Would Birth Control Pills Effect Baldness in Men?
This is a purely hypothetical question. Would a man taking female birth control pills have any effect on male pattern baldness? What would be the effects on DHT, Testosterone, and hair health. Thanks!
The following post is by UK-based physician Dr. Bessam Farjo:
 Written by:  Dr Bessam Farjo United Kingdom |
Female birth control or contraceptive pills are most often a combination of synthetic forms of the female hormones, estrogen and progesterone. With regards to effect on men’s hair you may get a decrease in facial and body hair in terms of thickness and growth, although male-pattern baldness may improve somewhat or at least stabilises in a similar vein to finasteride for example. We see this effect most commonly in our practice when dealing with male to female transgender patients who use similar hormones to achieve their transformation.
However, these medications may cause a number of adverse effects in men similar to those seen with the use of other female hormones. You may experience changes in the appearance and function sex organs. Risks may include erectile dysfunction, decreased libido and lowered sperm count. Some men may also develop gynecomastia (man boobs). There may be a negative effect of general body muscle mass. In addition, the bones may develop osteoporosis (brittleness). There are other potential general health side effects of course making this an unreasonable approach to control male pattern baldness.
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Learn more about the author of this article, Dr. Bessam Farjo, on his BaldingBlog profile or at his website.
The side effects mentioned above are associated with finasteride, which is occasionally used to treat transgenders for hormone supplementation as well.
There is a relation between an androgen blocker and a using a female synthetic hormone but I would hardly class finasteride as the same as introducing a new hormone into the male body.
Lowering conversion to DHT will prevent the androgenic competition for receptor sites but it does not automatically raise a mans estrogen or progestin count. Hence the fact that finasteride doesn’t show these side effects in many men.