How To Treat Thinning Hair
Posted on 25. Oct, 2009 by Al Benson in Women's Health
There are all kinds of hair loss treatments available on the web and other places but only a few will really help you with your hair loss. You can find all kinds of remedies and natural hair growth products with big claims. The problem is most of these have never been studied in clinical trials to prove whether they are really effective or not.
There are only two drugs available that have been studied by the US Food and Drug Administration and have shown positive effects on hair loss. Both of these drugs do a good job of helping you keep the hair you still have by keeping the hair follicles healthy. They will jump start some of the follicles that are dormant but only if they have not grown hair for a short time.
The first drug, Finasteride, was originally being developed to treat male urinary tract problems. In particular, it was targeting enlarge prostates. During clinical trials anecdotal evidence indicated many men on the drug were also seeing relief from their hair problems.
Further testing proved that this drug does help to stop hair loss and improve the health of existing hair units. Finasteride is taken in tablet form once a day every day. Treatment is ongoing because the gains are quickly lost if the drug is not longer consumed.
This treatment works well for men only. Women of child bearing age are never prescribed this medication because of the potential for birth defects. In fact, it is so powerful that women are not even allowed to touch the tablets because the active ingredient may be absorbed through the skin. The drug is effective for men but there are other potential side effect concerns also.
The second drug is called Minoxidil. It also was being developed to treat another condition. In this case, the drug was in trials as a treatment for high blood pressure. It works by enlarging the small blood vessels in the body.
This enlargement of the blood vessels apparently allows for more blood to reach the hair follicles even though the pattern baldness has been inhibiting the supply. Minoxidil is applied to the scalp by rubbing it in every day. This drug is safe for both men and women and in fact is the only one targeted to female pattern baldness.
Both of these drugs have been shown conclusively to have positive effects on pattern baldness. If you are suffering from this condition then one of these may be the solution you have been searching for. The thing to remember is there are some FDA approved remedies that will help you in your fight against baldness.
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