If hair loss is your destiny, is there really anything you can do to KEEP FROM GOING BALD?
By Nicole Cusick

Each year Americans-mostly men-spend an estimated $1 billion trying to keep their hair. There’s no shortage of new stuff for them to buy, either. This year the hair-restoration hype focused on the HairMax LaserComb and Fekkai More, a high-end vitamin-enriched treatment that’s supposed to remove buildup of the hair-killing hormone DHT.

But do they or their competitors stand up to scrunity? At least one doctor isn’t sold. “Hair loss depends on genetics and family history,” says plastic surgeon Dr. Armand Lucas, who performs hair transplants at the Cleveland Clinic. “If you are destined to go bald, nothing will help.” That doesn’t mean you can’t try to delay the inevitable. Here are your options.

CELEBRITY HAIR RESTORATION OPTIONS

Fekkai More
Best For: Those who believe in miracles and/or informercials.
How it works: Released early this year. More’s shampoo and conditioner contain niacin and supposedly remove DHT, the hormone that kills hair follicles.
Claim: According to Fekkai, results come in three months.
Effectiveness: In a study, 69 percent of participants saw an increase in hair fullness.
Cons: It’s a lot to pay for what is essentially shampoo.
Cost: $100 for up to 90 days worth
Where to find it: Sephora stores or sephora.com
You’ll look like: Bruce Willis

HairMax Lasercomb
Best For: Guys who frequent the Sharper Image.
How it works: HairMax says its laser stimulates follicles. They also say it has FDA “clearance,” not nearly as hard to get as FDA approval.
Claim: The HairMax folks say results take two to three and a half months.
Effectiveness: In a tiny manufacturer-funded study, participants grew about 19 hairs per square centimeter.
Cons: If you’re bald you won’t have much to comb.
Cost: $395
Where to find it: lasercomb.net
You’ll look like: Woody Harrelson

Minoxidil
Best For: Men who have only recently noticed thinning.
How it works: Minoxidil, the active ingredient in Rogaine, is one of the two FDA-approved treatments that have been shown to grow hair.
Claim: Growth could appear in two to four months.

Effectiveness: In one study, 70 percent of patients had 50 percent or more hair after 30 months of use. The product won’t help receding hairlines.
Cons: Results stop when treatment does.
Cost: $25 for a month’s supply
Where to find it: Any drugstore, rogaine.com
You’ll look like: Mel Gibson

Finasteride
Best For: People who want something stronger than topical treatments
How it works: Sold as Propecia, this FDA-approved drug reduces DHT.
Claim: 9 out of 10 men in studies regrew hair or kept their hair.
Effectiveness: In one study, 70 percent of patients grew more hair over a year.
Cons: Not a good choice if your partner is pregnant. Expectant mothers are cautioned not to handle broken pills, which is scary.
Cost: $60-$140 a month
Where to find it: Doc’s office
You’ll look like: Billy Bob Thornton

Hair Transplant
Best For: The rich, the vain
How it works: These days doctors take hair-bearing scalp from your head, then transplant individual hairs to bare areas- a big improvement over early methods that used patches of hair resulting in the dreaded doll-head look.
Claim: Within a few months the transplanted hair takes root and grows naturally.
Effectiveness: It works, and it can look very natural.
Cons: Can hurt, and it’s costly
Cost: Several grand
Where to find it: A specialist’s office
You’ll look like: Matthew McConaughey

HOW TO SHAVE YOUR HEAD
Another way to deal with baldness: Enhance it

1. TRIM YOUR HEAD
Start by clipping hair as short as possible- no longer than an eight of an inch.

2. SHOWER
Hot water will open pores and soften hair. Shampoo, then exfoliate with HeadShed ($9; headblade.com).

3. LUBE UP
Apply shaving gel or cream to your scalp while it’s still wet. Billy Jealousy’s Hydroplane silicone-based shave cream is ideal for head-shaving ($20; billyjealousy.com).

4. START SHAVING
Use a razor designed for the scalp, such as the HeadBlade Sport ($15; headblade.com). Go against the grain for a closer shave; if this proves too irritating though just go with the grain.

5. MAINTAIN
Apply a soothing aftershave lotion. Finally, use sunscreen. Matte for Men makes a head-specific SPF 25 lotion ($20; matteformen.com).

MetroSource NY

Instinct Magazine - June 2007

The New York Times March 8, 2007