Does Rogaine Work? Review, Before and After, Side Effects, and Results

Rogaine
  • The active ingredient in Rogaine is minoxidil.
  • Minoxidil increases the blood flow to blood vessels surrounding hair follicles.
  • Although Rogaine has a proven track record, it does not work for everyone and there may be better alternatives for your hair loss.

What is Rogaine (minoxidil)?

Minoxidil was initially used to treat high blood pressure until it was discovered that a side effect of the medication is its ability to stimulate new hair growth. This compound is the active ingredient in the popular hair loss treatment, Rogaine.

Although the evidence is solid for Rogaine’s efficacy in preventing hair loss, the lotion doesn’t work as well for everyone. In certain instances, there may even be better treatment alternatives, depending on the pattern of your hair loss.

How does Rogaine work?

Minoxidil, a vasodilator that opens up blood vessels has been shown to effectively help regrow hair. New York City dermatologist, Dr. Bobby Buka, explains that minoxidil works by increasing the flow of blood to the blood vessels surrounding hair follicles. ”It is posited that the chemical mechanism in minoxidil relates to the release of nitric oxide, which boosts hair regrowth,” he notes.

Rogaine is the first FDA approved topical medication that helps regrow hair in both men and women. Backed by more than two decades of clinical trials, there are also recent clinical studies that have confirmed the effectiveness of this intervention.

What are the side effects of Rogaine (minoxidil)?

It is advised that Rogaine should not be used if the skin on your scalp is cut, irritated or sunburned. It should also not be used anywhere on your body except for the scalp to avoid a toxic level of the ointment being absorbed by your body. Finally, do not use any other topical lotions on your head while using Rogaine, unless otherwise advised.

Because minoxidil is a topically applied medication and is not ingested, it is generally regarded as safe. Commonly reported side effects include redness or irritation of the treated and surrounding area of the scalp as well as itchiness, dry scalp, dandruff and undesired hair growth elsewhere.

Severe side effects are rare and may include tachycardia (increased heart rate), chest pain, dizziness, fainting and swollen hands and feet. If you experience any dizziness, an irregular heartbeat, growth of unwanted body or facial hair, unusual weight gain, swelling of your hands or difficulty breathing, you should stop using the lotion immediately and consult your doctor.

Why not Rogaine?

If you are losing hair, you might have heard of Rogaine AKA minoxidil. They are available either as a liquid or as a foam. Rogaine can help you with baldness or androgenetic alopecia. 

Rogaine works to some extent and is ideal for minor hair loss. Rogaine will not work for everyone. It takes around four months for results. Most use Rogaine as a preventive measure especially with a family history of hair loss.

Men’s Rogaine 5% Minoxidil Foam

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Men Rogaine foam will help you treat hair loss, maintain the density of hair, and allow the regrowth of the hair. Men Rogaine boosts the hair follicle and produces the protein clinically proven to regrow more hair.  Men’s Rogaine foam contains emollient and botanical extract. 

Highly recommended by dermatologists resulting in the best anti-hair loss and healthy regrowth of hair. Men’s Rogaine delivers clinically visible results that are easy to apply. Men’s Rogaine is designed to fit into your daily routine.

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Women’s Rogaine 2% Minoxidil Topical Solution for Hair Thinning and Loss

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Treat your thinning hair and reduce hair loss with Women’s Rogaine 2% Minoxidil Topical Solution. Formulated especially for Women boost hair protein production and boost the follicle in hair. 

Hair thickening products and hair loss shampoos will plump the hair temporarily. Women’s rogaine will treat the scalp and reactivate the follicles, which allows the thickening and regrowth of hair.  

Dermatologists recommend Women’s Rogaine. Women’s Rogaine is easy to use that fits appropriately into your daily beauty regimen.

Men’s Rogaine Extra Strength 5% Minoxidil Topical Solution for Hair Loss and Hair Regrowth

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Treat your hair loss and enhance your hair density which supports your hair regrowth. Works faster with extra strength, boosts the hair follicle and hair protein.  Men’s Rogaine hair growth is clinically proven that regrows the hair. 

Penetrates the scalp and reactivates the hair follicles, allowing hair to regrow. Recommended by dermatologists for anti-hair loss and to strengthen hair. Men’s Rogaine hair growth helps you at the early stage of hair thinning and maintains the density of the hair growth. Men’s Rogaine hair growth delivers the results in 12 weeks with an easy-to-use design supporting your daily routine.

