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  1. #1
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    Default 23yr old needs some direction

    hi, this is my first post and i hope its in the right place. im a 23yr old male from australia, always had a high hairline but in the last few years it has been receding (temple balding) and thinning, just noticing a tiny bit of thinning at the back aswell. i have very fine straight hair (sholder length atm but gona shave it soon). i dont want to wait til is to late to do something about it. so my question is this, if i start taking duasteride or finasteride, what quality ov hair should i expect to get on thoes drugs? let me say, I DONT EXPECT MIRACLES, i would be happy just to hang onto what i have and maybe get sum small regrowth. i worry about the initial shedding and cant decide between proscar/avodart? also, i take a multi-vitamin that has 1mg ov saw palmetto, should i stop taking it? final question, would a product like viviscal be benefical while on avodart/proscar? any advice would be appreciated and thankyou in advance. oh, and im a norwood 2, heading toward 3

  2. #2
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    Hi!
    It sounds like you're still in the early stages of hair loss, so you probably will have good results from DHT suppression. If this is the case, you can expect to maintain the hair you have, and there's also a reasonable chance you can improve the quality of it while possibly regrowing some. One thing to keep in mind is that everyone responds differently to these treatments (some not at all), so it's impossible to know how you will respond until you try.
    Dutasteride seems to be quite effective for treating male-pattern hair loss, but I should tell you it's not FDA-approved for that purpose. We have less knowledge about the long-term effects of taking dutasteride for genetic balding.

    Awhile back I corresponded with an IAHRS doctor who said that while he does prescribe dutasteride for hair loss, he recommends his patients first start on finasteride and take it for at least six months. This will let you know how well your body tolerates DHT suppression. At that point, you can move onto dut if you wish, although you may not know whether DHT suppression is working for you until a year after starting treatment.

    I've never heard of Viviscal but from glancing at their website, it probably doesn't do anything. If you want supporting treatments for finasteride/dutasteride, your best bets would be minoxidil and 2% ketoconazole shampoo. Talk to a doctor about all these medications (preferably a hair loss specialist) and then make your choices from there.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by jo1989 View Post
    so my question is this, if i start taking duasteride or finasteride, what quality ov hair should i expect to get on thoes drugs?
    It is not possible for anyone to give you an accurate answer for that question. The quality of any hair that might grow back does improve over time if you continue treatment. It takes a long time though.



    Quote Originally Posted by jo1989 View Post
    i worry about the initial shedding and cant decide between proscar/avodart?
    Shedding is part of the process. The follicles that have been damaged by DHT need to shed their hairs as they are healing. Shedding is associated with every treatment for hereditary hair loss that actually works. Shedding stops eventually and the hair that sheds out usually grows back. When it does grow back it will be thicker and stronger than it was before.

    You need to talk to your doctor about which if these two medications is right for you. The typical protocal is for 1mg Finasteride per day (Propecia). As with every other medication, both of these medications have possible side effects. The side effect profile for Finasteride is not as bad as Dutasteride.



    Quote Originally Posted by jo1989 View Post
    also, i take a multi-vitamin that has 1mg ov saw palmetto, should i stop taking it?
    It is always best to get your nutrition from the foods that you eat. However if taking a mulit-vitamin helps you fell better, by all means take it. I take a "Hair, Skin & Nails" multi-vitamin that is loaded with Biotin myself. I don't know if it actually helps but I take it anyways.

    There is no good evidence to suggest natural treatments such as Saw Palmetto can do anything meaningfull to treat hereditary hair loss.



    Quote Originally Posted by jo1989 View Post
    ...and im a norwood 2, heading toward 3
    Then you are in good shape and should be able to arrest your hair loss and prevent it from progressing further for many years. Depending on how long you have been at that pattern, you may be able to grow some hair back.

  4. #4
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    thanks for the reply, if i start finasteride, what would be the lowest dose that would be effective in hair loss (there so much info out there, everything from .2 every day to a full 5mg everyday)? With most drugs (with some exception like antibiotics) i like to take small doses and work my way up so my body dosent go into shock. If i was to divide a proscar into 4 or 5 pieces and take it every second day would that be effective? How often should i use a ketoconazole shampoo each week and can i mix it with my reqular shampoo. Also, i was very skeptical about viviscal, but it was on dateline NBC in the follicle five series. my thought process behing hair vitamins (and i kno theres alot ov snake oils and scams out there) is that if im shedding hair on fin and growing new hair back, would it be important to take hair vitamins to assist the new hair that is growing?

