Hair loss is difficult to deal with. Regardless of your age or gender, hair is seen as a mark of honor, of sorts, or a window into your health and youth. Although thinning hair seems to be a death sentence to your scalp, there are proven methods to slow the loss of your hair or encourage new growth.
What Causes Hair Loss?
Hair loss is caused by a number of different factors, ranging from genetics to environmental factors, to illness. Hormones are responsible for monitoring and regulating your scalp’s growth, rest, and loss cycles. Hormones can be impeded short-term by significant stressors (losing a loved one, for instance), or long-term by physical changes such as those brought about by chemotherapy or similarly intensive treatments for illness.
Regardless of the cause, however, there are consistently useful methods to prove the appearance of balding or thinning hair. Some of these methods can be used without a prescription, while a physician must recommend others.
Remedies for Hair Loss
Countless urban myths and anecdotal evidence point people toward supplements and over-the-counter topical treatments for hair loss, but only a handful of treatments have been studied and proven effective by the FDA. These treatments are not magical pills designed to increase growth patterns overnight, but can be effective in strengthening existing hair, slowing loss, and improving growth over a period of months or years.
#1. Minoxidil
Minoxidil is a treatment that may fall under another brand name, but the basic idea remains the same: when applied topically, hair loss slows, and some follicles may even experience enough stimulation to grow new hair shafts. This particular form of treatment comes in different strength levels. Lower doses may take longer to work or be less effective, while higher doses can cause rashes, irritation, and blistering on the scalp following application.
#2. Finasteride
Finasteride is also found under other brand names, most commonly Propecia. Unlike the topical nature of Minoxidil, Finasteride is an internal medication designed to block the underlying mechanism responsible for baldness in men: the hormone DHT. This particular treatment is designed specifically for males, rather than functioning for both women and men. It, too, takes time to show results, and has been linked to some instances of sexual dysfunction following use.
