Why So Adamant About 1mg Finasteride Daily?

Hi Dr. Rassman,

Dr. Jerry Cooley in North Carolina has said that taking Propecia three times a week is a practical dosage, and that most of his patients are on that dosage with good results. I’ve read a lot of your responses about reducing Propecia dosage and you are very adamant about the 1 mg/1 pill a day dosage and not any less.

I don’t want to put you in a tough position but in all fairness, it seems quite reasonable to think that Dr. Cooley is making a valid point. Why not jump on the wagon and start advocating the same thing? The more and more I think about it, the more and more it seems like Merck has got you secretly locked in to a deal with them. Frankly, Dr Cooley has made a believer out of me. Even my doctor in Korea has me on Propecia four times a week and he told me that three times a week is also good. I have some minor side effects, not of the sexual nature but for me it’s the dark circles. I’m curious to see if going on 3mg a week EOD will help get rid of my problem. And if so, would you care to know about it?

Here is the link to what I read: Regrowhair.com

Thank you kindly

Dear conspiracy theorists all over the internet:

I advise and treat my patients based on standard medical practices and recommendations. I have no loyalties to Merck, other drug companies, or bandwagons. In fact, Merck probably does not like me so much, because I have no problem telling patients and readers of this site about the generic finasteride that ends up costing about $70 a year, instead of $90 a month for the name brand.

Our goal here on BaldingBlog, as well as in our private practice, is to empower patients with education. If you search enough through this site, you can see that we have been pretty consistent with this over the years.

Last time I checked, the standard recommended dose of finasteride for treating androgenic alopecia is 1mg a day. I realize some doctors prescribe different doses to their patients and rightfully so (because they have a medical license to treat their patients). I also realize there have been studies that support taking less than 1mg finasteride a day. In fact, some of my patients do take less than 1mg of finasteride a day… and *gasp* some of my patients take more than 1mg of finasteride a day. Each patient is unique and with different circumstances.

In general for most of my patients, I prescribe 1mg finasteride a day because as I said, that is the general recommended dose for androgenic alopecia supported by research.

Anyone interested in treating their hair loss needs to see their doctor, discuss treatment options and dosing of medications, and go by what their doctor recommends. I am only here on this site to give general information, not medical advice. You have every right to agree or disagree with my views, but this is my site and these are my views.