I Need To Understand Minoxidil Better

[bremen]

I am considering using Minoxidil foam because I am getting sides on finasteride.

I have some thinning on crown, it's not too bad yet. I mean,I could probably even live with just keeping the look I have right now.

1) I have read people are satisfied with minoxidil and get disappointed later. Does the look of their hair start to go downhill again, or do they just stop seeing progress? If I never stopped it, would it more or less keep working?

Thank you so much for the advice. I thought I had other questions, but I guess that's all that came to mind for now. I might buy it in the next couple days if it sounds right for me.

 

[DoctorHouse]

Minoxidil is just a growth stimulant and will not block DHT. It will just keep your hair longer in the growth phase. Finasteride blocks DHT so it actually helps with one of the components that causes androgenic alopecia. When you use both together they tend to complement each other. Minoxidil studies show after two years your maximum results decline. However, if you have very slow advancing male pattern baldness and just use minoxidil, you might maintain slightly better than if you don't use it. So my suggestion is if you want the best of the two then go for finasteride. If you want the maximum treatment use both.

 

[bremen]

Maximum results are actually around 12 months, but you stay above baseline for several years.

Ok, so after a year, you actually start to go downhill again, but it would maintain it better than if you had never started, at least for a while? Is that right?

I can understand it would stop making things "better" in 12 months, but I wish the advancement you had during those 12 months would stay long term, but I guess not, that is the part I never understood.

 

[jyohan]

I recently bought the minoxidil liquid but i'm still considering if I should use it without consulting a doctor.
Does everyone here who has been using minoxidil consulted a doctor before?