Author: Dr. William Rassman

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Alcohol and Finasteride Taken Together

You’ve mentioned in the past that alcohol and finasteride is safe.

But…is it as effective? I know some other drugs are less effective if you have alcohol in your system…something to do with the liver or kidneys working overtime to filter out the alcohol, and being unable to really focus on absorbing all the finasteride.

Any reason to be concerned?

WineIt really depends how much alcohol you drink. If you drink to a point of a drunken stupor every day or have cirrhosis of your liver from all the drinking, or have dietary deficiencies associated with your drinking, I would think many things are not safe.

From a biochemical point of view, both alcohol and Propecia (finasteride) are metabolized in the liver by an enzyme called cytochrome P450 (Cyt-P450), so there is definitely an interaction (as with many other drugs). If you have one or two glasses of wine with dinner, I doubt it would be a problem.

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Alfatradiol for Treating Hair Loss?

What is your opinion on the german products pantostin and ell cranell? They contain Alfatradiol, could this be effective for AGA. Thanks.

Take a look at this study I found. It is not the best study, nor is it the most promising… but it is something. Personally, I don’t think alfatradiol is effective for AGA (androgenic alopecia).

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Alcohol and Finasteride?

Hi doc,
First I appreciate you on providing expert level suggestions to people all around the world. I think it is really helpful for many patients. I am on Finax (Dr Reddys) for the past month taking daily 1mg at night. I have two questions:

1. I am very much tempted to take alcohol on weekend nights and skip the pills for those days to be on the safer side, and continue on the weekdays. I want to know whether I will get the benefit of the medication or it will slow down the effects?
2. Can I take the pills in the morning during breakfast even if I am on drinks in the nights, does it also effect the medication?

Please help me in understanding my concerns. Thanks in Advance!

I think you’re under the impression that alcohol cancels out the effects of finasteride, but that simply isn’t the case. There’s no adverse reaction to taking alcohol and taking finasteride on the same day. If you want to give in to your temptation of drinking alcohol on the weekend nights, it is not for me to judge or to advise you on. I wouldn’t down a bottle of booze with Propecia (or the generic Finax), but having both on the same day won’t make the finasteride ineffective.

I prefer to take the medication in the morning, but you can take the medication at any time of the day or night. Just take it every day.


2010-03-16 08:38:49Alcohol and Finasteride?

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Alcohol and Testosterone Levels

Dr. Rassman,

Below is a study that links alcohol and testosterone levels- Does an increase in testosterone levels necessarily accelerate hair loss in men who are predisposed to lose their hair? Thank you-

Study abstract: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2003 Apr;27(4):682-5. Testosterone increases in men after a low dose of alcohol.

We have known for some time that alcohol is metabolized by the liver, as is testosterone. I can not connect the dots between the casual drinker and the hair loss victim.


2011-01-27 09:52:14Alcohol and Testosterone Levels

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Alfatradiol for hair loss, does it work?

I‘m from Germany and I suffer from hairloss. I was prescribed fin around 2 years ago. Recently it got worse and I went to a another dermatologist, since I moved places. He told me that he doesnt recommend taking fin and instead take Alfatradiol (apparently it has the same effect as fin but its topical?). Have you heard of this? The product is called Ell-Cranell. I cant seem to find a lot of studies.

Alfatradiol is a weak estrogen and 5-reductase inhibitor medication which is used topically in the treatment of pattern hair loss (androgenic alopecia or pattern baldness) in men and women. You might be better off with topical finasteride plus minoxidil as these are stronger medications.


2020-09-01 09:50:11Alfatradiol for hair loss, does it work?

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All Medications Have Side Effects

I was watching TV last night and saw a commercial for a depression medication called Abilify (aripiprazole). I often treat and see patients on anti-depressant medications and it is a great benefit for them (for treating their depression). What struck me about the TV commercial was the lengthy side effect warnings, including stroke, high fever, muscle rigidity, high blood sugar, higher risk of infection, etc. These side effects are very rare, and many other anti-depressant medications have very similar possible side effects.

Then I turned on my computer to look up the common side effect of a popular erectile dysfunction medication most of you probably heard of: Viagra (sildenafil). Some reported and documented side effects include blindness, heart attack, hearing loss, etc.

