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Hi Dr

I just want to check with you on treatments other than Propecia and Minoxidil. I am 28 this years and have tried Laser, herbal treatment, proscar, minoxidil and even acupuncture on the scalp. Currently i am on proscar, minoxidil and Nizoral cream and still i am losing hair, is there any other way i can try to get some of my hair back. I am desperate now and hair transplant is my last resort. What do you think of Avodart , i am worried of the side effect like sterility that might happen. Please advise.Thanks

Even drugs such as Propecia (finasteride) and minoxidil have limitations, as they will only slow the process down or grow some hair. Nizoral (ketoconazole) is an antifungal treatment and hasn’t been proven to my satisfaction to treat hair loss. I do not recommend Avodart (dutasteride) until more studies on safety are completed and can be reviewed.

I understand you are desperate, but you need to educate yourself and make intelligent choices. Remember, there is no cure for hair loss. You now belong to millions of men and women out there that have paid lots of money and time and effort to find such a cure with no luck, only to contribute to the economy of capitalism. I don’t know enough about your history (how long you’ve been taking the medications, your degree of hair loss, etc.) to provide much help here.

I come across this web site. Please mention your remarks about the various products related to hair. Especially an oil called anti-graying. Can gray hairs be prevented through topical oil applications and reversed? Your general opinion about all the hair loss products in that website is needed for me. Because without your advise Iam not going to follow any treatment relating to hair. Unlike all the other herbal remedies they didn’t use Saw palmetto, which you normally wont recommend, that’s why this site will be of some interest to you.

Oh boy. Herbal balding remedies simply do not work as claimed. That should be the end of it, right? You are asking me as a resource to recommend a herbal product that works for graying or hair loss. Just like there is no herbal remedy to change the color of your eyes or to make you taller or to make your penis longer/larger, there is no herbal remedy to reverse graying of hairs or balding. By the way, if anyone out there thinks there is an herbal remedy to make your penis longer, that is another issue for another forum.

Gray hairs come about due to genetic predisposition. There is no topical oil that reverse your color permanently. If this oil does anything, it probably colors your hair.

Hello Doctor

could shampoo mixing cause problems ? . I would like to wash a first hand with a cheap shampoo before applying my medicated shampoo ( for seb derm )

Thank you

No, it shouldn’t cause any problems. That is, unless you use a baking soda shampoo followed by a vinegar shampoo… causing a volcano on your head. Sorry, bad joke. Wouldn’t the medicated shampoo by itself be fine though?

I have heard Biotin can aid in hair growth. Is this true? If so what daily dosage do you recommend?

I do not believe that biotin can aid hair growth, but I’m sure I’ll get plenty of emails or comments from people disagreeing with me. There’s a lot of websites out there that go on and on about the virtues of taking biotin for hair growth, but I’ve yet to see a credible site that isn’t pushing supplements for sale talk up those virtues.

I have just started balding and I’ve just found out about DHT and hormones affecting hair loss. What can I do to remove DHT in my scalp without shampoos specifically for hair loss? Will Pine Tar shampoo work?

The cause of hair loss in men is almost always due to genetic causes, and it is known as male pattern baldness (MPB) or androgenic alopecia (AGA). Scientists have discovered that genetic balding is linked to a hormone called dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a byproduct of testosterone. While everybody (men and women, balding and non-balding) has DHT, it is the men who have the genetic trait of balding that will lose hair in a specific “male pattern”… and DHT must be present. The hair follicle makes DHT. It may have nothing to do with DHT blood levels, but you must have the genetic predisposition for hair loss.

There are medications, such as Propecia, which block the impact of DHT on the hair follicle and it may stop or reverse the balding process, but it is not a cure. To date, there is no cure for hair loss. Pine tar shampoo won’t stop, slow down, or reverse genetic hair loss.

Hi Dr. Rass. I am a every day visitor of this web site. You already mentioned about Viviscal in your site. But please go thru this site. Viviscal MAN

They have mentioned about something called “flax seed” which is a DHT blocker. Is it true?

Flax seed has not been proven to be a DHT blocker. There was a very small pilot study I read about from a few years back that consisted of 10 men that took 250mg of flax lignan extract in Thailand over the course of half a year, and that seems to be what people are basing this assumption on. Any hint of success, no matter how small, seems to be get blown out of proportion and becomes the next “ingredient of the day” in these hair products.

Sorry, but watching the hair of ten men over six months is not enough for me to be convinced. If there are more recent studies (preferably peer-reviewed), I’d love to see them.

Great web site. I’ve looked on from time to time but never saw this question asked. Can a dap of olive oil be used to condition hair before or after blow drying? It wound seem like a inexpensive and natural way to condition ones hair rather than using something like Neutrogener triple moisture. Any thoughts?

Olive oil has been used as a hair conditioner and while I’ve got no personal experience with it, I see no danger in trying it. Here’s a site that has a recipe (though I just found it via Google and make no claims as to how well it works) — Care2.com.

There was a wallstreet journal article talking about the efficacy of the laser comb. It said that it works. Do you think there’s any evidence to support this? Here is the link.

By the way your site has been a big help. I’ve been balding since senior year in high school and am now twenty years old. Your site is the only site I have found that doesn’t seem to be pushing or selling anything, thank you.

The Wall Street Journal really didn’t conduct any research on their own to determine efficacy, but just quotes the study provided by Lexington (makers of the LaserComb). I guess if you took a vote from experts in the field, you could count my vote as thumbs down towards these hair lasers. I conducted a study on some of my patients for over a year when I had the large hair laser machines in my office (and offered their use free of charge to my surgical patients). I did not see any value on those using the hair laser, and honestly, it seemed like a waste of time for patients that don’t have time to waste.

Thanks for your kind words about this site. We work hard to make it what it is.

What product will you recommend for hair thickening and to stop hair-loss. When do you think Follica will be ready with the miracle drug?

For hair thickening, there are a variety of products like volumizing shampoos and protein fibers that you can apply to your hair. I don’t have any specific recommendation for these, as they’re over the counter and you can try them as you like. Some work better than others to give the illusion of thicker hair, but none of them will stop hair loss.

As for information on Follica, please contact the company (here is their Consumer Inquiries form). I have no insider information.

Dr. Thank you for this informative site.D o you have any thoughts on using minoxidil other than Rogaine. DS Labs has there own formula DNC and a brand new formula DNC-L for advanced stages of balding. I don’t know if this company can be trusted due to it’s claims the their shampoo Revita will stop hair loss. It’s website is impressive and I do like the shampoo.

If you like the shampoo and it seems to be working for you, I’d keep using it. Claims on preventing hair loss may be in violation of permitted language from an FDA perspective if the formulation impacts the effectiveness of the minoxidil in their product. I believe if you want minoxidil, get it the generic way. If you want the minoxidil foam, you’ll have to get the name brand stuff. As for this lotion… well, it’s up to you. The combo products, without proper studies, just don’t do it for me. That kind of sums up my opinion.

I think it is easier to build a great website than it is to create a product that actually slows, stops, or reverses hair loss.