, it has subsided quite a bit and the itching and flaking isn’t as bad anymore. What’s interesting is that my hair has gone from relatively sparse last year to a lot more fuller and abundant this year. I believe that, from my observations, I’ve regrown perhaps 80% of previously lost hairs due to genetic balding. I’ve also noticed that, from continued use of Nizoral, Head & Shoulders and T-Gel plus Proscar for maintenance, I’ve seen individual hairs reverse in miniaturization (hairs with thicker roots and thinner ends)

Am I seeing things or could I be responding well to inflammatory shampoos? My hair is about 6 inches long and tends to get very oily overnight.

My other question is,
In my crown area, especially near the spot where I feel a sore/burning sensation more often than naught, my scalp produces thin hairs and although cosmetically it looks as if there’s no sign of genetic baldness present in that area, I would like to tackle this problem before it does become apparent. I was wondering if you would recommend using a lotion which contains copper peptides to compliment my regimen? I would rather not use minoxidil due to cost issues as I’m still a student.

Thanks again!

It takes at least 2 years to maximize the value of finasteride. That may explain part of your experience with hair regrowth. Also, there are some reports that ketoconazole (Nizoral) may help with treating hair loss, but the studies are limited. If you’re seeing these treatments work, that’s great!

There is been no proven benefits of copper peptides in the prevention of balding or regrowth of hair. That does not mean that it does not work, but it means to me that the value has not been proven scientifically. If you have used minoxidil and then you stop, it will cause a reversal of the benefits (if the drug produced value) and as hair that was lost is known to be minoxidil dependent, stopping the drug can cause hair loss.

Hi there, in the past 2 months I have noticed my hair thinning in my crown area. I am Caucasian male, 23 years old. Since then I ordered Propecia online (it’s not the generic kind) and have been using it for 3 weeks now. I did not go and see a doctor in person to get a prescription.

Now I am getting a little paranoid that my hair is falling out even more since I have been using Propecia. I feel like my hair is thinning all over. Could this just be a placebo effect and me just being overly anxious and paranoid? I mean is it safe to use Propecia or does it make your hair fall out if it is not needed or prescribed by the doctor? I do not have any of the side effects that are listed on their website. Could you please advise as to what to do? I just want to know that what I am taking is not harmful to my existing hair as I might have not needed Propecia in the first place but became paranoid that i was loosing hair in the crown area. Thank you.

The first question you should ask yourself is, “Am I sure I got real Propecia?” If you just bought a prescription medication from an online vendor without a doctor’s prescription or any verification, I wouldn’t necessarily put a whole lot of trust in it.

What I really want to know is, why are you treating yourself? You should never take a medication if it is not needed, and you should’ve been under a doctor’s care before treating yourself with prescription drugs. A doctor can tell you if the medication is right for you. You couldn’t really expect me to encourage or even condone your actions, could you? That being said, Propecia shedding is reported by some people.

Follow the many posts here on the drug Propecia (use the search), get the diagnosis of hair loss, find the presence of miniaturization, and on and on. I can not practice medicine on you over the internet and it sounds like you need to see a doctor.