Which brings me to the controversy of Propecia (finasteride) and its negative sexual side effects. I acknowledge there are websites devoted to the unreported side effects of Propecia (as well as other medications) and that there are men who are experiencing something. I really cannot say if what they are experiencing is due to Propecia, but for the sake of argument, let’s give them the benefit of doubt. I think we can all agree the chances of getting these side effects are relatively low. From personal experience in treating thousands of patients for over 10+ years I personally have not seen any permanent side effects associated with Propecia, and about 1 to 2% of men do experience negative sexual side effects (which have been all reversible). Again, this is from my personal experience among thousands of patients I have seen.

My point is this: ALL MEDICATIONS HAVE SIDE EFFECTS. You must understand this and discuss the benefits as well as the risks with your doctor and make an educated and informed decision. Millions of people use Viagra knowing that they can go blind or have hearing loss… but the risk of this happening is extremely low! If you believe the extreme side effects associated with Propecia, it is your choice not to take it. To some, sex may be more important than their vision or hearing. And to others, hair is more important than their sexual activities. Of note, I can say that I have prescribed Viagra to men who are taking Propecia and they still have their hair, sight, and hearing.


2011-02-15 15:12:29All Medications Have Side Effects

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Allergic Reaction to Hair Dye Causing Thinning in 15 Year Old?

Im am a 15 year old male and have noticed i’ve been losing my hair on a regular basis since i dyed my hair a year ago, i think i might have taken an alergic reaction but its been over a year and im still losing my hair. i do get paranoid and depressed about it as i have longish hair and that is one of my better qualitys. it is receding at the front and strangely the part above the ear doesnt grow in very well. i could really use an opinion either way just to settle my mind. thank you

There is no way to answer your question without examining you. Since there seems to be a one to one relationship between dying your hair and the hair loss, I suspect that the connection may be real and that some damage was done during the dying process. Was it done professionally? Can you go back to those that did it and ask them about it? Generally, good professionals who dye the hair usually know about mixture and concentrations that are safe. If you did it yourself, maybe it was not done safely. Tooooooo many questions that need to be answered here for this to be an ‘online’ interchange for producing value.


2006-08-22 06:30:41Allergic Reaction to Hair Dye Causing Thinning in 15 Year Old?

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All of My Body and Scalp Hair Just Stopped Growing!

Five days ago the hair on my legs, underarms, etc. just stopped growing. I am 45 yrs. of age. No other symptoms except that for the past two years I have had very irregular periods approximately every two weeks. It has been 4 weeks since the last one this time and still no period. I have been to my gyno a year ago and everything seemed ok. I am scared that I will now loose the hair on my head but so far so good even though it is not growing any longer.

I am not your doctor and I can not offer an opinion based upon what you gave me above. However, at 45 years old with a change in your menstrual cycle, the first thing I would think about is menopause, so your gynecologist may be the first place to look for answers.

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All of The Falling Hairs Are the Same Length

Thank you for making yourself accessable on the blog Dr. Rassman.

I’m having a peculiar issue with my hair. I shaved my head completely bald apx. 3 months ago to achieve a good baseline to monitor any future potential regrowth. My hair over my entire
head is generally about 1.5 inches long now. When I do see hairs that fall out in the shower or on my pillow they are strangely without question the same uniformed length(being about 1/4 inch long). Why is this so? or how can this be? They are always the same length, being much shorter than the majority of the other hairs on my head that are not falling out. They are however, no less thicker or thinner in diameter than the other hairs. Thanks for your time again.

We lose 100-150 hairs per day normally as the hair cycles. Considering that you cut the hair to equal lengths, then the ‘old’ normal hair that is shed will have the same length as the ‘new’ hair that is not shed.


2007-10-03 10:31:30All of The Falling Hairs Are the Same Length

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All of the hair on this man’s head is transplanted (about 7000 grafts)

Not only did he have hair transplants, but to make up the difference between what he needed from a donor area that would not support his hair transplant needs, we balanced it against Scalp Micropigmentation which, when combined with proper styling, gave him this look. He is a swimmer and would generally swim a mile or more each and every day. At one time, going in the water was a nightmare for him, because his balding showed. Now, he can be at the beach and freely swim whenever he wants. He just pulls his head back when he exits the water and his hair falls back just as shown in the first styling photo below