Replacing dutasteride to father a child?

[Hersweet]

Hi all,

I'm planning to start a family with my wife. My male pattern baldness started at 24. Dutasteride completely stopped it. I'm now 40 and have no perceptible hair loss. A full head of hair.

I don't want the risk of taking dutasteride whilst fathering a child (there are some medical sites that say it could potentially cause genital abnormalities in male children). Or the reduced sperm count and volume that I have definitely seen.

1. What's the best way to replace dutasteride without seeing the 20 years of hair retention essentially fall out?

2. If I stopped dutasteride only for 6 months would the hair fall out to the level of baldness I would've naturally had at this age, I.e. how long after stopping do you see effects of stopping?

3. Is Finasteride a good replacement given my concerns about fertility, i.e. Does it have less effect on sperm count, mobility, volume?

4. How effective is finasteride compared to dutasteride?

Thank you!

 

[zzzzz]

From what I remember there is no risk besides reduced sperm count. I would not stop. If you are having difficulty having a child, maybe then I would consider stopping

 

[GoldenMane]

As long as your wife isn't taking dutasteride, you should be fine! Most of the babies sexual development will happen in the mother's uterus after a few months. I'm not sure if dutasteride even reaches the sperm cells or semen, but if it does then it should be long gone by the time the baby begins differentiating sexually.

 

[Hersweet]

Thanks guys, I appreciate that.

I'm still interested in the 1-4 answers, as I've been thinking of coming off Dutasteride for other reasons (the prostate cancer scare, even though largely misunderstood), and the semen volume which is bound to cause some reduced fertility for someone 40+.

Thanks in advance!