Thinning Hair / What Has Actually Helped?

[lovemycats2025]

Seeking current info about hair-thinning treatments for those using glp's. For others, what has helped and what hasn't?

Only this weekend did I notice how sparse the hair at the back of my head has become.

Thanks ahead of time!

 

[miameow]

No single approach is going to be right for everyone. What matters most is figuring out what is actually driving your hair loss, then matching the strategy to that cause.

Hair loss comes in many forms, and the reasons behind it vary widely. A full lab panel is usually the smartest first step, checking for nutritional gaps, hormone levels, and how well the thyroid is functioning.

In general terms, I sort hair loss into 2 buckets: androgen-related and not androgen-related (stress, hormonal changes, nutritional shortfalls, illness, and so on).

When the loss is androgen-driven (androgenetic alopecia), DHT blockers like finasteride or dutasteride may slow it down or stop it from getting worse, and a subset of users see some modest regrowth. Spironolactone does not really belong in that group, since its anti-androgen action is wider and not specifically aimed at DHT. Some people do well on it, but it is a broader tool rather than a precise one. Pumpkin seed oil, as far as I know, also acts as a DHT blocker, though its effect is clearly far weaker than finasteride or dutasteride.

With non-androgen-driven loss, the root cause can be virtually anything. Good nutrition, enough sleep, and optimal ferritin are things people frequently overlook. Low ferritin, or even levels that are not quite optimal, is a recognized factor in shedding, and plenty of people begin DHT blockers and then wonder why shedding continues when the real problem lies elsewhere. In women, low estrogen is another very frequent cause of hair loss.

As for regrowth, whatever the cause and whether the person is male or female, minoxidil is still among the most effective choices available. It can be applied topically, taken orally, or in certain cases used both ways.

 

[lovemycats2025]

miameow said:

No single approach is going to be right for everyone. What matters most is figuring out what is actually driving your hair loss, then matching the strategy to that cause.

Hair loss comes in many forms, and the reasons behind it vary widely. A full lab panel is usually the smartest first step, checking for nutritional gaps, hormone levels, and how well the thyroid is functioning.

In general terms, I sort hair loss into 2 buckets: androgen-related and not androgen-related (stress, hormonal changes, nutritional shortfalls, illness, and so on).

When the loss is androgen-driven (androgenetic alopecia), DHT blockers like finasteride or dutasteride may slow it down or stop it from getting worse, and a subset of users see some modest regrowth. Spironolactone does not really belong in that group, since its anti-androgen action is wider and not specifically aimed at DHT. Some people do well on it, but it is a broader tool rather than a precise one. Pumpkin seed oil, as far as I know, also acts as a DHT blocker, though its effect is clearly far weaker than finasteride or dutasteride.

With non-androgen-driven loss, the root cause can be virtually anything. Good nutrition, enough sleep, and optimal ferritin are things people frequently overlook. Low ferritin, or even levels that are not quite optimal, is a recognized factor in shedding, and plenty of people begin DHT blockers and then wonder why shedding continues when the real problem lies elsewhere. In women, low estrogen is another very frequent cause of hair loss.

As for regrowth, whatever the cause and whether the person is male or female, minoxidil is still among the most effective choices available. It can be applied topically, taken orally, or in certain cases used both ways.

Appreciate it! I'm fairly confident the cause ties back to losing 80lbs as well as my diet (I keep forgetting to take my multi vitamin daily). Since I haven't seen any shedding, I'm left wondering whether my follicles have become dormant. From what I've read, that can occur when weight comes off quickly. The thinning is mostly at the back of my head; around my face I haven't spotted any loss. Labs done a few months back came back good, so this seems to be something new. I went ahead and bought some minoxidil to test out. I'll also ask my doctor for their input. Thanks for sharing, it really helped!

 

[miameow]

lovemycats2025 said:

miameow said:

No single approach is going to be right for everyone. What matters most is figuring out what is actually driving your hair loss, then matching the strategy to that cause.

