spironolactone Experiment

[The Gardener]

Okay guys, time for me to swallow a little pride and let you all in on a little experiment I tried with spironolactone.


Not sure if any of you remember but three months ago I very hypothetically asked this forum about spironolactone. Well, spironolactone supposedly inhibits DHT synthesis in the applied area. DHT causes hair LOSS in male pattern baldness areas, and conversely, DHT speeds up and enhances the growth of body hair on the back and other places. Well, my hypothetical question a few months ago was, "if I put spironolactone on my body hair, will it thin it out just as
spironolactone thickens hair in male pattern baldness areas?"

So, just as an experiment, I tried something. My eyebrows over the last few years have gotten a bit thicker and longer and coarser. Nothing big, but it along with my chest hair are signs of DHT's effect on my body. So, just as an experiment I started applying spironolactone to my eyebrows every evening. I am using 2%, every night. And guess what... after 3 months, my eyebrows are thin and trim and no sign of coarseness except for a few remaining renegade hairs. Proof enough for me that spironolactone works.

Those of you older folks out there like me who are concerned about thickening eyebrow hairs should TRY it! It works! No sh*t.

 

[blue]

Do you think it would work on all hair on the body?

 

[George Costanza]

I thought body hair was affected by testosterone more than dht.

Also spironolactone converts testosterone to estrogen. This is another reason it can be helpful on the scalp since dht is produced locally there. Less T=less dht.

Women take spironolactone orally to get rid of excess testosterone which will inhibit body hair as well as hairloss. The side effects for men would be far worse than finasteride if taken orally.

 

[shineydome]

Proof enough for me that spironolactone works.

So, in other words, your theory is that the hair in your eyebrows are affected by DHT thus causing them to grow coarse and wild, (like mine) and by applying the spironolactone there, it would cause them to grow more or less like "normal"? So, you postulate that when someone applys the spironolactone to their scalp, it will also affect the DHT from binding there, and again, allowing the hair to grow more "normally"?
P.S. I tried spironolactone a few years ago, it made my wife pass out when she smelled it on my scalp. Any non-smelly versions available?

 

[blue]

Sure it wasnt your armpits that knocked your wife out?

 

[shineydome]

Sure it wasnt your armpits that knocked your wife out?

Yeah, yeah, yeah

 

[hatesonions]

im using spironolactone 2 weeks now

anyone having success with spironolactone?

 

[Bryan]

Well, spironolactone supposedly inhibits DHT synthesis in the applied area.

You're claiming that spironolactone is a 5a-reductase inhibitor?? I can cite you a study which claims that it does NOT do that.

So, just as an experiment, I tried something. My eyebrows over the last few years have gotten a bit thicker and longer and coarser. Nothing big, but it along with my chest hair are signs of DHT's effect on my body.

Actually, I read somewhere that eyebrows are unaffected one way or the other by androgens (sorry, I don't remember the reference).

Bryan

 

[The Gardener]

The increase of body hair during the aging process IS caused by androgens, both in women and men.

 

[Wezz]

where can i buy this spironolactone 2%, and no i dont want to buy from http://www.minoxidil.com :roll:

 

[JesusFreak]

I did my own experiment with dr. lees 2% spironolactone. On paper, it should be the best agent on the market for male pattern baldness, so I was highly motivated to see if it translated into actual practice.

I compared 5% minoxidil to 2% spironolactone

I used topical minoxidil for 3 months as a single agent. I could tell right away that I was losing less hair. After 3 months I could not see that I had not grown much hair, but had not lost any either.

About a year later, and after stopping minoxidil for about that period of time, I started applying the spironolactone 1X per day. My hair loss didnt appear to slow, which was a concern, but i stuck with it. After 2.5 months I started noticing thousands pigmented hairs growing all over my scalp.

The results were so dramatic that when the girl who cuts my hair noticed I saw her eyes literally bug out, as she kept looked looking at my hair closer and closer. I said "what, what are you looking at," knowing full well that she was looking at the new hair growth. And she said, "did you know that you have thousands of tiny hairs growing all over your scalp, mostly in the crown?" I tried to look surprised, not wanting to get into my hair loss adventures, and told her, "hmm, it must be the new multi-vitamins I had been taking"...haha

Conclusion: (In My Case)

Rogaine was superior for shedding. Topical spironolactone is as effective, or more effective than propecia, but does not do much for shedding. Topical spironolactone is more effective for hair regrowth than Rogaine.

This is for Dr. Lees 2% spironolactone using alcohol as the vehicle.

 

[mgdpublic]

dude, spironolactone is commonly prescribed for hirsuteness in women. It shouldn't be a big surprise that it works on body hair.