pratc said:
Thanks Falloutboy and JayMan. Glad it seems to be working.
I'm confused about a couple of things. The radio program I listened to had an expert called Philip Kingsley who has a clinic in London. He also writes in The Times newspaper and seems to be well known and an expert. When researching the internet yesterday, it said his clinic was doing research to compare anti androgens and procecia in 2003. I phoned them for the result and this lady said they found procepia didn't work whereas their anti andgrogen lotion did. They also have a treatment that includes minoxidil. This seems to go against other clinics views and people using procepia but it may have been the lady didn't really know.
I also thought that minoxial was mostly for the crown and did maintain hair but was no good for receeding hair.
He could be a snake oil salesman pumping his product up. If they said propecia is crap then they are total idiots. I doubt their medication is FDA approved. The only two fda approved medications in the US are propecia and minoxidil.
So would anyone please clarify the following summary form what I've read recently:
1. Procepia - basically safe, best take a low dose, useful for maintenance in all areas. Possible side effects.
Yes that's good. Propecia can also regrew hair in 66% of patients who used it.
2. Minoxidil - good for the crown area, applied twice daily, no side effects, possible regrowth and maintenance.
minoxidil is good at regrowing the hairline and front of the head too, but the makers of minoxidil can't claim that because it wasn't fda tested on those areas. Still, many users on this site have found success at regrowing their hairline and front as well as the crown from minoxidil.
minoxidil will not maintain your hair at all. It simply regrows hair if it works for you.
How can I explain this better hmm?
Ok let's say that your son loses 50 hairs in a year, just as an example. minoxidil adds 150 hairs that year so he's +100. But minoxidil has not maintained his hair. It didn't stop it from miniaturizing like propecia does. It simply adds more hair to hide the fact that your hair is falling out. That is why minoxidil is best combined with propecia because propecia directly stops or slows the balding process.
3. Anti-androgens - applied like minoxidil. maintenance and regrowth. Which applied first? Are some anti- androgens better than others?
Most anti androgens claim to fame is maintenance just like propecia. I can't remember what people on here have said on whether you should apply the anti androgen before the minoxidil or not. Sorry.
Spironolactone cream, available from minoxidil.com, is a very good anti-androgen.
4. Protein breakfast - apparently new research has found breakfast is important to thinning hair.
It certainly can't hurt but I doubt it helps that much. There are plenty of crack junkies who never eat breakfast but have full heads of hair, and plenty of people who eat as healthy as can be but are still bald as all hell.
Basically, genetics are 99% of your son's problem if he has male pattern baldness. Looking for answers in his diet or stuff like that is masking the real problem which is the genetics.
NOW, to your son's situation:
If your son's hair loss is MINOR at this point then I would take him to see a dermatologist and get him a Proscar prescription. This is the 5 mg tablet of finasteride, Propecia is the 1 mg tablet of finasteride. He can cut the 5 mg tablets into fourths with a pill cutter to save money and take 1.25 mg a day, which is basically the same as 1 mg. It won't be covered by insurance most likely but a year's supply of 365 Propecia pills runs around $700 while a year's supply of around 90 Proscar pills(remember you'd be cutting into fourths) is only around $270. That's a huge savings.
So get the derm to put him on that if you can, and ask him for Proscar since you want to save money. I guess if money is no option then you can get him on Propecia but all the money you save from Proscar can go towards other stuff.
So yes Proscar 1.25 mg per day if you can. I'd hold off on minoxidil for now because it is somewhat of a pain to apply compared to taking a pill and it doesn't stop the balding process. And once you commit to it you have to keep using it or else the hair that it regrows will fall out. It won't make other hairs dependent though.
And the other thing to add is Nizoral 1% shampoo with the active ingredient ketaconazole. This shampoo has mild anti-androgenic properties and is also a mild growth stimulant. It is the ONLY shampoo proven to help with hair loss. You can buy it at your local supermarket or pharmacy or Wal-Mart for 15 dollars for a 7 oz bottle. Have him use a teaspoon in his hair in place of his normal shampoo every 3 DAYS. Only every 3 days. Not every day since it will dry out hs hair. Have him lather it in his hair and let it sit in there for 5 minutes before rinsing. Sounds like a pain but it's only once every 3 days. Then follow it up with any good conditioner that your son likes.
Do those two things and there's like a 90%+ chance that your son won't experience any further balding for awhile.
Also it's important for him to take pictures every month and post them on here so we can monitor his progress. He may experience a tiny bit of shedding in the beginning but if he does then that's a sign that he's a good responder to the drug. The drug finasteride(medical name for propecia, proscar) is maybe just pushing the weaker hairs out that are in the telogen phase and will grow in stronger ones in its place.
I'd hold off on the minoxidil for now though as I said.
Hope this helps.
