How long does rogaine work for

Styles

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Just wondering. How long does minoxidil have an effect for. I dont want to use it if i'm just wasting my money.

On the package it says after 1 year it starts gradually to lose its effect. How long should i use it.

If i upped the dose to 5%(i'm using 2% now) would it make a difference on how long the effect stays?


Thanks
 

The Rock

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I didn't check but doesn't it say that you will lose the effects of rogain in one year if you don't keep applying it regularly....?? just off the top of my head though
 

The Gardener

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First off, I strongly recommend upping to 5% immediately.

From what I have read, after a year of application (some people say two years, and I would agree more with two given my own experience), minoxidil has recruited all of the follicles in your affected hair that CAN grow hair to grow hair. In other words, any 'bald' follicles that have withstood two years of daily minoxidil bombardment and still are not growing hair probably will not grow hair again, ever.

Thus, after 1 or 2 years of use, the ability of minoxidil to regrow hair stops.
 

The Gardener

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wastingpenguins said:
Keep in mind that just because it has lost it's ability to regrow doesn't mean that you're suddenly going to lose all the hair you just gained.

Exactly. Not only that, but hairs that were regrown and 'sprouting' back at month 6 are now cycling into terminal hairs at month 14. So, even though regrowth might end, hair quality of existing hairs might continue to improve for a longer window of time.
 

The Gardener

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You have to stay on minoxidil as long as you want to maintain your regrown hair. If you stop taking the medication, the regrown hair will fall out. This applies to all hairloss treatments, minoxidil, Propecia, etc..
 

Bryan

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Styles said:
Just wondering. How long does minoxidil have an effect for.

I think minoxidil has an effect for as long as you use it. It continues to provide an offset of extra growth above what you'd have without it. The evidence seems to indicate that, anyway.

Styles said:
On the package it says after 1 year it starts gradually to lose its effect.

I think that statement is false or (at the very least) misleading.

Styles said:
How long should i use it.

As long as you wish to have an offset of extra growth.

Styles said:
If i upped the dose to 5%(i'm using 2% now) would it make a difference on how long the effect stays?

I doubt it.

BTW, I feel that the 2% and 5% solutions are essentially the same thing, anyway. If you apply 2 1/2 times as much of the 2% solution, it will have the same effect as the 5%, in my opinion. However, it would almost certainly be cheaper to use the 5% version.

Bryan
 

Temples

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The Gardener said:
From what I have read, after a year of application (some people say two years, and I would agree more with two given my own experience), minoxidil has recruited all of the follicles in your affected hair that CAN grow hair to grow hair. In other words, any 'bald' follicles that have withstood two years of daily minoxidil bombardment and still are not growing hair probably will not grow hair again, ever.

What if you've been using minoxidil for say, a year and your temples haven't filled in like you want them to. You then start using Xandrox 15%. A good idea?
 

The Gardener

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Yes, Xandrox 15 is definitely an option. So is spironolactone 5 lotion, rubbed up into those stubborn corners. However, once you add these elements, you add cost and complexity to your monthly regimen on a recurring basis.
 

The Rock

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on a follow up on dr. lee's site i belive he said that he has been using minoxidil for 14 yeras.....so something's gotta be doing him good
 
G

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[/quote]BTW, I feel that the 2% and 5% solutions are essentially the same thing, anyway. If you apply 2 1/2 times as much of the 2% solution, it will have the same effect as the 5%, in my opinion. However, it would almost certainly be cheaper to use the 5% version.

Bryan[/quote]

Does that mean if apply 3 times as much of the 5% minoxidil - its like putting 15% minoxidil on your bonce, and so forth.

Hypothetically, if you applied 100mls to your head (I know this isn't really possible), would that be like 100% minoxidil?

I guess that could make your heart jump out of your chest and f*** up your blood pressure?
 

Resultsnottypical

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I've been on minoxidil since Sept of 2003. I think it has regrown hair for me ( I added finasteride in July of 2004), but it has reached it's limit. It DOES work. Now I am watching the hairs improve due to finasteride, as I already had reached a limit last July with minoxidil.

I think if you use the two in conjuction and you are like a Norwood 3 or 4, you can essentially get back to "normal" (N1 or 2) for a guy in his 30s.

I am still improving, slowly but surely.

It's definitely worth it, and its not expensive...generic is dirt cheap here in the States.
 

Bryan

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neiltom88 said:
BTW, I feel that the 2% and 5% solutions are essentially the same thing, anyway. If you apply 2 1/2 times as much of the 2% solution, it will have the same effect as the 5%, in my opinion. However, it would almost certainly be cheaper to use the 5% version.

Bryan

Does that mean if apply 3 times as much of the 5% minoxidil - its like putting 15% minoxidil on your bonce, and so forth.

Not necessarily. A study a few years ago showed that when you apply topical minoxidil several times a day in a standard alcohol/propylene glycol vehicle, you eventually reach a point where the skin is SATURATED with the drug, and unable to absorb any more, no matter HOW much you apply. I'd have to go back and re-read that study again to get the exact details of where you actually reach that point of maximum absorption, but my vague impression is that the standard dose of 5% minoxidil applied twice a day is probably already fairly close to that limit! :wink:

neiltom88 said:
Hypothetically, if you applied 100mls to your head (I know this isn't really possible), would that be like 100% minoxidil?

I guess that could make your heart jump out of your chest and f*** up your blood pressure?

Not really. It just wouldn't be absorbed completely.

Bryan
 

Bismarck

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Bryan said:
neiltom88 said:
BTW, I feel that the 2% and 5% solutions are essentially the same thing, anyway. If you apply 2 1/2 times as much of the 2% solution, it will have the same effect as the 5%, in my opinion. However, it would almost certainly be cheaper to use the 5% version.

Bryan

Does that mean if apply 3 times as much of the 5% minoxidil - its like putting 15% minoxidil on your bonce, and so forth.

Not necessarily. A study a few years ago showed that when you apply topical minoxidil several times a day in a standard alcohol/propylene glycol vehicle, you eventually reach a point where the skin is SATURATED with the drug, and unable to absorb any more, no matter HOW much you apply. I'd have to go back and re-read that study again to get the exact details of where you actually reach that point of maximum absorption, but my vague impression is that the standard dose of 5% minoxidil applied twice a day is probably already fairly close to that limit! :wink:

neiltom88 said:
Hypothetically, if you applied 100mls to your head (I know this isn't really possible), would that be like 100% minoxidil?

I guess that could make your heart jump out of your chest and f*** up your blood pressure?

Not really. It just wouldn't be absorbed completely.

Bryan

Is it saturated with alcohol or saturated with minoxidil? That would imply Xandrox15 is BS.
 

Bryan

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That was meant to apply to typical vehicles using alcohol and propylene glycol. Other vehicles (DMSO, perhaps?) _may_ be able to drive more minoxidil into the skin/scalp. Whether or not Xandrox 15 is "BS", I don't know. It does use glycerin instead of PPG, but I doubt that glycerin is even as effective as PPG.

Bryan
 
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