minoxidil stops working or just doesn't regrow after time?

[Bryan]

when you say stop working - do you mean stop regrowing or stop maintaining hair?

When _I_ say "stop working", it depends on what I'm specifically referring to, and the general context.

I've been saying repeatedly that what topical minoxidil does is provide an offset of extra hair growth, above and beyond what you would have had without it. Therefore, if topical minoxidil were to "stop working", it would no longer provide that offset of extra hair growth, above and beyond what you would have had without it! (I'm not trying to be a smartass here, I just honestly don't know any other way to state it that isn't misleading!)

If you regrow a bit and then keep what u got surely that's a good thing?

I think it's safe to say that keeping what you have is a good thing, unless it's so little as to be insignificant.

Bryan

 

[The Gardener]

Thanks, Bryan... I really appreciate your posts, it is good to have someone here who is good at citing research. Your contributions are always interesting and chocked with good info.

 

[mr_sparkle]

what - so you LOSE hair you've regrown/maintained and return to being a baldie or you just stop re-growing and stay with a fixed amount?

 

[Bryan]

Again, I'm saying the evidence seems to indicate that topical minoxidil probably doesn't interfere with the fundamental balding process. If you're normally destined to go bald, then you probably WILL go bald, if all you're using is minoxidil. But the minoxidil will "buy you some time". It will give you an extra offset of growth that will postpone the inevitable.

Bryan

 

[Guest]

I really still don't get it. This is how i interpretted it. So what you are saying is that after the peak that minoxidil will bring you, then you will continue balding at the rate you were balding at before you started minoxidil. But since you pushed back time and regrew hair, it will take a while to get back down to baseline. And by a while i mean like 5 years or so?
In addition, we are just talking about minoxidil by itself. What about throwing a DHT inhibitor into the mix. Doesn't Propecia, after its peak, slow down the fundamental process of balding. Therefore finasteride in conjunction with minoxidil, would create a peak that takes a whole lot longer to go back down to baseline.

 

[Bryan]

I really still don't get it. This is how i interpretted it. So what you are saying is that after the peak that minoxidil will bring you, then you will continue balding at the rate you were balding at before you started minoxidil.

Exactly!

But since you pushed back time and regrew hair, it will take a while to get back down to baseline. And by a while i mean like 5 years or so?

Yes. Exactly how long, of course, depends on how rapidly you're balding in the first place, and how good your response is to minoxidil.

In addition, we are just talking about minoxidil by itself. What about throwing a DHT inhibitor into the mix. Doesn't Propecia, after its peak, slow down the fundamental process of balding. Therefore finasteride in conjunction with minoxidil, would create a peak that takes a whole lot longer to go back down to baseline.

Yes! Absolutely!

Bryan

 

[youngguy_uk]

if the extensive loss caused by dropping minoxidil is only temporary, why doesnt everyone used it for 2 years and then just drop it? i think theres a lot of stuff on minoxidil-reliant hairs that youre disregarding bryan.

 

[flux]

In my opinion, that's the KEY to really understanding what happens with topical minoxidil, and can be summed-up in this statement: It provides an OFFSET OF REGROWTH.

Thanks for confirming everything I have surmized about Minoxidil. That phrasing is very well put, I will be sure to remember it.

This does imply, of course, that even during the first year while the new growth is coming in, damage is still being done and male pattern baldness continues to ravage the follicles. One just doesnt realize this because, despite this, they are producing more hair then they were before thanks to the minoxidil.

if the extensive loss caused by dropping minoxidil is only temporary, why doesnt everyone used it for 2 years and then just drop it? i think theres a lot of stuff on minoxidil-reliant hairs that youre disregarding bryan.

Dont question Bryan. He may just be the most knowledgable guy around here.
I think Bryan is just saying that minoxidil dependant hairs wont just fall out never to return. They will shed (the mother of all sheds), then they will grow back, but only as thick as they would be if you never had been on minoxidil. You will see a significant loss, but it would be just where you would have been at that point without any treatments.

 

[Healthy Nick]

Well, it's good to hear that going off minoxidil might not be that bad. You'll be right back to where you should be.


Is it possible to retain some of the follicle thickness after going off minoxidil?

Bryan, have you used minoxidil? If so, what was your experience with it?