Hair loss comes in many forms, and the reasons behind it vary widely. A full lab panel is usually the smartest first step, checking for nutritional gaps, hormone levels, and how well the thyroid is functioning.

In general terms, I sort hair loss into 2 buckets: androgen-related and not androgen-related (stress, hormonal changes, nutritional shortfalls, illness, and so on).

When the loss is androgen-driven (androgenetic alopecia), DHT blockers like finasteride or dutasteride may slow it down or stop it from getting worse, and a subset of users see some modest regrowth. Spironolactone does not really belong in that group, since its anti-androgen action is wider and not specifically aimed at DHT. Some people do well on it, but it is a broader tool rather than a precise one. Pumpkin seed oil, as far as I know, also acts as a DHT blocker, though its effect is clearly far weaker than finasteride or dutasteride.

With non-androgen-driven loss, the root cause can be virtually anything. Good nutrition, enough sleep, and optimal ferritin are things people frequently overlook. Low ferritin, or even levels that are not quite optimal, is a recognized factor in shedding, and plenty of people begin DHT blockers and then wonder why shedding continues when the real problem lies elsewhere. In women, low estrogen is another very frequent cause of hair loss.

As for regrowth, whatever the cause and whether the person is male or female, minoxidil is still among the most effective choices available. It can be applied topically, taken orally, or in certain cases used both ways.

Appreciate it! I'm fairly confident the cause ties back to losing 80lbs as well as my diet (I keep forgetting to take my multi vitamin daily). Since I haven't seen any shedding, I'm left wondering whether my follicles have become dormant. From what I've read, that can occur when weight comes off quickly. The thinning is mostly at the back of my head; around my face I haven't spotted any loss. Labs done a few months back came back good, so this seems to be something new. I went ahead and bought some minoxidil to test out. I'll also ask my doctor for their input. Thanks for sharing, it really helped!

Taking a multivitamin isn't necessarily the most effective fix for a nutritional shortfall. The doses of individual nutrients in them tend to be fairly low, and certain components may interfere with each other when it comes to absorption.

I went through something similar. My labs came back as "good" according to my doctor, who said there was no cause for concern — this was while I was shedding a lot of hair. What I later realized was that "good" to him just meant falling inside the standard reference range. When it comes to hair, certain markers — ferritin in particular — usually need to sit in the optimal range rather than merely the normal or "good enough to survive" range. If I were you, I'd have someone else review those labs, just to be safe.

 

[lovemycats2025]

miameow said:

miameow said:

lovemycats2025 said:

miameow said:

No single approach is going to be right for everyone. What matters most is figuring out what is actually driving your hair loss, then matching the strategy to that cause.

Hair loss comes in many forms, and the reasons behind it vary widely. A full lab panel is usually the smartest first step, checking for nutritional gaps, hormone levels, and how well the thyroid is functioning.

In general terms, I sort hair loss into 2 buckets: androgen-related and not androgen-related (stress, hormonal changes, nutritional shortfalls, illness, and so on).

When the loss is androgen-driven (androgenetic alopecia), DHT blockers like finasteride or dutasteride may slow it down or stop it from getting worse, and a subset of users see some modest regrowth. Spironolactone does not really belong in that group, since its anti-androgen action is wider and not specifically aimed at DHT. Some people do well on it, but it is a broader tool rather than a precise one. Pumpkin seed oil, as far as I know, also acts as a DHT blocker, though its effect is clearly far weaker than finasteride or dutasteride.

With non-androgen-driven loss, the root cause can be virtually anything. Good nutrition, enough sleep, and optimal ferritin are things people frequently overlook. Low ferritin, or even levels that are not quite optimal, is a recognized factor in shedding, and plenty of people begin DHT blockers and then wonder why shedding continues when the real problem lies elsewhere. In women, low estrogen is another very frequent cause of hair loss.

