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Hello.
I'm currently going through hell, and it isn't nice, I might add.
I'm a mere seventeen, soon eighteen years old guy who's been growing for, I think, five months by now.
Well, my problem is a horrific one: Thinning...
It's affecting my whole life, the fact being constantly present in my mind. Actually it has been going on for quite some time, slowly, and it's still not that noticable, though I am still getting more and more of the U-shape. It's only rededing at the temples, nothing at the top or back.
I know I've got it from my fathers side of the family, an heirloom I'd rather be without =/.
It's very easy to handle when having short hair(though not TOO short) but getting harder as it gets longer as it's harder to keep in place(E.g blows back making it look silly)
So, to get to my question: Can anyone tell me, preferably by experience, if Rogaine/Regaine is liable to stop it and hopefully make it grow back? It don't have to grow back exactly as before, just a little bit will make it look good enough.
I've heard that it's best to start early as the effect will be better. I am prepared to pay the price for it. Do you think there's a fair chance that it'll help?
Any help on the subject would be HUGELY appreciated. This is constantly occupying my mind...
Go to your doctor and get a prescription for Propecia.
My young friend, I also noticed that type of
progression at about that age. Though mostly
blonde for some reasons a few hairs are brown,
black and used to be red. It was the red ones
mostly that fell out. Now twenty years later
it is about the same as the end of year 18 or
so. One advantage of long hair is that it
covers this as long as the middle-front stays
viable (as mine always has thankfully.)
If you happen to have a brother of your mother
check out his head cause a current theory
is that you will have the same balding pattern.
If there is not an extreme history in your
family of balding perhaps this is as far
as it will go.
DHT a by product of the breakdown of
testostorone is commonly blamed for hair loss
and the chemical you are considering reduces
this I think. Have you tried to drink more
water (pure) and flush your body better of
these types of life processes? Do you exercise
and eat well to help your general health
(not to mention looking better?) There are
some natural remedies that are on the market
to help the body reduce these hair dropping
chemicals.
You may or may not be heading for a balding.
The future with all of our advances in medicine
(I read today they grew a kidney in a test tube)
is a full head of hair. Do look into it but
try not to over-react without considering
all of the alternatives.
Best Regards, Frank
Thanx for the advice Frank! Much appreciated!
Though I'm pretty sure I'm heading for a balding. My mum hasn't got a brother but her dad, my grandad, still has hair at past 70. My dad went bald early but had quite long hair on the sides, a look that he made look good, being the handsome man that he was =). His dad was also bald. I think there's a long history on my dad's side.
The thing is, I've been told I'm an image of my dad. None of my brothers show the same pattern, not yet, anyway. So, I don't think there's any doubt I'm heading the same way. So I'm very concerned about stopping it, and I reckon Regaine to be the only real solution. The drug Reflective recommended only stops it but doesn't cause regrowth, what I've heard.
I want to take the safe way, and hopefully stabilizing it. I don't think any natural remedies will work. I mean, if I go on trying these with no effect, it may go too far to remedy with the most proven product there is.
I'm thinking of buying the milder strenght first, to avoid getting to resistant.
Has anyone here used it and got good results?
His dad was also bald. I think there's a long history on my dad's side
IIRC, that's not really the way genetics work. My biology is a little hazy - if anyone would care to correct me please do so... I may make mistakes here but I'll have a go at explaining things.
Since you are male, as you probably know, you have one X chrosome and one Y chrosome. This is what makes you male genetically. Your mother, being female, has two X chrosomes and no Y chrosome. Now, at your conception, you got the Y chrosome from your father and the X from you mother since that's all she has. There are only two possible combinations (that's not 100% true but don't worry about exceptions):
Girl X( from Mother)X(from Father)
Boy X(from Mother)Y(from Father)
The good news about this is that the gene that causes baldness is part of the X chrosome. Since you didn't get your father's you can't inherit baldness from him - he didn't pass on that bit of genetic material to you.
BUT - there's still an issue here. Have you ever noticed that most woman aren't bald? ;) Why doesn't the gene effect them? The answer is that it does but only if both of their X chrosomes carry it. If only one has the baldness gene they carry baldness and may pass it on to offspring but the condition doesn't effect them.
