spironolactone help

[DJ007]

Hiya people,Im thinking of adding spironolactone to the mix as im on finasteride and nizoral at the moment and dont want to go down the minoxidil road.
Can you give me some hints,tips,pro's & con's of spironolactone please?
Has anyone used this without minoxidil with good results?
Also where's best to buy some from over here at the U.K?
Thanks for your comments guys....

 

[Freestyle]

I would definitely add minoxidil before I added spironolactone if I were you.

For one; minoxidil is a growth stimulant, whereas spironolactone is a DHT inhibitor. Secondly; generic minoxidil is dirt cheap, whereas spironolactone is pretty expensive.

If you have a good head of hair and only want maintenance, then by all means go for spironolactone. But if you're in that situation, you may be better just sticking with finasteride as a DHT inhibitor.

If you're losing and thinning, then you definitely want to add a growth stimulant like minoxidil.

I use spironolactone, but only on my hairline at night (and always after minoxidil application) and mostly because I'm more paranoid about my receding hairline than aything else.

spironolactone cons...?

Well, I coulda sworn that someone had planted a bag of weed on me the first time I used it. It has a pretty strong smell, not unlike cannabis.

Pros...?

I'm pretty certain that it's halting my hairline loss and helping regrow.

 

[Friendofyou]

hi freestyler

is spironolactone also helpful for the back of the head?
i ordered spironolactone lotion 2%...

thank you!

 

[Freestyle]

I don't use it at the back, but I'm pretty sure that (like other topicals) you would have more success at the back than you would at the front.

I use 5% cream for the extra kick on the hairline, because I'm too weak to leave it 100% up to Propecia and Minoxidil to do the job.

I tried Revivogen before this, but it burnt my scalp and gave me blisters. But spironolactone is like putting on a sunscreen...and feels pretty good too. And if you rub it in well enough, you may not even be able to detect it during the day. Just rub it in, style it and let it dry. It gives pretty good hold too.

 

[Friendofyou]

alright, thanks...i will try it with minoxidil...

thanks again

 

[SE-freak]

Hiya people,Im thinking of adding spironolactone to the mix as im on finasteride and nizoral at the moment and dont want to go down the minoxidil road.
Can you give me some hints,tips,pro's & con's of spironolactone please?
Has anyone used this without minoxidil with good results?
Also where's best to buy some from over here at the U.K?
Thanks for your comments guys....

Why not minoxidil? Is there any specific reason- or just the psychology of using the "last resort"?

If you need regrowth you will need a stimulant too.

 

[DJ007]

Why not minoxidil? Is there any specific reason- or just the psychology of using the "last resort"?

I have been coming here to this site for over a year now and have read some of the bad sides that can run with minoxidil.
Im not knocking anybody who uses it and good luck to you if its working for you but its not for me.
The main reasons is I cant use 2x a day because of my life style and also have a sensitive skin, so im more likely to have problems with flakes ect (at the moment i have to go easy on nizoral too)

 

[mogadon]

DJ007 you wont find spironolactone in the uk, your have to get it from overseas,

various places sell it,

 

[DJ007]

Ok so if i dont go with spironolactone, whats the best to use instead of minoxidil?
Anybody?

 

[Red Rose]

007 the long and short of it is that if you are taking finasteride and nizoral already, there is no compelling reason IMO to take a topical antiandrogen (dutasteride is a different story) and certainly I do not think the addition of topical spironolactone will give you tangible results as minoxidil might if you threw that into the mix. However, if you are dead against using minoxidil, you could use copper peptides which have shown in a study to have growth stimulating effects comparible with 2% minoxidil.

 

[Dave001]

007 the long and short of it is that if you are taking finasteride and nizoral already, there is no compelling reason IMO to take a topical antiandrogen (dutasteride is a different story) and certainly I do not think the addition of topical spironolactone will give you tangible results as minoxidil might if you threw that into the mix. However, if you are dead against using minoxidil, you could use copper peptides which have shown in a study to have growth stimulating effects comparible with 2% minoxidil.

Sound advice.

