Hundreds of different hair growth treatments are available on the market, but only a handful have been proven to be effective products in independent clinical studies. The only pill that has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat male hair loss and promote hair growth is finasteride.
Propecia
Propecia was the first pill to be approved by the FDA as a hair loss treatment, in 1997, and remains an extremely popular hair loss treatment. Propecia is simply a 1mg tablet of finasteride.
Finasteride was originally developed to treat enlarged prostates and hair growth was one of the observed side effects. It works by stopping the conversion of testosterone into dihydrotestosterone, or DHT, which essentially attacks the hair follicle and causes it to shrink. Eventually the hair follicle will be unable to produce healthy, visible hair.
According to the American Hair Loss Association, Propecia reduced DHT levels as much as 60 percent when taken daily and as a result 65 percent of Propecia users showed improved hair growth during clinical trials.
Proscar
Proscar is 5mg of finasteride and is intended to treat prostate issues, but can be prescribed to treat men's hair loss. It is not the higher dosage of finasteride in each tablet that attracts users to Proscar compared to Propecia, it's a cost issue. Proscar costs less per milligram of finasteride than Propecia, so many men will simply take Proscar tablets and split them into four parts.
Dr. Michael Reed, who has treated patients with Proscar for more than 10 years, told NBC Digital Health Network he believes Proscar also works better in some patients than Propecia.
Avodart
Dutasteride is sold under the brand name Avodart and is a promising hair loss treatment. While it has not been approved by the FDA as a hair loss treatment as of 2010, it has been tested extensively as a hair growth product.
A test that appeared in the December 2006 issue of the "Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology" concluded that 2.5mg of dustasteride was superior to 5mg of finasteride in regards to new hair growth.
According to Grey Hair Loss, dutasteride is the only existing product that is a strong candidate for FDA approval as a hair loss treatment. Avodart has been approved by the FDA to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia, or enlarged prostates.
References
- "Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology"; The Importance of Dual 5Alpha-Reductase Inhibition in the Treatment of Male Pattern Hair Loss: Results of a Randomized Placebo-Controlled Study of Dutasteride vs. Finasteride; E.A. Olsen et al; Dec., 2006
- American Hair Loss Association: Treatment
- Grey Hair Loss: Active Substances Used in Medicinal Hair Loss Remedies
- NBA Digital Health Network: Some Off-Label Uses of Medications Promote Hair Growth
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