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We recommend it if you are suffering from significant hair loss. Get Rogaine for men to enhance the strength of your hair. Rogaine men’s extra strength helps you to regrow your hair. 

Rogaine use in pregnancy

If you are pregnant, be aware that Rogaine is classified as an FDA pregnancy category C, which means it is unknown whether Rogaine could be harmful to a fetus. Consequently, minoxidil should not be used without consulting your doctor if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding.

What results are expected from Rogaine (minoxidil)?

Although minoxidil provides cosmetically acceptable results, we need to keep in mind that it is only effective in a subset of patients. Specifically, Rogaine in men is only effective in the treatment of male pattern baldness (thinning hair on the crown) and not for the loss of hair at the front of the head or for treatment of a receding hairline. In women, it can be used to enhance hair growth in thinning hair. Other types of hair loss may not benefit from Rogaine. These include patchy hair loss, unexplained hair loss or pregnancy-related hair loss.

It is also important to remember that the effectiveness of topical minoxidil only lasts for the duration of continued application. In other words, this medication must be used indefinitely to maintain continued hair growth or halt further hair loss. An older study concluded that cessation of topical minoxidil treatment results in the reduction of hair weight and follicle number count after 28 weeks.

Can Rogaine (minoxidil) be used on beards?

The short answer is Yes.  Minoxidil has been used to grow hair anywhere on the body where there are hair follicles, including head, face, eyebrows, arms, and chest. However, everyone is different and it is important that you give it up to 3 months to see results.

Recent clinical studies on Rogaine

The International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery highlights a one-year observational study by dermatologists in 2004 of 984 men with male-pattern hair loss. The study evaluated the effectiveness of a 5% minoxidil topical solution in halting hair loss and stimulating new hair growth. The researchers concluded that areas of the scalp suffering from hair loss were reduced in 62% of the patients, remained unchanged in 35.1% and grew larger in 2.9% of study participants.

The Goldenberg’s also insist that starting treatment at the first sign of hair loss is crucial. Since most types of hair loss is progressive, often the best outcome is merely keeping the hair that you still have. For this reason, they also note that managing patient expectations is essential to avoid any unrealistic hopes for treatments.

Managing hair loss in women

Hollywood, FL dermatologist, Dr. Todd Minars, says he recommends Rogaine – but only for women whose hair is thinning. ”I tell women the following. First, get the 5% [solution] even if the packaging is labeled for ’men.’ And second, use it nightly (not twice a day) – once seems fine and realistically, no one wants to put anything on their scalp even one time per day let alone two. Just make sure it is not right before bed because we don’t want Rogaine to get on a pillow and then onto your face, resulting in unwanted hair growth,” he cautions.

Alternatives to Rogaine in men

For men, Dr. Minars suggests Propecia. ”It’s a pill, and so the compliance is much higher than a medication you must apply to your scalp. It is a prescription that is approved for male pattern hair loss. I do not prescribe it for women but I do know many dermatologists who do,” he informs.

Although Dr. Buka recommends Rogaine, in his opinion finasteride is a more effective option. ”It works by blocking the conversion of testosterone to DHT, or dihydrotestosterone. DHT is the active metabolite of testosterone that is most responsible for shrinking hair follicles. For 40% of patients, blocking DHT results in new hair growth. For another 40%, it helps keep the hair they have. Then for 20%, it doesn’t work at all,” he explains.

Takeaway

So, the good news is: it works for most people with thinning hair on the crown. If you start using this lotion, however, there are a few key points to remember.

Once you start, don’t stop or hair loss may resume. If you decide to use Rogaine, be careful not to deviate from the instructions for use. That means making sure your hair and scalp are free of moisture before applying the recommended dosage to areas of your scalp affected by thinning hair. Rogaine is usually applied twice per day – once in the morning and once at night.

Some dermatologists recommend Rogaine for use in women, stipulating that application once-a-day at night is enough to produce results. Remember to wash your hands before and after application, and avoid applying Rogaine on areas of your skin where you do not want to stimulate new hair growth. Never apply more than of 2 ml of Rogaine per day as it could trigger unwanted side effects.

Finally, if you do experience any side effects, stop using it and contact your doctor immediately.

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