As for regrowth, whatever the cause and whether the person is male or female, minoxidil is still among the most effective choices available. It can be applied topically, taken orally, or in certain cases used both ways.

Appreciate it! I'm fairly confident the cause ties back to losing 80lbs as well as my diet (I keep forgetting to take my multi vitamin daily). Since I haven't seen any shedding, I'm left wondering whether my follicles have become dormant. From what I've read, that can occur when weight comes off quickly. The thinning is mostly at the back of my head; around my face I haven't spotted any loss. Labs done a few months back came back good, so this seems to be something new. I went ahead and bought some minoxidil to test out. I'll also ask my doctor for their input. Thanks for sharing, it really helped!

Taking a multivitamin isn't necessarily the most effective fix for a nutritional shortfall. The doses of individual nutrients in them tend to be fairly low, and certain components may interfere with each other when it comes to absorption.

I went through something similar. My labs came back as "good" according to my doctor, who said there was no cause for concern — this was while I was shedding a lot of hair. What I later realized was that "good" to him just meant falling inside the standard reference range. When it comes to hair, certain markers — ferritin in particular — usually need to sit in the optimal range rather than merely the normal or "good enough to survive" range. If I were you, I'd have someone else review those labs, just to be safe.

Click to expand...

I decided to revisit the lab results, and it turns out my Ferritin was elevated. Could elevated levels be a factor in hair loss?

 

[miameow]

Ferritin is just 1 part of the overall picture. Losing weight quickly can cause hair shedding through several mechanisms, so I would keep looking at the broader view: a full nutritional and hormonal panel, not just 1 single marker.

Other things to factor in include zinc, vit D, B12, folate, thyroid function, hormonal shifts, protein intake, and how many calories you take in overall. If your ferritin really is “high,” whether that matters depends on how high it actually is, so it may be worth investigating, but hair loss is not usually caused by high ferritin.

 

[lovemycats2025]

miameow said:

Ferritin is just 1 part of the overall picture. Losing weight quickly can cause hair shedding through several mechanisms, so I would keep looking at the broader view: a full nutritional and hormonal panel, not just 1 single marker.

Other things to factor in include zinc, vit D, B12, folate, thyroid function, hormonal shifts, protein intake, and how many calories you take in overall. If your ferritin really is “high,” whether that matters depends on how high it actually is, so it may be worth investigating, but hair loss is not usually caused by high ferritin.

Appreciate it! This information was really useful!

 

[Birdie]

/community-link/thread/2657/

 

[5byfive]

 

[skaylife]

lovemycats2025 said:

Seeking current info about hair-thinning treatments for those using glp's. For others, what has helped and what hasn't?

Only this weekend did I notice how sparse the hair at the back of my head has become.

Thanks ahead of time!

For my hair thinning, Ahk-Cu has been effective. However, I didn't use it as a serum. My vendor suggested injecting it, following the same protocol as GHK-Cu. Rset is my own research and not a recommendation. I've been injecting it daily beneath the skin of my head using a 12.7 mm insulin syringe, and it has worked. As I said, this is only my own research and not an officially verified method.

 

[woundcarping]

5byfive said:

View attachment 10442

 

[Jfrick11]

lovemycats2025 said:

miameow said:

miameow said:

lovemycats2025 said:

miameow said:

No single approach is going to be right for everyone. What matters most is figuring out what is actually driving your hair loss, then matching the strategy to that cause.

Hair loss comes in many forms, and the reasons behind it vary widely. A full lab panel is usually the smartest first step, checking for nutritional gaps, hormone levels, and how well the thyroid is functioning.

In general terms, I sort hair loss into 2 buckets: androgen-related and not androgen-related (stress, hormonal changes, nutritional shortfalls, illness, and so on).

When the loss is androgen-driven (androgenetic alopecia), DHT blockers like finasteride or dutasteride may slow it down or stop it from getting worse, and a subset of users see some modest regrowth. Spironolactone does not really belong in that group, since its anti-androgen action is wider and not specifically aimed at DHT. Some people do well on it, but it is a broader tool rather than a precise one. Pumpkin seed oil, as far as I know, also acts as a DHT blocker, though its effect is clearly far weaker than finasteride or dutasteride.

