Why Treating Hair Loss Early Gets Better Results

Timing is key when it comes to treating male pattern hair loss. It’s easy to put off starting treatment, ignore early thinning, or hope things will improve on their own. But male pattern baldness is a progressive condition, which means hair loss gradually worsens over time if left untreated.

The good news is that clinically proven treatments like minoxidil and finasteride can slow, stop, and sometimes even reverse hair loss. The earlier you start, the more hair follicles you can protect – and the better your results are likely to be.

Below, we’ll explain the early signs of hair loss to watch for, why acting sooner rather than later leads to better outcomes, and what options are available even if your hair loss is more advanced.

What are the early signs of hair loss to look out for?

Male pattern hair loss (androgenetic alopecia) earned its name from the recognizable pattern of balding: usually starting at the crown and temples. Over time, men usually keep the hair at the back and sides of the head but go bald on top, forming a hairdo that resembles a horseshoe shape.

The stages of hair loss are ranked on a scale of 1-7 using a classification system called the Norwood-Hamilton scale. Stage 1 is no visible hair loss all the way up to Stage 7, which is that horseshoe stage.

Here are some of the early warning signs to keep an eye out for:

• More hair shedding than usual
• Change in your hairline
• More scalp visible
• Hair growing slower than usual (maybe you’re going for haircuts less often than you used to)

Why starting sooner is best

It’s possible to stop hair loss using a variety of clinically proven treatments. The two licensed treatments are:

Minoxidil 5% Spray – promotes blood flow to the hair follicles which encourages healthy conditions for growth, shortens the telogen (resting) phase and lengthens anagen (growth) phase promoting growth of longer and thicker hairs, and potentially activating growth factors.

Finasteride 1mg tablets – blocks the enzyme 5α-reductase, resulting in lowers levels of dihydrotestosterone (DHT), the hormone which causes hair loss. By lowering DHT levels, Finasteride is effective in 90% of men at stopping hair loss.

These active ingredients are also available in a variety of off-label formulations (e.g Minoxidil capsules or Minoxidil & Finasteride Combination Spray) for individuals with different preferences or medical considerations.

Hair loss treatments work best before follicles become inactive. Left unchecked, DHT binds to hair follicles and causes them to shrink. Over time, this means hair falls out and grows back shorter and thinner with each growth cycle, until eventually hair stops growing at all and the hair follicle is considered inactive.

Starting treatment early, at the first signs of thinning, helps prevent this ‘miniaturization’ process, so follicles can keep producing healthy hair and you get to keep your hair. Long-term research supports this: a 10-year study on 523 men using finasteride 1mg daily, men with hair loss ranked 1-3 on the Norwood-Hamilton scale saw a greater improvement than men with more advanced hair loss.

Is it too late?

Even with more advanced hair loss, don’t worry – minoxidil and finasteride are still likely to help stop any further hair loss, and may even help with regrowth. Large clinical trails involving more than 1500 men showed that using finasteride led to significant increases in hair count after 12 months, with further improvements after a second year of treatment.

That said, it’s important to have realistic expectations about the extent of regrowth. Finasteride rarely results in complete reversal of male pattern baldness. In other words, it is probably not possible to grow back a full head of hair if you look like Phil Mitchell. But it can help keep remaining hair and improve density.

For men who are already a little lighter on top, there’s no need to panic – there are still plenty of options. Dutasteride is considered a stronger alternative to finasteride, as it blocks both type-1 and type-2 5α-reductase, so it reduces DHT levels even further, which could be helpful in more advanced cases. Hair transplants are another option which work especially well alongside medication for those wanting to fill in thin areas with hairs that are naturally resistant to DHT. When combined with ongoing treatment, a transplant can help create a fuller, thicker head of hair while protecting your existing hair and helping to prevent future loss.

Our free consultation takes your stage of hair loss, treatment preferences, and medical history into consideration to recommend a plan tailored specifically to you.

All of our blog articles are reviewed for medical accuracy by our Medical Director before publication.

Posted in: All, Hair loss, Men's Hair Care