is Minoxidil "Sulfate" really 14x stronger than regular minoxidil?

[Zmay1962]

I am new to this forum. This my first post. Hello everybody : )

I have used (Kirkland) minoxidil topical in the past with not that great of results after about 18 months worth of use. I am a middle aged female that has recently had a face-lift which pulled my hairline back, plus my hair is thinning....

Pubmed did a clinical study that claims that the sulfated version works exponentially stronger than regular minoxidil, 14x is what is stated in the study.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2230218

Has anyone tried a minoxidil sulfate topical? If not, would anyone have any info or insight or thoughts about minoxidil sulfate?

Surprisingly, I only found one seller selling it on an auction site.

If it is really stronger, shouldn't there be more formulations or different brands available for retail purchase?

I'm tempted to buy some, but would like to get any comments or thoughts about it.

Thanks in advance for any help : )

[BradWellington]

Hi everybody,

This is my first post.

I can't seem to find much information online about minoxidil sulfate.

I am very intrigued after reading that Pubmed clinical study.

There is one vendor online that states that:

"The price is about 100 US dollars per 5 milligrams. In a 60 ml hair growth solution with 12% minoxidil sulfate, it has 7.2grams of minoxidil sulfate, which will cost more than 100,000 US dollars to procure the minoxidil sulfate for one bottle (one month supply)."

This is simply not true though. I found wholesale bulk powder suppliers of minoxidil sulfate online that sell per kilo. The price for minoxidil sulfate is more costly than regular minoxidil, but Definitely not anywhere close to $100 for 5 milligrams.

But, they are also selling a product on their site which makes me skeptical about there info.

I am very tempted to try minoxidil sulfate, but as I said before, there is not that much user info online.

if anyone has any experience with using minoxidil sulfate as a topical solution, any info would be greatly appreciated.

[Zmay1962]

(Update)

It has been about 3 and a half months now of me using minoxidil sulfate 5%.

Even though the suggested dosage is 1 ml in the morning and 1 ml in the night. I think I use closer to 5-6 ml's per application.

The results have been quite dramatic. The new follicles that I am growing seem to be thicker than my usual strands.

It took about 3-4 weeks to notice a considerable difference, but I think it is really working great for me.

Also, at about the 4 week mark, I started mixing in DMSO(15%) with my 5% minoxidil sulfate. I don't know if it is a coincidence or just time that has elapsed while using minoxidil sulfate, but I really started noticing more and more new follicles at the 5 week mark after using the DMSO since the 4 week mark.

I have read that DMSO works as a great carrier to help the scalp absorb minoxidil subdermally.

I have also read that regular minoxidil "is not" soluble in DMSO, but I have read posts from users that it not being soluble "doesn't matter".

Would the fact that minoxidil sulfate "is" soluble in water (instead of PG, like regular minoxidil) make it blend with DMSO better? I do not seem to get any precipitate or separations of the solution.

I'll post another update after about another month of use or so.

If anyone else has any experience with using minoxidil sulfate or mixing DMSO with minoxidil sulfate, your comments or thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

May

[BradWellington]

I also am interested in adding DMSO to my minoxidil sulfate. I still have 2 bottles left. I ordered an 8 oz. bottle of DMSO, and made about a 10% strength mix. I noticed though, that this new mix made my scalp slightly irritated. I only made 1 bottle's worth of that mix, but I am thinking that even 10% is probably too strong.

Are you getting any type of irritation or tingling at your 15% mix?

Could this "tingling/burning" just be a normal part of using DMSO as a carrier?

[Zmay1962]

Could this "tingling/burning" just be a normal part of using DMSO as a carrier?[/QUOTE]

I have definitely found the addition of DMSO to produce a tingling sensation. I read online that is a typical reaction to DMSO when applied to the skin/scalp.

I would never classify the tingling as a "burning" feeling though. Do you have sensitive skin? I would describe my skin type as being semi-sensitive.

Maybe if you try adding the DMSO at a 5% or less concentration, the tingling/burning feeling will not be as pronounced.

The amount of tingling I get from the addition of the DMSO is comparable to a hair loss product I used years ago that contained graviola extract and menthol. The tingling always made at least feel like "something" is going on, even if it was just the menthol causing it.

Did you get any type of tingling sensation when you used the minoxidil sulfate topical alone?

[eighteen]

This thread is shady...

[Zmay1962]

Hi Teece,

Sorry for the late response.

I have been buying my DMSO from Ebay.

They have a lot of different vendors that have a lot of sales and good ratings at good prices.

I looked up the source you said, and the price is significantly more costly, by a lot.

Do you think the quality differs that much?

I hope I am not buying bad or old DMSO.....

[BradWellington]

So, I am now using my minoxidil sulfate with only 1% DMSO, I felt higher amounts tingled/slightly burned my scalp too much.

I also went ahead and added caffeine at about 5% and mint oil to my concoction, I read mint oil can help with hair growth regeneration. I'm sure it can't hurt.

I am getting positive results though from all of this, compared to when I used to use regular minoxidil.

I'm thinking about maybe buying a kilo of minox sulfate and making my own, when I finally get enough balls to go through with making it myself. I really don't have ANY equipment, but I'm sure I can whip something together. That way I can make a 10-15 or higher percentage of minox sulfate for personal use. I hope too much won't have any adverse effects...But, I'm still a ways off from doing all that.

I'm glad I found minox sulfate. Thanks "ZMay1962" for putting me up on this. Much respect.

BW

[Zmay1962]

I was looking around for other water-based minoxidil topical & I found an interesting study about how a water-based minoxidil topical has a better bioavailability than a pg based minoxidil solution (they used Rogaine).

It claims that:

"The dorsal skins of rat were treated with various water-soluble minoxidil compositions or 5% Rogaine for 1 hour. The intact or decutinized skins were cut, and homogenized. The permeated minoxidil was extracted and analyzed by HPLC. The results indicated the 2% water-soluble minoxidil composition achieved the same penetrating ability as that of 5% Rogaine."

I found the study/abstract it here: https://www.google.com/patents/US20110112125

I'm not to sure how reliable the study is, I just found it to be interesting since I'm also using a water based minoxidil topical, albeit a different form of minoxidil water based topical.

Could water be a far more superior carrier of minoxidil than PG?

Thanks in advance for any thoughts or comments.