Alpecin shampoo

[Swanson]

Is there any place where you can buy this in the U.S.?

And has anyone noticed any benefits using this shampoo?

 

[hairwayorthehighway]

Im from the UK and I've been using it for around a month now. I use it once a day or sometimes skip it when using Nizarol. When I use Alpecin it makes my hair stand up so to speak - which as it's short at the moment isn't what I'm looking for. I've read stories that caffeine is good for stimulating hair-regrowth. I think my crown area has ever so slightly improved since the last time I shaved it when the hairs there seemed alot more sparse. This could be just a trick of the eye or attributable to nizoral but it's the perception I have. It says on the back "prevents hereditary hairloss" - but I take that with a pinch of salt.

 

[metropolis]

[...] I've read stories that caffeine is good for stimulating hair-regrowth. [...]

Interesting. But it shouldn't be, right? I mean, caffeine is a powerful vasoconstrictor, so it shouldn't do much good - minoxidil, by the contrary, is a vasodilator.

 

[toocoolforhair]

What about washing your hair with coffee?

 

[hairwayorthehighway]

[...] I've read stories that caffeine is good for stimulating hair-regrowth. [...]

Interesting. But it shouldn't be, right? I mean, caffeine is a powerful vasoconstrictor, so it shouldn't do much good - minoxidil, by the contrary, is a vasodilator.

http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/jour ... 1&SRETRY=0


I am not sure of the method through which it works, but it seems to suggest it is a weaker version of what Minoxidil does and that it works differently topically than it would systemically. I take it anyway and hope for the best, but I know it is minor in the arsenal against male pattern baldness.

 

[TEDDYRUXPIN]

[...] I've read stories that caffeine is good for stimulating hair-regrowth. [...]

Interesting. But it shouldn't be, right? I mean, caffeine is a powerful vasoconstrictor, so it shouldn't do much good - minoxidil, by the contrary, is a vasodilator.

Sorry. Had to be rephrased. Understand why you are all worried.

It is not recommended that you apply minoxidil straight away after using alpecin shampoo. It recommended that you wait at least 40 minutes due to the shampoo constricting the skin. It will prevent the maximum absorption of minoxidil into the skin.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1848 ... d_RVDocSum
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7606 ... d_RVDocSum

Alpecin [caffeine] is a vasoconstrictor but its main effects come from stimulating hair growth.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1807 ... ltsPanel.P
ubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1739 ... d_RVDocSum
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/jour ... 1&SRETRY=0

This is how minoxidil works:
http://www.fasebj.org/cgi/reprint/22/6/1725

Just to say, majority of the work carried out on caffeine is based on in vitro or in vivo work on the mus musculus (laboratory mice) and as a doctor and a research scientist, this will not always be the case in humans.

Sometimes you have to take things like a pinch of salt and face value. Use it if you wish. If it works for you. Great.

 

[brentx]

If you are using minoxidil, it is recommended not to use alpecin shampoo. Alpecin shampoo will reduce the effectiveness of minoxidil due to the above reason.

Have you got a source for this recommendation?

 

[mj9]

If you are using minoxidil, it is recommended not to use alpecin shampoo. Alpecin shampoo will reduce the effectiveness of minoxidil due to the above reason.

Have you got a source for this recommendation?

Yes where are you getting this from?

 

[somone uk]

minoxidil works because it's a potassium channel activator, not because it's a blood dilator
i remember been told that the NO donor theory was debunked because other NO donors did not help regrow hair

 

[billythekid]

i have used it in the past. it stopped shedding.

i'm sure it also contains zinc, so that could be doing all the work.

i stopped using it because i didn't get any regrowth and wasn't sure that i was maintaining. which is a bit much to expect from a shampoo, i know.

i'm going to give nano a shot.

 

[brentx]

minoxidil works because it's a potassium channel activator, not because it's a blood dilator
i remember been told that the NO donor theory was debunked because other NO donors did not help regrow hair

Exactly!

Ignore TEDDYRUXPIN's post.

Don't you just love it when people make stuff up on the spot?

 

[TEDDYRUXPIN]

minoxidil works because it's a potassium channel activator, not because it's a blood dilator
i remember been told that the NO donor theory was debunked because other NO donors did not help regrow hair

Exactly!

Ignore TEDDYRUXPIN's post.

Don't you just love it when people make stuff up on the spot?

Rephrased and supported. Good point above.

Minoxidil is a potassium channel agonist and caffeine a calcium channel agonist.

You need to understand one thing! The amount of research on caffeine is still limited.

Its like saying to you, "Where is the research to say that caffeine does not inhibit the effectiveness and penetration of minoxidil at the dermal layer of the skin?"

Same for me, "Where is the research to say that application of caffeine shampoo will reduce the effectiveness of minoxidil?".

All I can say there is no right or wrong. No one will pay any funding to look at this as it is a waste of money. Even the EPRC grants will not fund this.

 

[brentx]

Rephrased and supported. Good point above.

Minoxidil is a potassium channel agonist and caffeine a calcium channel agonist.

You need to understand one thing! The amount of research on caffeine is still limited.

Its like saying to you, "Where is the research to say that caffeine does not inhibit the effectiveness and penetration of minoxidil at the dermal layer of the skin?"

Same for me, "Where is the research to say that application of caffeine shampoo will reduce the effectiveness of minoxidil?".

All I can say there is no right or wrong. No one will pay any funding to look at this as it is a waste of money. Even the EPRC grants will not fund this.

Good points. Fair enough I guess.