Your mother has two X chrosomes, one from her mother and one from her father. If her father did not go bald we can say with certainty that he did not carry the gene for baldness. Since her mother herself was not bald (I hope) we will assume the worst possible - that she (and your mother) carried the gene for baldness. This is the only assumption we'll make.
Therefore, you Mother's genes:
X (without the baldness trait) X (with the baldness trait).
Check out the diagram below. The top row repersents your mother (one X without baldness, one X with), the side your father, all others represent possible combinations of their genes.
X X(b)
X(b) XX(b) X(b)X(b)
Y XY X(b)Y
If the offspring is female she will certainly carry the gene and there's even a 1 in 4 (25%) chance of her being bald herself. A male has a 50/50 chance of being bald or not. This is assuming the worst - that your mother even carries this gene. If she does not you've got a 0% chance of going bald:
X X
X(b) X(b)X XX
Y YX YX
I hope this has helped to calm your fears. There is, of course, a very real chance you're going bald (Lord knows I'd be looking for Rogaine) but it's not from your father's genes.
Thanx for the rather extensive biology lesson, POB =). But I still have my doubts that what U'r saying is true, since it is a fact that many men inherit their baldness from their fathers. Now, I have the same pattern as my dad, no doubt. No females on both sides the family has shown signs of balding but my great grandad on my mothers side was bald. I guess it could come from him... It's happening anyway... =/
I hate to weigh in on this, but the latest thinking is that hair loss can be passed via either parent. Here's what the Rogaine website has to say: "Scientific research has proven that the gene for hair loss comes from either or both sides of the family, and contrary to popular belief, is not traced only to the mother's side. The best indicator you have is your immediate family - if your family members are experiencing hair loss, you may also be at risk."
Believe it or not, the science of hair loss is still in the dark ages, figuratively speaking. Even a very bald man has some hair left. These are known as hormone-resistant hair. DHT is necessary for hair loss to occur, at least male-pattern baldness, or androgenetic alopecia. They discovered this by finding a group of men from the Caribbean who had a missing gene for DHT. No male pattern loss at all was evident in the group.
DHT is produced the an enzyme, 5-alpha reductase (BTW, you know it is an enzyme if the name ends in 'ase'). No 5-alpha, no DHT.
Most men obviously have DHT and 5-alpha reductase in their systems. The 5-alpha is found in the prostate, and in hair follicles. There are two types of DHT, type I (gene found on chromosome 5) and type II (gene found on chromosome 2). One seems to be involved in prostate enlargement. That is what Proscar (finasteride)was designed to treat. Propecia is 1% finasteride, whereas Proscar is 5%.
The science is still all being worked out.
Hope I didn't bore you to death on this!
I'm glad someone more informed thatn myself has chimed in. Back when I took all my biology/chem courses, the prevelent thought was the that hairloss comes from the mother's side - it's not something I've kept up with. Yet more proof that forcing engineers to take a bunch of sciences is a very bad idea. :)
First of all, there are far more important aspects of life to occupy your mind. Thinning hair is sometimes just a fact of life, and there is no point in obsessing over it.
As for help with your thinning hair, you very well could try Rogaine. (I suggest a generic formula of minoxidil since it's less expensive, yet has the exact same ingredients.) Minoxidil usually halts any further thinning and/or recession, but it will most likely not regrow the hair you have already lost at the front of your hairline. You may want to talk to a doctor about Propecia (prescription only), which does (in some cases) regrow the hair in front. (Everyone is different.) Be aware that you must use Rogaine (minoxidil) for the rest of your life, or the thinning will take place as if you have not used it at all.
So, what you are saying is that Propecia is the safest bet?
I know it's a fact of life, but being this young and wanting long hair, I can't help myself.
But, if I feel nothing will help, I'll most likely just shave it all off and stop thinking of it.
