Advice regarding hairloss needed please

[Shank]

Hi, I've posted previously regarding my struggles with hairloss. I'm a 20 year old asian male who has been noticing a particularly thin patch of my hair at the top of my head where my cowlick/spiral is. I first spotted it in October 2016 and it has been a year or so since then. My father is 58 years old and is probably on a Norwood 5/6. My hair has been very fine and soft and I'm not blessed with the thick full hair that many of my friends have, sadly. Here are some pics:

https://imgur.com/a/zCNEZ

As I'm only 20 years old, I would like to know which options are the best for me. Currently, I'm seriously considering finasteride, but I am not so sure about how long it would be effective for (hopefully, for life). I don't give a crap about the side effects unless they are life threatening as I have no intentions of having kids/a partner due to personal reasons. Of course, in my 40's, I would be open to getting a hair transplant as well.

Hair loss at the age of 20 has been rather distressing for me and it really sucks. I'm desperate for a solution as I'm about to start college soon and I wanna enjoy my life in my 20s instead of worrying and being self conscious about my hair. Appreciate your inputs!

[danylq]

Hey bro. First of all, I'm not an expert by any means but I'll be happy to share my input with you.

What you might be experiencing is either:

1) Mature hairline
2) Male Pattern Baldness

I've got similar hair to yours (frontal hairline at NW1-1.5 but thinning) and the first thing I did was start a regimen with Minoxidil and Nizoral Shampoo.

What I recommend for you to do is the following: Learn about what causes balding, how it can be prevent, and probably most importantly: Talk to a dermatologist/Doctor!!

I also encourage you to photograph your hair to see any differences and then later on recess after a few months. I'm not sure wether this is balding or not so I don't want to be making false claims.

[Shank]

Hey bro. First of all, I'm not an expert by any means but I'll be happy to share my input with you.

What you might be experiencing is either:

1) Mature hairline
2) Male Pattern Baldness

I've got similar hair to yours (frontal hairline at NW1-1.5 but thinning) and the first thing I did was start a regimen with Minoxidil and Nizoral Shampoo.

What I recommend for you to do is the following: Learn about what causes balding, how it can be prevent, and probably most importantly: Talk to a dermatologist/Doctor!!

I also encourage you to photograph your hair to see any differences and then later on recess after a few months. I'm not sure wether this is balding or not so I don't want to be making false claims.

Hey man, thanks for the input! I have scheduled a dermatologist appointment. My main concern is the crown of my head though, as I appear to have what seems to be a bald spot over there. I will definitely photograph my hair as time goes by to see how bad my hairloss is, however, I would like to know if it's recommended for me to hop on Propecia at my age now (20)?

[danylq]

Honestly, I'm not sure bro. I'm just 18 and I'm also wondering the same thing. Dermatologists usually say it's alright, but over the internet everyone says that it is the most stupid thing you can do. I think at the end of the day you have to make your own decision after outweighing the pros and cons

[Shank]

I understand the pros and cons of finasteride since I've been looking at it for ages. I suppose I can handle the side effects and all but I am just really worried that if I start with finasteride now, by the time I'm 30 my hair loss resumes again and finasteride doesn't help by then.

[danylq]

I understand the pros and cons of finasteride since I've been looking at it for ages. I suppose I can handle the side effects and all but I am just really worried that if I start with finasteride now, by the time I'm 30 my hair loss resumes again and finasteride doesn't help by then.

Well, Finasteride has to be used for as long as you want to maintain your hair by my understanding since it blocks DHT, and will continue to do so for the period of time you consume it.

Edit: Therefore it should halt your hairloss unless you are balding at an extreme fast rate, which I highly doubt. The big three (Propecia, minoxidil and Nizoral) would do wonders for you since you already have so much density. For instance, I've been using Minox+Niz for about 2-3 months and my hair looks so much better. Adding propecia to my regimen would probably take me back to NW1 completely..

[RobertBrown]

I understand the pros and cons of finasteride since I've been looking at it for ages. I suppose I can handle the side effects and all but I am just really worried that if I start with finasteride now, by the time I'm 30 my hair loss resumes again and finasteride doesn't help by then.

BE careful, there's a lot of side effect that comes with using Finasteride. Why don't you start with Minoxidil for a couple of months and see how it goes? There are two different brands of Minoxidil and both have their pros and cons. There are also studies that compare Minoxidil 5% and 10% and the use of a derma roller also helped hair regrowth.

If Minoxidil doesn't work, then I'll suggest to hop on Finasteride. Good luck!

[Furby]

I'd agree with RobertBrown. There are many side effects associated with Fin, and since all of the studies that have documented Fin's side effects were on middle-aged men, it's hard to say whether you'd be putting yourself at risk or if you'd interfere with your maturation.

If you can afford it, you could try some more innocuous treatments, such as green tea + taurine + biotin + zinc. These natural solutions tend to work for a variety of hair loss symptoms (MPB as well as other forms of alopecia), so regardless of the cause, I'd expect you'd see some measure of improvement.

In any case, keep doing a good job of documenting your hairline!

[Shank]

Thanks all for the replies! Here are some pics of my frontal hairline and sides from when I was 14 years old (2011). Mind helping me judge if there has been any receding of the hairline?

https://imgur.com/a/9w6I3