With non-androgen-driven loss, the root cause can be virtually anything. Good nutrition, enough sleep, and optimal ferritin are things people frequently overlook. Low ferritin, or even levels that are not quite optimal, is a recognized factor in shedding, and plenty of people begin DHT blockers and then wonder why shedding continues when the real problem lies elsewhere. In women, low estrogen is another very frequent cause of hair loss.

As for regrowth, whatever the cause and whether the person is male or female, minoxidil is still among the most effective choices available. It can be applied topically, taken orally, or in certain cases used both ways.

Appreciate it! I'm fairly confident the cause ties back to losing 80lbs as well as my diet (I keep forgetting to take my multi vitamin daily). Since I haven't seen any shedding, I'm left wondering whether my follicles have become dormant. From what I've read, that can occur when weight comes off quickly. The thinning is mostly at the back of my head; around my face I haven't spotted any loss. Labs done a few months back came back good, so this seems to be something new. I went ahead and bought some minoxidil to test out. I'll also ask my doctor for their input. Thanks for sharing, it really helped!

Taking a multivitamin isn't necessarily the most effective fix for a nutritional shortfall. The doses of individual nutrients in them tend to be fairly low, and certain components may interfere with each other when it comes to absorption.

I went through something similar. My labs came back as "good" according to my doctor, who said there was no cause for concern — this was while I was shedding a lot of hair. What I later realized was that "good" to him just meant falling inside the standard reference range. When it comes to hair, certain markers — ferritin in particular — usually need to sit in the optimal range rather than merely the normal or "good enough to survive" range. If I were you, I'd have someone else review those labs, just to be safe.

Click to expand...

I decided to revisit the lab results, and it turns out my Ferritin was elevated. Could elevated levels be a factor in hair loss?

What kind of level are we talking about? It isn't connected to hair, but elevated ferritin over the long term brings a completely different set of problems.

 

[Occindemure]

Age had already made my hair thinner on its own. That said, I wouldn't describe myself as someone who was clearly shedding lots of hair.

For a number of years I used Minoxodil, and I'm confident it kept additional loss at bay.

What I can report is that after 6 months on GHK-cu & KLOW, the hair overall felt thicker to me.

Other people picked up on it too, my stylist included.

Whether actual "growth" happened, I can't say for certain, but my hair is definitely fuller.

MT2 was part of my routine as well, though the only change I saw was darker hair on my stomach & chest.

 

[SeaGypsy]

I was dealing with a lot of hair thinning from a bunch of different causes. The list included nutrition, weight loss, and age....basically everything. Once I fixed my nutrition, I still wasn't seeing any regrowth because of how old I am. Then I began applying GHK-CU every day, and within a few months my hair looked fuller all around. I added oral minoxidil on top of that, and combining the two has become my ultimate solution. These days my hair is starting to look like it did when I was in my 20s.

 

[JoonyO]

Should my own hair ever begin to thin out, I'd side with 5byFive and woundcarping. Or else grab a baseball cap. Plenty of bald guys wear those, from what I've seen. It costs less than a toupee, and given that I've been past 50 for a good while now on this planet, I'm not all that bothered about my looks where my locks are concerned.

About 20 years back, when I was going at my head with the clippers, I nicked myself and left a tidy little bald patch. At that point I thought, fine, I'll just adopt the Telly Cevalos/Michael Jordan style.

What I actually ended up looking like was closer to:

And of course, Halloween had only just gone by.

 

[miameow]

skaylife said:

lovemycats2025 said:

Seeking current info about hair-thinning treatments for those using glp's. For others, what has helped and what hasn't?

Only this weekend did I notice how sparse the hair at the back of my head has become.

Thanks ahead of time!

