Propecia (Finasteride)
In late 1997, The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Propecia for distribution in the United States as a hair-restoring drug. Propecia represents a medical breakthrough. It was the first pill that effectively treats genetic hair loss. Since it has emerged Propecia sales have been brisk. Some analysts are already predicting sales of $1 billion over the next five years.
The active agent in Propecia is a drug called finasteride. The manufacturer of the drug, Merck, deduced that Propecia might work to stimulate hair growth when it found men taking the company’s prostate medication Proscar were growing hair. Propecia is a lower-dose form of Proscar developed specifically to fight hair loss.
Propecia is an option only for men. Propecia is dangerous for women of childbearing age and can lead to severe birth defects. In addition studies have determined that it is not even effective for postmenopausal women. The result of a study with 136 women of postmenopausal age was released in the summer of 1998. This study showed that women taking Propecia once a day showed no significant change in hair count as compared to women who were taking a placebo. Even Merck Research Laboratories accepted that no positive effect for Propecia on hair could be claimed for women. Propecia is currently available only as a prescription medication. It comes in the form of 1mg tablet. The normal recommended daily dosage is a 1mg tablet to be taken with or without food.
Propecia works through its main ingredient finasteride. Finasteride is known to work on a key underlying chemical cause of hereditary hair loss. It is known that men with hereditary hair loss have increased levels of a hormone called Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in their scalps. DHT is a by-product of the male hormone testosterone. Testosterone is converted to DHT when it reacts with a natural enzyme that is found in human skin cells called 5 alpha-reductase. The presence of DHT in the scalp is related to the thinning of hair follicles and the resulting emergence of hereditary hair loss. Propecia does not directly counteract DHT to combat hair loss. Instead, Propecia reduces the presence of DHT in the scalp by blocking the action of the enzyme 5 alpha-reductase.