What I said is maybe you should talk to your doctor. Propecia is a prescribed medication that has side effects like almost every medication. Some of the side effects in Propecia are not all that great. The #1 unwanted side effect in many men is lowered libido. While it may be important enough for some men to have hair, that they wouldn't mind the lowered sex drive, I don't see the point. Isn't the way we wear our hair part of what makes us feel "sexy" to others? Also, I believe Propecia is a medication that you have to take indefintely, or the hair will fall out when you stop taking it. Nobody has figured out a way to manipulate the 'hair loss gene' without side effects yet.
Lowered libido?! Whow, should stay away from that one, then! Do U know of any known side effects in Rogaine?
U said that if U stop using Rogaine, the thinning will take place as if it had never been used. Does this mean that if U stop, U will very quickly/immediatly be in the stage U would've been in if U never used it in the first place, or will it just thin in the same speed that it were before U started? This I need to know.
I don't intend using it all my life, but I want to get through my twenties and maybe thirties with hair =).
Anyway, U're right that the first thing that needs to be done is to talk to my doctor.
I'm a medical writer and researcher, so I keep up with the medical literature daily.
The latest research seems to show that any sexual side effect from Propecia is not long lasting. It may be that the body compensates in some manner. The reported rate of lowered libido is about 2%. The problem is cured by stopping Propecia.
One of the interesting effects with Propecia is that since it stops the conversion of testosterone into dihydrotestosterone (DHT), the amount of testosterone in the body actually increases! This may be a very good thing. I say that because low testosterone has been linked to depression, poor health and Alzheimer's disease! This last is somewhat preliminary, but I don't think DHT does any man past puberty any good at all.
You are fortunate that there are two medication that are PROVEN to help with hair loss. As mentioned, Propecia and minoxidil (Rogaine) have been proven to work. The buzz on propecia is that it will help grow back hair that was lost up to five years ago. don't know if that is true.
I've had good luck with minoxidil, 5%. I'm pretty sure my hairloss has stopped, and the rest of my hair is looking pretty good. I do get the Upjohn version; I get a three month supply for $50 or so. Propecia is about $50 per month.
I like the website www.hairsite.com or www.regrowth.com.
this may be of no help, but . . .
if your hair hair is thinning, just let it, and eventually your hair will hit it's maximum length, and it will trail off until the very end, where your oldest couple hairs are. everyone has a maximum, and you do not have the shortest, and you do not have the longest. just let it grow to it's own thickness, even if it is thin. at least it is more natural (and in my opinion, better looking) than someone with really thick dream hair which is kept cut up or short.
that is just my opinion.
I know exactly what you're going through, I've got the same problem. I'm 21 now, but I noticed the receding temples starting around your age. So far it's been managable, but it's getting more and more annoying as it slowly keeps receding to style my hair the way I want to. I did a lot of reading up on the issue, and I've decided that I'm going to give Propecia a try in a month or 2, since I'm more concerned about stopping any more balding, than regrowing anything. And propecia seems to have the best proven results out there. Hopefully it will do the trick. And good luck with whatever you decide to do.
Thanx JP! Same to you! It's hell to be sure...
I don't know about Propecia... this talk about lowered libido is scaring me. As of yet, no one has brought up any side effect with Rogaine, except that U'll need to use it forever(Or as long as you want to keep your hair).
Since you have been doing some research, can you help me with a question? I've heard Rogaine will halt the hairloss, and maybe help regrow a bit, but the hairloss will start again as soon as you quit using it. Does this mean that the hairloss will continue thinning in the rate that it did before you started, or will everything that you should have lost if you never used it fall off at once or very quickly?
Appreciate if you can help!
I wish I knew the answer to that. I've been led to believe that the second case might be true, that you'll quickly lose everything as if you never took the drug. But maybe not? Only someone with personal experience would know.
Also, regarding the propecia side-effects, it is pretty much assumed that the lowered libido only happens in maybe 5% of users, and actually, I read that about 7-8% say it increased their libido (I guess the drug binds with certain hormones, taking the place of testosterone that would otherwise bind with them, thereby giving you more testosterone in your system). Also, any side effects go away 100% of the time if you stop the drug, and I think even 80% of the time after a while if you keep taking it.
And rogaine is also said to work without side effects, but for me personally, I think it would be a real pain to have to take 30 minutes (or whatever it is) twice a day to apply it. That's why I don't intent to start with trying it first.