Minoxidil and Lotion

[MontyWockenfuss]

I am going to a local "Hair Loss Control Centre" for my hair. On just 5%Minoxidil alone, I have managed to have very good re-growth on my temples in just six weeks. However, they want me to switch to a 5%minoxidil that uses lotion and not alcohol for a carrier. They say that it will be less irritating to my scalp, easier for the scalp and follicles to absorb and, because of this increased absorption, I will only have to use it once a day as opposed to twice.

Should I be alarmed by any of this? I'm a bit concerned that they're fooling around with me, but that just might be my personal paranoia.

Thanks

MW

 

[ShedMaster]

You really don't need to go to a 'hairloss control center' for your hair. You will find much more informed users on this site without alterior motives in mind and it wont cost you a thing. You should do some reading on here and ask questions and you are doing the best thing you can to become educated about hairloss.

What kind of irritation does the minoxidil cause on your scalp? There are different ways to treat that if it is unbarable.

 

[The Gardener]

I don't think they are fooling around with you. It is true that the carrier in normal, Rogaine-style minoxidil solutions can be irritating to the scalp.

However, as Shed mentions, there are other options for addressing this issue. I'm not sure how 'irritated' your scalp is, but for many of us this irritation is treated rather easily by using an anti-irritation shampoo a few times a week. Nizoral is the most common and is supposed to be good in and of itself for those with male pattern baldness, but others use T-Gel and/or T-Sal.

If your scalp is REALLY irritated to the point that it is severly flaking or you are getting a rash, etc, then I would suggest addressing the carrier solution. The chemical PPG in the carrier of Rogaine-style minoxidil solutions is usually the culprit behind the irritation. So, you could do as the Hair Centre suggests and switch to a cream solution. The only problem with creams is that they tend to be messy and leave your hair greasy.

Another option would be to try a minoxidil solution with less PPG. These solutions exist, but the problem is that they are only marketed, to the best of my knowledge, by one source, Doctor Lee in LA. They are more expensive than the generic minoxidil, but if it works for you it might be worth the cost vis a vis having to apply cream to your hair everyday.

Then again, you might like the cream? It might have affinity with your hair type and it might be easy for you to use?

I would read these message boards and get a feel for the products yourself. There is no one true solution to treating a particular person's hairloss, it is a matter of you examining the options and trying some until you find something that you respond to medically and fits into your lifestyle and budget. Good luck!!

 

[MontyWockenfuss]

Sorry if this post is a bit long, but here goes:

Shed and Gardener- It's not that I feel like I need to go to a hairloss control centre for my hair...it's that I figured that they would know more about male pattern baldness than your average dermatologist (which I think is probably accurate). I have lurked around this site for awhile and read a lot and I figured that the Big 3 is the way to go. I've already had really impressive regrowth on my temples after about seven weeks of minoxidil, l-lysine and nizoral. I'm figuring that the finasteride will thicken up those hairs and I'm not terribly worried about shedding because I haven't shed at all on minoxidil.

The minoxidil is causing some slight redness on my crown (I am using it on my crown and my temples) and I have a bit of sebum back there, too. I don't think it's that bad, but they apparently thought that it would be best to use a lotion based minoxidil.

I am wary of using minoxidil once a day, but going along with their advice if they claim that the easier absorption makes 5% 2X a day redundant. I realize that the standard is to use it at morning and night, but am only using it in the morning now.

On their advice, I am also using 12% Coenzyme and 12% Dexpantheol as well.

In the end, I am very optimistic that I will regrow hair based on my early success and I want to eventually get a finasteride prescription within the month. They keep trying to push me on this saw palmetto concotion that they claim is effective, but I'm very wary of that based on my own research.

Sorry if thats long, but feel free to add your thoughts. Is the lotion based minoxidil worth it and should I be using it only once a day or twice like normal minoxidil?

 

[The Gardener]

Mr Wockenfuss,

Using a Rogaine-style minoxidil solution once a day is not optimal. However, when applying it in a cream vehicle might time phase the absorbtion enough to make once a day application sufficient for optimal results. I don't doubt what the Hair Centre is telling you.

However, before switching to the cream to relieve your irritation I would try some other options first. First off, stick with the Regaine, but try quitting the Nizoral for a while. Give it a week. A few posters on this board got irritation not from the minoxidil, but from the Nizoral. Instead of Nizoral, replace it with a different anti-irritation shampoo, such as T Gel or T Sal and see if it is more comforting for your hair.

If you get off the Nizoral and the irritation continues, then think about switching to minoxidil in a different carrier, such as a lotion as the Hair Centre suggests. Just my opinion. Good Luck.

 

[MontyWockenfuss]

Gardener - I don't think that my scalp is that irritated...I simply think that there was a little irritation and they wanted to prevent it from getting too much worse. I have been using the 5% minoxidil in the lotion carrier for about two weeks or so now.

On top of that, they advised me to use Nizoral four times a week instead of three and not to cut back on it like you had said.

Right now, I'm just trying to get a prescription for Propecia from them in the worst way. I'm an exceptionally quick responder to Minoxidil and I'm hopeful that I will be to Propecia, too. Even if Propecia did nothing else but to thicken up my existing hair, I'd be alright.

MW.

 

[The Gardener]

MW,

Some have had irritation from minoxidil, later to have it pass with time. But, if the Nizoral is not helping your irritation as it should be, before increasing your nizoral usage, I would try an anti-irritation shampoo with a different chemical than is in nizoral... try one of the ones I mentioned. I would not yet decrease your minoxidil usage to once a day because it is suboptimal for getting results.

Nevertheless, it sounds like you have things well in hand. Good luck.

 

[MontyWockenfuss]

My irritation is not bad enough that I notice my scalp bright pink or itch it. I can't say that I itch my head any more now than I did when I wasn't thinning out two years ago.

As for minoxidil usage, I am using it once a day because they advised me that the lotion carrier would allow more of the actual minoxidil to seep through to the follicles which would (according to them) make using it twice a day redundant and a waste of money. Their line is that the lotion is a better carrier and that Rogaine uses alcohol because it is significantly cheaper (which is probably true).

Still, I'm unsure whether or not I believe them on this even though I seem to be continuing decent results after a week and a half of doing as they have asked.

On the other hand, they were trying to get me to use this "All-Natural DHT Blocker" in place of Propecia. It's contents? 500 mg Saw Palmetto, Copper, Zinc, Biotin, various Chinese herbs etc. etc. Seems like kind of a hoax to me and that is why I'm a bit skpetical of what they tell me.

 

[The Gardener]

Okay, here is where I throw out the opinions of the hair centre and rely instead on what has been proven to work best.

First off, drop their "All Natural DHT blocker" treatment. From the active ingredients you list, it is a money waster for you.

Second, I am getting the subtle suspicion that they may be selling you on their proprietary cream-based carrier to get you hooked on their products. minoxidil is sold by many vendors, and I think they are selling you on their particular product by giving you a marketing 'hook' that their product, by being cream-based, supports a once a day regimen and is absorbed better. I am just guessing here, but I bet that you are buying that stuff from them at a much higher per-day price for minoxidil therapy than you could get from other sources.

If I were you, switch to a Rogaine/Regaine-style solution and cast your lot with the rest of us.

 

[ShedMaster]

Hate to say I told you so but...

You will find much more informed users on this site without alterior motives in mind and it wont cost you a thing.

:whistle: