Interesting Reaction to Caffeine Shampoo: Thoughts?

[science_d]

I started to experience a receding hairline about 3 - 4 years ago, and it has been thinning since then. I haven't gone on finasteride long-term at all, but I did use minoxidil + laser cap for 6 months and experienced some success with that. I stopped that and tried out a less expensive laser helmet. I am not convinced that is doing very much for my hair, but that isn't the point of this post. I simply wanted to provide some context.

About two months ago, I started using Alpecin Caffeine Shampoo, just as an added benefit for thickening my hair as much as possible with my current budget. Now, I wouldn't expect that to actually have serious effects on male pattern baldness like minoxidil or finasteride does, but here's what happened. As soon as I started using it (without changing anything else), I experienced a MASSIVE shedding for a few weeks. Of course, this suggests the telogen hairs were falling out. After a few weeks, the shedding COMPLETELY and absolutely stopped. Ever since then, I literally shed only TWO hairs at MOST per day. This is the case even though I definitely do have male pattern baldness. In addition, the hairs left on the top of my head have a UNIFORM length, indicating that they have been growing consistently.

I am curious to hear anyone's thoughts or input on this:

1) How could something like Alpecin Caffeine Shampoo have such a powerful effect on suppressing hair shedding for someone who has male pattern baldness?

2) If a product has a powerful effect on hair shedding, would we also expect it to have a powerful effect on regrowing hair?

Any insight or ideas?

 

[labellavita1985]

How long did the shed phase last? And are you using everyday?

 

[science_d]

How long did the shed phase last? And are you using everyday?

The shed lasted maybe a month, and then it stopped noticeably. I have used it either every day or every other day, or took a break for a week (I had run out).

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I did use Alpecin anti hair loss caffeine shampoo for a while but not regularly, didn't see any difference. A guy called Max ad P H G told me that it's actually bad for your hair. I didn't see the study that says that though.

I haven't heard about any studies showing it is bad for your hair, but I have heard about studies showing it at least has SOME positive effect on hair growth. The real question is whether or not it is an effective treatment for male pattern baldness. When I used it in the past, it didn't seem to stop male pattern baldness over the long term. However, it definitely does thicken my hair. In addition, its ability to stop shedding in my recent experience is interesting.

 

[science_d]

It definitely seems to "expand" or thicken up my hair for real (i.e., it increases the diameter of the hairs). Also, when I use it long term, it seems to make my hair thicker overall. However, I am not convinced it actually stops male pattern baldness, as it seemed that my hair density continued to decrease as in normal male pattern baldness, even when I used it.

The other interesting measurable effect is its success in suppressing shedding completely, which does seem to have implications for male pattern baldness, and that is what I am trying to understand.