Undoubtedly, after the approval of Propecia finasteride as a viable hair loss treatment, millions of people across the world are filled with new hope. Available in all licensed pharmacies in the UK as well as in most countries of the European Union, Propecia can be bought after obtaining a valid prescription from a licensed medical practitioner.
What is Propecia?
Propecia is an oral prescription pill that is recommended for men who suffer from male pattern baldness. This drug has the ability to correct genetic dependent factors, resulting in increased hair growth on the scalp and curtailing further hair loss. In fact, this is the first pill on the market that successfully treats irreversible causes of male pattern hair loss, popularly known as male pattern baldness or androgenetic alopecia.
How does Propecia work?
Propecia works with the help of its active ingredient called finasteride. Propecia works in your body to stop the natural conversion process of testosterone into dihydrotestosterone or DHT. As a result, Propecia helps lower DHT levels, putting a gradual stop to further hair loss. Propecia can help men with mild to moderate form of hair loss.
Propecia is a serious prescription drug which has undergone several clinical trials that have shown some very effective results - it stops further hair fall and encourages new hair growth. Therefore, Propecia is considered to be one of the most effective hair loss treatments on the market.
What is the main ingredient in Propecia?
Finasteride is the main active ingredient in Propecia. It works by blocking the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone. The main ingredient, finasteride, helps reduce the natural body hormone (DHT) levels in your body. This prevents the hair follicles from becoming affected by this hormone, which in turn proceed to go back to their normal size. A significant decrease in DHT levels result in increased hair re-growth and reduced hair loss. But, finasteride does not affect the hair growth on other parts of the body.
What is Finasteride?
Finasteride is an antiandrogen that was first used for the treatment of prostate enlargement, which is also known as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). This active ingredient acts by inhibiting the conversion of the male hormone, testosterone, to the follicle depleting dihydrotestosterone (DHT). With the discovery of the positive effects of finasteride on hair growth, the true cause of hereditary baldness in men was easily found. Since, a search for other alternative DHT blockers has begun.
Comparing Propecia with other hair loss treatments
Dutasteride (trade name Avodart), similar to finasteride, is currently undergoing phase III clinical testing for hair loss treatment. Although, not yet approved for hair loss, it is being prescribed to male patients who no longer respond to finasteride. A more powerful hair loss drug than finasteride, Dutasteride also has much more severe side effects.
Flutamide (trade name Eulexin), is an extremely powerful antiandrogen, works by binding to the androgen receptors and thus actively competing with DHT. It is believed that topical applications of this drug might have fewer adverse side effects and could therefore be used to combat hereditary hair loss effectively, but this area remains unresearched at present.
Spironolactone (trade name Aldactone), is another antiandrogen that acts by binding to androgen receptors and competing with DHT. Popularly used in women to treat acne, hair loss and hirsutism, there are some generic topical applications that contain spironolactone for the treatment of male pattern baldness. However, it has never been approved to treat hair loss in men and should therefore be avoided.
Aminexil, developed by L'Oreal, treats baldness in men and women. Although similar to minoxidil, amenexil’s mode of action has not yet been established.
NEOSH101 is the most promising novel drug under development. Still in the phase II clinical trial stage, this drug is supposed to work as a hair growth stimulant that can help improve the chances of hair re-growth.
Additionally, there are other possible drug treatments that are believed to help treat hereditary baldness, which include superoxide dismutase, fluridil, ketoconazole, alfatradiol, etc., but none of these drugs have undergone serious clinical studies that will help evaluate their effects on hair loss by way of their mechanism of action.For this reason, Propecia remains the main weapon against genetically-determined male pattern hair loss.