 

[Packers]

OK, let's say one is not using finasteride. Is spironolactone the best option out there as a DHT blocker?

 

[Old Baldy]

Sorry Dave and Red Rose. Inhibit the Type II enzyme, block the AR's, this is WAR baby!! Overkill? Maybe - so what!!??

 

[mvpsoft]

I am not clear on why spironolactone is a waste of time if one is already using finasteride and nizoral. You use nizoral 3x times a week, it is on your head for about 5 min. each time. How long does it inhibit the synthesis/binding (whatever it does) of DHT after you rinse it out?

finasteride reduces follicle DHT, but the amount if reduces is between 30-70%; we don't really know how much. Doesn't it make sense that DHT may still be doing damage even when one is taking finasteride and using nizoral? Won't spironolactone reduce the damage even further by inhibiting the remaining DHT from binding with the receptors?

I had been using finasteride, nizoral, 5% minoxidil and CUs for about a year. I got a bit of regrowth on my vertex and crown and brought hairline loss almost to a standstill. Two months ago I upped the ante on my regimen by going to 15% minoxidil, adding spironolactone and adding Proxiphen on the hairline. After going through an initial shed, I am getting a new round of new growth on my vertex and crown, and my hairline is starting to look a bit better, but not much. I'm not sure if the higher octane minoxidil promoted the additional growth, or if adding spironolactone helped.

 

[Old Baldy]

I am not clear on why spironolactone is a waste of time if one is already using finasteride and nizoral. You use nizoral 3x times a week, it is on your head for about 5 min. each time. How long does it inhibit the synthesis/binding (whatever it does) of DHT after you rinse it out?

finasteride reduces follicle DHT, but the amount if reduces is between 30-70%; we don't really know how much. Doesn't it make sense that DHT may still be doing damage even when one is taking finasteride and using nizoral? Won't spironolactone reduce the damage even further by inhibiting the remaining DHT from binding with the receptors?

I had been using finasteride, nizoral, 5% minoxidil and CUs for about a year. I got a bit of regrowth on my vertex and crown and brought hairline loss almost to a standstill. Two months ago I upped the ante on my regimen by going to 15% minoxidil, adding spironolactone and adding Proxiphen on the hairline. After going through an initial shed, I am getting a new round of new growth on my vertex and crown, and my hairline is starting to look a bit better, but not much. I'm not sure if the higher octane minoxidil promoted the additional growth, or if adding spironolactone helped.

They just said no "compelling" reason.

 

[mvpsoft]

It seems to me that blocking the effects of DHT more completely is pretty compelling.

 

[DJ007]

Thanks for the comments guys, i will take note.......cheers

 

[SE-freak]

007 the long and short of it is that if you are taking finasteride and nizoral already, there is no compelling reason IMO to take a topical antiandrogen (dutasteride is a different story) and certainly I do not think the addition of topical spironolactone will give you tangible results as minoxidil might if you threw that into the mix. However, if you are dead against using minoxidil, you could use copper peptides which have shown in a study to have growth stimulating effects comparible with 2% minoxidil.

Why is dutasteride a different story when talking combination with topical antiandrogens? Didn't quite get that. Does it have to do with follicle T levels?

 

[Dave001]

Sorry Dave and Red Rose. Inhibit the Type II enzyme, block the AR's, this is WAR baby!! Overkill? Maybe - so what!!??

Red Rose was trying to emphasize that minoxidil would probably offer the best ROI when added to the original poster's existing treatment regimen, and with that I agree. The addition of topical spironolactone could still conceivably help in the long-term, but the effect would not be as robust as what one would expect from minoxidil (this is in the context of someone using finasteride) because they work through completely difference mechanisms.

 

[Dave001]

OK, let's say one is not using finasteride. Is spironolactone the best option out there as a DHT blocker?

I don't use finasteride or any other systemic treatment for Androgenetic Alopecia. I use topical spironolactone because it is the only antiandrogen readily available that meets the criteria of 1) having some evidence that it works, 2) is not systemically absorbed to any quantifiable extent following topical application, and 3) it's reasonably inexpensive.