Does Minoxidil Increases The Life Span Of Haird Follicles?

[hexon33]

Meaning, does using it and then stopping it somehow increase the lifespan of hair follicles?
In other words: does it keep your follicles alive while using it?
Or do you go back to the exact same situation you would have if you never applied it in the first place?

This is one of the first questions I thought about minoxidil, but I never found a scientific answer or even a someone with clear experiences.

I was thinking of starting it, but since I don't want to keep using it all my life, i was thinking of using it for a few years.
But just in case my hair will benefit from it long term, even after stopping, because it has somewhat kept my follicles alive.
Otherwise i won't use it, my hair is not bad enough right now to bother.
Thanks.

 

[resu]

It only works when you're using, it's like a pen, it only writes if it has ink.

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

I don't plan on using minoxidil my whole life, just the next five to ten years.

Until we have better treatments.

 

[Kevand]

Minodoxil probably act probably mostly as a growth stimulator while having a minor or no effect in protecting hair from androgenetic alopecia.
Arguments for:
1. After you reach plateau with minoxidil (max regrowth) your hair loss rate is the same as the one person without any treatment(from some graph), although I have read many anecdots that minoxidil been able to stop shedding.
2. minoxidil grow hair elsewhere which suggest it shouldn't work through reduced signaling of the dht pathway, although there could be other pathways that could protect from androgenetic alopecia through minoxidil stimulation. Controversally there is also a study which suggest minoxidil to reduce expression of AR.

Minodoxil is great treatment for male pattern baldness, problem is if this theory is correct is that it only treats the symptom of hairloss while the damage will progress. That's why I think you should at first try a treatment which attacks the dht route and stabilize your hairloss, before introducing minoxidil in your treatment.

 

[Kevand]

I asked the same question to a knowledgeable forum memeber and explained in more detail the effects of minodoxil. I don't know what all this means for the miniaturization process but maybe you understand better.

- increases ERK and Akt activity
- stabilizes beta-catenin, probably through Akt
- increases Bcl2/Bax ratio (anti-apoptotic)
- increases VEGF production; therefore, promotes angiogenesis around the hair follicle
- decreases Androgen Receptor activity
- increases PGE1 and/or PGE2 synthesis
- increases intracellular calcium concentration, which is involved in keratinocyte differentiation

 

[MrPortugal]

Minodoxil probably act probably mostly as a growth stimulator while having a minor or no effect in protecting hair from androgenetic alopecia.
Arguments for:
1. After you reach plateau with minoxidil (max regrowth) your hair loss rate is the same as the one person without any treatment(from some graph), although I have read many anecdots that minoxidil been able to stop shedding.
2. minoxidil grow hair elsewhere which suggest it shouldn't work through reduced signaling of the dht pathway, although there could be other pathways that could protect from androgenetic alopecia through minoxidil stimulation. Controversally there is also a study which suggest minoxidil to reduce expression of AR.

Minodoxil is great treatment for male pattern baldness, problem is if this theory is correct is that it only treats the symptom of hairloss while the damage will progress. That's why I think you should at first try a treatment which attacks the dht route and stabilize your hairloss, before introducing minoxidil in your treatment.

@yetti what you think about this crap?

Btw Kevand, so from your logic why minoxidil works many years alone for few people

 

[yetti]

@yetti what you think about this crap?

Btw Kevand, so from your logic why minoxidil works many years alone for few people

I ain't no medical doctor. But yeah... it does seem that some people maintain for years (including me) using only minoxidil, so probably the advice to start with finasteride doesn't necessarily fit everyone. It's true that if you don't attack the dht route you aren't tackling the underlying problem that causes the balding, but I think the key question that almost never gets asked here befiore recommending treatment is, at what rate (how fast) are you balding? If you're 20 and rapidly losing hair then I agree that minoxidil alone probably won't help that much. BUT then again, even in that case it seems that min alone can be effective for a few years at least, for some people.

But for someone a little older and with a slow rate of hair loss I think there's a real chance it can be pretty effective without adding finasteride for a long time. I personally plan to never take finasteride. I bought a bottle a couple of years ago and took part of 1 pill, reconsidered and flushed it all down the toilet.

 

[hexon33]

Isn't it possible, that a follicle, by receiving more "nutriment" from minoxidil, stays alive longer and maybe can be consequently recovered with other cures?

 

[yetti]

Isn't it possible, that a follicle, by receiving more "nutriment" from minoxidil, stays alive longer and maybe can be consequently recovered with other cures?

Hope so!

I wonder about these other cures though. I know there are constant mentions of the "other cures" that will becoming in 2-3 years. I wonder if its just wishful thinking. I know that similar things have been said in these forums for, I dont know, a decade or more?

 

[hexon33]

I'm not saying there will be cures soon. I'm talking 5 to 10+ years. If i keep losing at this rate (not slow but also not too fast), i should be fine if one comes out and i get a transplant.

 

[MrPortugal]

I ain't no medical doctor. But yeah... it does seem that some people maintain for years (including me) using only minoxidil, so probably the advice to start with finasteride doesn't necessarily fit everyone. It's true that if you don't attack the dht route you aren't tackling the underlying problem that causes the balding, but I think the key question that almost never gets asked here befiore recommending treatment is, at what rate (how fast) are you balding? If you're 20 and rapidly losing hair then I agree that minoxidil alone probably won't help that much. BUT then again, even in that case it seems that min alone can be effective for a few years at least, for some people.

But for someone a little older and with a slow rate of hair loss I think there's a real chance it can be pretty effective without adding finasteride for a long time. I personally plan to never take finasteride. I bought a bottle a couple of years ago and took part of 1 pill, reconsidered and flushed it all down the toilet.

Interessing...I read a review of minoxidil one guy said still works for like 20 years

 

[rclark]

Minoxidil might buy your hair five to ten years. It's best used as a secondary agent with an anti androgen,
that's when it does well.

This was the link. I don't know if it's still active:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3262531/