Hi:

I am a 30 year old male that started taking Propecia 10 years ago. For almost that entire time, I have been very happy with the results. However, starting just 6 months ago, I have noticed a considerable amount of daily shedding, especially in the shower. I have also noticed a great deal more of recession in the hairline. To help combat this, I have started applying Rogaine Foam, and taking Procerin tablets regularly.

I am sure I will have to wait a little longer to see if the added products help combat the shedding, but my question to you, is should I increase the Propecia dosage as well? Right now I am only taking 1mg. Hair Loss is common in my family, as my two older brothers are almost completely bald. I’d like to do what I can to avoid ending up there myself. If you could share your initial thoughts with me, I’d appreciate it.

Thanks

The 1mg dose recommendation is across the board, but it might be worth a try at 2mg as more and more doctors are now trying a slightly higher dose. Double check with your prescribing physician, but if you do not have side effects, go for it.

We really do not know how finasteride will alter the long term (15+ year) balding pattern. We are hopeful that it will slow the balding down, but the real question is, “Will you still eventually wind up at your final hair loss pattern?” Propecia has been on the market only about 12 years, so we don’t really have the experience over a 20 year time period.

Ester-C has greatly reduced the amount of hair that I naturally shed. I have tried this three times and have experienced the same results. There are several people that have witnessed my results. Shedding has been reduced by approximately 80%. I also take Avodart, but it is the Ester-C that has had this effect. I haven’t noticed any increase in actual hair growth from Ester-C. I just seems to make the hair stay in the follicle better. To sum it up, by taking Ester-C my hair would survive a pull test far better. This is factual information and could easily be proven.

Thanks

I am unfamiliar with the connection of vitamin C to hair loss prevention or increasing the strength of your hair while pulling on it. Maybe the use of Avodart (dutasteride) is somehow potentiated by it, but that is like playing roulette and any guess is as good as another one.

Hello,

I am 25 years old and have a gradually receding hairline around the temples and thinning hair for about the past two years, but I’ve been wary of getting propecia because of the health risks, and I thought about Rogaine Foam, but I heard that it it smelled and led to shedding, among other things. Since I’m trying to hang on to everything I have left, I didn’t want to take the risk of incurring significant shedding with Rogaine, as well as no promise I’d grow any hair back around my temples or forehead, so I did nothing but occasionally browse message boards until I came across information on Revita. It seemed like just what I was looking for; a shampoo that would at least reduce hair loss/thining. Well, I started using Revita about 5 weeks ago, and the first time I used it, leaving it on my hair for 2.5 minutes, then approx. 4 minutes, and my hair seemed a little thinner, but shinier. The next day I got a haircut so my hair was a little shorter and I continued using Revita 5-6 days a week, for the prescribed times, and I’ve noticed I’ve shed a couple 1-4 hairs just about every time I use it. This has been exceedingly disturbing, but I’m not sure if it’s just something that has to happen before it starts working better . . . I don’t know.

My theory – the reason I’m still using it – is that the hairs that are shedding are the ones closet to my forehead and temples and these are the real light hairs that already seemed on the verge of falling off. So I’m thinking that maybe just keeping the shampoo in the hair for so long and then rinsing it out is causing the weaker hairs to come off b/c of the contact. I’m hoping it’s just the weak hairs that will shed and the healthier hairs will become even healthier. But so far, I’ve seen none of the benefits promised by the company.

Thank you very much

I need to make this very, very clear to everyone — there is no shampoo currently available on the market that can regrow your hair. None!

This Revita product contains ketoconazole, which is a volumizer and can increase the hair shaft diameter by about 7%. This increase in shaft diameter may look like you have more hair and in fact, considering that fullness is a result of numbers and thickness of hair, you will have more hair that produces more fullness. Any shampoo that uses ketoconazole will have the same effect. By keeping it on for a few minutes before washing it off, the ketoconazole probably does a better job with thickening the hair shaft.

For those keeping score, ketoconazole is the active ingredient in Nizoral, and is a commonly used antifungal medication and dandruff treatment.

Dear Doctor ,

i am thinking of buying nanominox fms , a product which combines minoxidil sulfate , finasteride and Ketoconazole. Do you think it is safe to use this topical solution on a daily basis? I would appreciate, if you could help me on that issue.

I have no experience with the combination of medications in Nanominox FMS. I am skeptical with it, because finasteride has not been shown to work through the skin. I suspect the FDA would, have a problem with any claims of a hair loss treatment from the manufacturer in the use of finasteride as a topical. Minoxidil is well known as a FDA approved topical treatment, and ketoconazole is a good antifungal medication that seems to make hair appear thicker. More info at their site. With regard to safety, your guess is as good as mine.

From the article:

The company’s product, called LashFood, looks like regular eyeliner, but it contains some ingredients that you might expect to find in a nutritional supplement, including the vitamin biotin, the amino acid arginine, extract of irises (the flowers, not the eye parts) and a blend of 15 herbs. Biotin and arginine are widely marketed as vital nutrients for hair growth.

Read the full review at the Los Angeles Times.

Basically, what I get from the review is that this LashFood is marketed as the alternative to the newly FDA approved Latisse (bimatoprost)… but it’s just more quackery. It doesn’t contain the proven drug that works for the eyelash growth. Now I have no personal experience or any basis to determine the value of this product, so please read that full review and draw your own conclusions.

There will always be someone marketing a “natural alternative” to the latest FDA approved prescription drugs. Do they work as claimed? I guess folks will have to spend some money to find out for themselves, because no matter how many online reviews people read (from reliable sources, even), many will still have that “What if…” thought in the back of their heads.