 

[HAIRLOSSMILITANT]

Hi Bryan,
I've learned a lot from this post.
My last question would be, after all this discussion, is it still a safe "strategy" to start on a low 2% concentration and once the effects plateau (yes meaning male pattern baldness has started to catch up) you then go on a higher concentration of 5% and perhaps start to get some gains again. Would this kind of "prolong" the minoxidil effects a bit longer?

Would this strategy relate to all this at all or should one directly jump into the 5%? Thanks a lot. Thats really my last question.

 

[Slartibartfast]

This does imply, of course, that even during the first year while the new growth is coming in, damage is still being done and male pattern baldness continues to ravage the follicles. One just doesnt realize this because, despite this, they are producing more hair then they were before thanks to the minoxidil.

Which is why we also need to tackle the underlying problem of male pattern baldness, namely excessive levels of DHT, rather than relying purely on a growth stimulant like Minoxidil.

 

[Bryan]

if the extensive loss caused by dropping minoxidil is only temporary, why doesnt everyone used it for 2 years and then just drop it?

I don't understand the point of your question. Why would someone want to use it only for a certain amount of time and then drop it? I can see someone getting tired of the daily grind of applying a topical and finally giving up on it, or using it only up to the time that he finally gets married (and then "letting himself go", so-to-speak), or going into the Marine Corps )), but you seem to have something else in mind. Can you be a little more specific about what you mean?

i think theres a lot of stuff on minoxidil-reliant hairs that youre disregarding bryan.

I've read a bunch of topical minoxidil studies, and all I've seen which directly addresses that issue with HARD DATA is the Vera Price study which I've been referencing at length. If you can cite any evidence that I've overlooked, please post it! I'd be delighted to take a look at it!

Bryan

 

[Bryan]

Bryan, have you used minoxidil? If so, what was your experience with it?

I use it, but only intermittently. I don't have a photographic record of it either (like before-and-after pictures), so I can't really say much about how effective it's ever been for me. It's just one of those things I use based essentially on faith and the published scientific evidence!

Bryan

 

[Guest]

Hi Bryan,
I've learned a lot from this post.
My last question would be, after all this discussion, is it still a safe "strategy" to start on a low 2% concentration and once the effects plateau (yes meaning male pattern baldness has started to catch up) you then go on a higher concentration of 5% and perhaps start to get some gains again. Would this kind of "prolong" the minoxidil effects a bit longer?

Would this strategy relate to all this at all or should one directly jump into the 5%? Thanks a lot. Thats really my last question.

I also have the same question.

 

[Bryan]

My last question would be, after all this discussion, is it still a safe "strategy" to start on a low 2% concentration and once the effects plateau (yes meaning male pattern baldness has started to catch up) you then go on a higher concentration of 5% and perhaps start to get some gains again. Would this kind of "prolong" the minoxidil effects a bit longer?

Would this strategy relate to all this at all or should one directly jump into the 5%?

It seems to me that if there really and truly is no "tolerance" to minoxidil per se, then I don't really see any particular reason not to go straight to the maximum dose, to get the maximum effect. However, I don't wish to appear dogmatic about that idea; while I'm not aware of any real evidence for minoxidil tolerance, maybe there really IS such a thing. If you feel better about starting off with a lower dose just in case, I think that's perfectly reasonable.

BTW, I don't think there's any fundamental difference between the 2% and 5% versions of topical minoxidil. To get a lower dose of minoxidil for the purpose you're interested in, you could simply use LESS of the 5%. It would have the same effect as using a larger amount of a 2% solution.

Bryan

 

[HAIRLOSSMILITANT]

Thanks Bryan. That was a perfect answer.

 

[youngguy_uk]

bryan, what i meant is if after stopping minoxidil the hairs you shed are only lost temporarily, why would anyone keep using minoxidil for their lifetime when they could just use it for say 2 years and not permanently lose any of their new growth? i think youve got to keep using minoxidil to maintain the minoxidil-reliant hairs. it would be good to get some feedback from a few different people who have stopped minoxidil on this topic. any minoxidil stoppers seen a big shed but then seen it regrow a bit later?

 

[Bryan]

bryan, what i meant is if after stopping minoxidil the hairs you shed are only lost temporarily, why would anyone keep using minoxidil for their lifetime when they could just use it for say 2 years and not permanently lose any of their new growth?

Good God...what I meant was that the NORMAL hairs which are lost immediately after cessation of minoxidil therapy are only temporarily lost! I thought it was obvious that's what I meant!

i think youve got to keep using minoxidil to maintain the minoxidil-reliant hairs.

Of course.

Bryan