Baldness warning signs are hard to swallow.
Hair thinning, a widow’s peak, and a receding hairline are some of the things that get most men worried. Going bald is actually a pretty common problem. Most men will start to see signs of balding when they reach 30. If you want to stop the problem, you need to start looking for a solution before you lose all your hair.
But does anything actually work? Clearly, there is no magic solution that promises results. Yeah, you can try changing your diet or exercise once you see that you’re starting to shed off hair. But you need to try more drastic solutions if you really want your crowning glory back.
So what are your options? What really works?
A Little Science Behind Baldness
Before we look at the solution, let’s learn a bit how the balding process works first.
One hard truth: You can blame your genes and hormones for your baldness. As you age, hormones can cause your hair follicles to shrink. This means hair grows thinner and shorter until they just stop growing. Most men will go completely bald by the age 50.
Testosterone is a hormone of interest. Through a complex body process, Testosterone turns into dihydrotestosterone (DHT). DHT is basically the hormone responsible for making hair follicles smaller and weaker. In this sense, having too much testosterone is bad for you.
But don’t worry, thanks to science, you don’t need to be embarrassed by baldness. If you are looking for a solution, here are some products that you might want to try out.
Finasteride
How it works: Finasteride stops the problem right from the very start. It helps the conversion of testosterone to DHT. Without DHT, there is nothing to cause the weakening of hair follicles. This means that there will be less hair loss.
Pros: Finasteride actually does its job of preserving and regrowing hair. A huge chunk of men who started using it says they either stopped losing hair or started growing it back. It’s super easy to use too. It comes in a form of a pill that you need to take once a day. No complications, no weekly trip to the doctor. No one even needs to know that you are taking it!
Cons: Most people don’t see a side effect when using Finasteride. But once you start using it, you need to keep using it. You are basically making a commitment to use this for life if you want to keep seeing results. A small percentage of men who used Finasteride also reported a decrease in sex drive but was easily reversed. Generally speaking, Finasteride is a safe option, but always let your doctor know if you experience something unusual.
Minoxidil
How it works: In a nutshell, Minoxidil works by creating an ideal environment where hair can grow. It works by making the hair follicles wider. Minoxidil essentially works by increasing the blood supply to dying capillaries that are being attacked by DHT. It was originally a discovered as a drug to treat high blood pressure but many patients complained of excessive hair growth as a side effect. It was then engineered and turned into a topical formulation that promotes hair growth.
Pros: Just like Finasteride, it works too! A lot of men have seen the positive effects of Minoxidil when it comes to treating male baldness.It helps slow the hair process and helps increase hair density. It’s also easy and convenient to use.
Cons: It takes a while to see the results of using Minoxidil for hair growth. In fact, you will likely shred hair first before you see grow them again. Depending on the situation, you might have to wait 3-6 months before seeing the results. You also need to keep using it if you want to continue seeing results.
Hair Growth Shampoo
How it works: There are a lot of different hair-growth shampoos in the market today. How each one works depends on the ingredients in the specific shampoo. Here are some of the common ingredients we see:
Biotin – It’s a B-complex vitamin that promotes hair growth. It also makes hair stronger and thicker.
Ketoconazole – Often found in anti-dandruff shampoos, Ketoconazole is also known to help improve hair density and size.
Essential Oils – Natural remedies often believed to speed up hair growth.
Saw Palmetto – Plant that is believed to block the conversion of testosterone to DHT.
Pros: Hair growth shampoos are convenient to use and they are probably the first solution that balding men are willing to try because they are familiar, convenient, and cheap. Plus, they rarely pose a risk to safety.
Cons: With a lot of different ingredients in hair growth shampoos today, it’s hard to choose which one is the most effective. Plus, most shampoos are very mild so the results might take a while to see. In fact, research is limited when it comes to how these ingredients help in hair growth.
Conclusion
It’s always good to look at different options, but if you want something that has already been proven effective, then you must go for the “dynamic duo” Finasteride and Minoxidil. You don’t have to experiment with different kinds of shampoo anymore because these two have already been proven effective! Plus, they are generally proven to be safe to use, too.
It’s perfectly fine to start with using hair-growth shampoos, but if you want to see results, you need to try alternatives too. Don’t worry, bit Finasteride and Minoxidil are generally safe. The side effects are rarely serious.
The important thing is to act as early as possible. Hair loss doesn’t happen overnight, so you definitely have time to act as soon as you notice that your hair is thinning. The earlier you act, the more hair you’ll be able to save.
Good luck!
