Does Rogaine Work Better for Coarser, Darker Hair?

Hi Doctor Rassman,

I’m 28 and have had very fine/curly blond hair my whole life. I’ve never had to do a terrific amount of shaving and have very little body hair. My maternal grandfather was bald from a fairly young age. My younger brother (3 yrs younger) has darker, thicker hair and had to shave whilst in high school – he (now 25) has lost a lot of hair.

My hair began to thin out a lot starting about 3 yrs ago – I started finasteride about 9 months ago – it seems to have stabilized my loss and slightly thickened up the hairs I had.

That said, I’ve been studying pretty intensely lately, and have noticed the top/back of my head seems thinner. I was thinking of rogaine but am rather hesitant.

Do you typically see the patients get a shed on rogaine if they already had one on propecia about six months earlier?

Also: There are internet rumor that rogaine works better for coarser darker hair, and I’ve also read comments from people who had their hair shed with rogaine but not grow back – My hair has always been very fragile blond and fine, does this make it more vulnerable to a rogaine shed and the possibility of not growing back?

Thank you in advance for answering!

I don’t know of any correlation between Propecia and Rogaine shedding, but stress (like intense studying may bring) could bring on more hair loss. You can stick with just Propecia or give Rogaine a try, as it does tend to work best in the crown area that you’re describing. The shedding is pretty rare, though (see here).

I do believe that minoxidil works better on coarse hair from a visual point of view, but not from a pharmacological point of view. I say this because a 20% increase in thickness in a coarse hair may be equal to the total amount of bulk of doubling the thickness of fine hair, making it easier to see. Remember the pi R squared math formula means that small increases in the diameter of a circle will increase the area of that circle (or in this case, hair). Go to math.com or mathwarehouse.com to review the math formulas from a hands-on point of view.