Hair Loss Product Warning Labels

Why do hair loss products say “do not use if you have no family history of hair loss”? By using these products if you don’t have a history of hair loss cause one to start losing hair? Please answer this question instead of telling me to get a miniaturization done or to use Propecia.

I do not know the reason why they have the warning label you mention, nor do I even know what product you are referring to. If you are concerned, you can call or write the manufacturer and find out. Or perhaps you can try the product and test your hypothesis.

I often advise people who are concerned or worried about their hair loss to at least get a screening for miniaturization of their scalp hair, because you need to know WHAT you have BEFORE you treat it. Blindly buying hair growth products would be a waste of your money if you don’t know the cause of your hair loss or the degree of hair loss that is actually present. Likewise, blindly taking any of these products may leave you ‘not knowing’ if they are actually working. The same is true for taking Propecia or minoxidil when you do have androgenic hair loss because it could mean that you would also be throwing your money away if it does not work on you. This is why I recommend that miniaturization tests are done to grade the hair loss (if you have it) and then measure it (as it responds or does not respond to whatever you are treating it with) over the time that the treatment is being used. If it seems like I do make this recommendation too often on this blog site, well, that’s just what good medicine and good science is about and this is ‘my’ personal blog site and the way I like to run it. I try like hell to focus on objective things and I am not emotional about products that ‘claim’ but can not ‘prove’ value. This is why this site has become very successful in just a year.

For the record, the decision to take Propecia or any drug should be a decision made between the patient and his doctor. If I seem to advocate the efficacy of Propecia, it is due to the fact that it is the only FDA approved and well studied medication that has been shown to grow hair or slow down androgenic hair loss with any reasonable predictability. I am not a spokesperson for Propecia (nor do I have any financial interest in the success of Propecia). As a medical doctor, I base my medical opinion on safe and ethical medications and I require that all claims and issues of safety and effectiveness meet FDA approved guidelines.