  5. #5
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    Thanks for the reply Tracy C. i agree about saw palmetto, does nothing for hair loss. but i did read somewhere that if you on fin you should not take xsaw palmetto as i can increase sexual side-effects (dont kno if this is true or not) my multi vit hat 1mg so not a large amount, but i take it daily. maybe i leave swisse and switch to blackmores. thanks again

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by jo1989 View Post
    if i start finasteride, what would be the lowest dose that would be effective in hair loss...
    The typical protocol is for 1mg (propecia) or 1.25mg (1/4 Proscar) Finasteride per day.



    Quote Originally Posted by jo1989 View Post
    With most drugs (with some exception like antibiotics) i like to take small doses and work my way up so my body dosent go into shock.
    I do the same thing. Propecia does not apply to me but I do take Spiro. When I started Spiro I started with the lowest dose and worked my way up to the standard protocol for female pattern hair loss.



    Quote Originally Posted by jo1989 View Post
    If i was to divide a proscar into 4 or 5 pieces and take it every second day would that be effective?
    I am unable to answer that but I do know that some men do that.



    Quote Originally Posted by jo1989 View Post
    How often should i use a ketoconazole shampoo each week and can i mix it with my reqular shampoo.
    If you are using the 2% strength, you should not use it more than once per week in place of your regular shampoo. If you are using the 1% strength, you can use that up to twice per week in place of your regular shampo. It is totally fine to continue using your regular shampoo on the days that you do not wash your hair with Nizoral.

    When you use Nizoral, Lather up as soon as you get in the shower and allow it to soak for three to five minutes to alow the medicine to absorb into your scalp.



    Quote Originally Posted by jo1989 View Post
    Also, i was very skeptical about viviscal, but it was on dateline NBC in the follicle five series. my thought process behing hair vitamins (and i kno theres alot ov snake oils and scams out there) is that if im shedding hair on fin and growing new hair back, would it be important to take hair vitamins to assist the new hair that is growing?
    I saw that show. I don't remember if it aired before or after I started using the laser comb but I found it interesting because right there in front of God and everybody was a person getting benefit from using the laser comb. I don't know if vitamins actually help but I take mine anyways. I do know that my laser comb helps so I continue to use it to this day.

  7. #7
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    thanks again Tracy, im gona get a script from my gp for fin and plan on starting before the end of march, im also cutting my hair really short in the next couple weeks (which im kinda scared to do as ive had it shoulder length since i was 17-18 to cover my bald temples) so i will start taking pics from the time its cut and hopefuly in 12months will start seeing some results. if anyone has any advice/suggestions on anything else (suppliments) i should be taking, or not taking while on fin and nizoral 1% would like to hear it? i have quit smoking just over 8 months ago (best thing i have ever done and my gp and dentist are happy) and currently take swisse multi-vit, krill oil, exercise alot and have kept my weight steady, between 63-64kg since i was a teenager. oh, one last thing, i have always been scared to try minox (rogaine) as ive read ov people complaing of "regaine eyes and wrinkles", claming the product has prematurley aged them. i hope this does not happen on fin as i have sensitive acne prone skin (which is fine now thanks to L'Oreal haha) has anyone found fin to be drying or aggravating to their skin?

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by jo1989 View Post
    oh, one last thing, i have always been scared to try minox (rogaine) as ive read ov people complaing of "regaine eyes and wrinkles", claming the product has prematurley aged them.
    If Rogaine actually did that, women would not go any where near the stuff. I have been using Rogaine for years now. I have not experienced anything even remotely like that.

    I had never even heard of these bizzar "side effects" until recently - without any photographic evidence mind you... So I am having a very difficult time believing these "side effects" are actually side effects. I think it is much more likely that these are people who are allergic to the medicine. Some people are allergic to some medications. That's just the way the cookie crumbles sometimes.

    If you do decide to try Rogaine, start small and taper your way up to the standard protocol. If you do have a problem with it, taper back off of it.

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