Will Propecia Thin My Beard Hair?

This question was asked by a member of the Hair Restoration Social Community and hair loss forum:

For years, I’ve had a beard and experienced male pattern baldness. Recently, I started using Propecia to fight my hair loss, but I’m worried the drug will affect my beard hairs. Will Propecia (finasteride) affect my beard, or is my worrying unfounded?

As you may well know, finasteride (Propecia), works by inhibiting the process where the hormone Testosterone is converted to Dihydrotestosterone (the hormone directly responsible for genetic male baldness). Ironically enough, the hormone responsible for scalp hair loss (Dihydrotestosterone or DHT) also causes increased body hair growth. This means that when DHT is decreased in the body scalp hair loss ceases, but body hair thinning actually increases.

However, the role of DHT and beard hair is not as clear. Most individuals who report body hair thinning on Propecia do not experience beard hair thinning or issues maintaining facial hair. Interestingly enough, a study once found that increased DHT in females caused facial hair growth, but female balding is a more complicated process. Altogether, it is possible that your body hair may thin on Propecia, but unlikely that your beard hair will be affected.

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Blake Bloxham – formerly “Future_HT_Doc”

Editorial Assistant and Forum Co-Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network, the Hair Loss Learning Center, the Hair Loss Q&A Blog, and the Hair Restoration Forum

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Technorati Tags: male pattern baldness, Propecia, hair loss, finasteride, Dihydrotestosterone, genetic male baldness, DHT