For my hair thinning, Ahk-Cu has been effective. However, I didn't use it as a serum. My vendor suggested injecting it, following the same protocol as GHK-Cu. Rset is my own research and not a recommendation. I've been injecting it daily beneath the skin of my head using a 12.7 mm insulin syringe, and it has worked. As I said, this is only my own research and not an officially verified method.

That's quite intriguing. Has microneedling been part of your routine alongside it? I went ahead and purchased a Dr Pen, planning to microneedle my scalp using AHK-Cu.

 

[angeliquereta]

miameow said:

Ferritin is just 1 part of the overall picture. Losing weight quickly can cause hair shedding through several mechanisms, so I would keep looking at the broader view: a full nutritional and hormonal panel, not just 1 single marker.

Other things to factor in include zinc, vit D, B12, folate, thyroid function, hormonal shifts, protein intake, and how many calories you take in overall. If your ferritin really is “high,” whether that matters depends on how high it actually is, so it may be worth investigating, but hair loss is not usually caused by high ferritin.

My ferritin has typically been on the low side for as long as I can remember. At times it has dropped to 3. Every 3 months I receive IV iron. It appears, though, that I may have some form of iron malabsorption. For both hair thickening and low ferritin, what approach would work?

 

[skaylife]

miameow said:

skaylife said:

lovemycats2025 said:

Seeking current info about hair-thinning treatments for those using glp's. For others, what has helped and what hasn't?

Only this weekend did I notice how sparse the hair at the back of my head has become.

Thanks ahead of time!

For my hair thinning, Ahk-Cu has been effective. However, I didn't use it as a serum. My vendor suggested injecting it, following the same protocol as GHK-Cu. Rset is my own research and not a recommendation. I've been injecting it daily beneath the skin of my head using a 12.7 mm insulin syringe, and it has worked. As I said, this is only my own research and not an officially verified method.

That's quite intriguing. Has microneedling been part of your routine alongside it? I went ahead and purchased a Dr Pen, planning to microneedle my scalp using AHK-Cu.

A year ago I underwent a hair transplant. The procedure left me with a greater amount of hair, though its thickness did not improve. For the past 5 months, following the recommendation of the surgeon who performed the transplant, I have been microneedling. Combined with AHK-Cu serum, the results have been barely noticeable. The biggest improvement for me came from AHK-Cu injections.

 

[miameow]

angeliquereta said:

miameow said:

Ferritin is just 1 part of the overall picture. Losing weight quickly can cause hair shedding through several mechanisms, so I would keep looking at the broader view: a full nutritional and hormonal panel, not just 1 single marker.

Other things to factor in include zinc, vit D, B12, folate, thyroid function, hormonal shifts, protein intake, and how many calories you take in overall. If your ferritin really is “high,” whether that matters depends on how high it actually is, so it may be worth investigating, but hair loss is not usually caused by high ferritin.

My ferritin has typically been on the low side for as long as I can remember. At times it has dropped to 3. Every 3 months I receive IV iron. It appears, though, that I may have some form of iron malabsorption. For both hair thickening and low ferritin, what approach would work?

Wow, that's really low. Do you not feel any fatigue or exhaustion?

In my case it was on the low end of normal, and even that was enough to trigger shedding. Once a week I make a point of eating liver. To be honest, if you keep telling yourself your hair will come back, you can get through it. It's a normal food for Eastern Europeans, so I just force it down and swallow it quickly.

Lately I've begun giving myself IM injections too, since I'd rather not sit in a clinic for IVs. After getting my ferritin up, the shedding has clearly gotten better and so has my energy.

 

[lovemycats2025]

Jfrick11 said:

lovemycats2025 said:

miameow said:

miameow said:

lovemycats2025 said:

miameow said:

No single approach is going to be right for everyone. What matters most is figuring out what is actually driving your hair loss, then matching the strategy to that cause.

Hair loss comes in many forms, and the reasons behind it vary widely. A full lab panel is usually the smartest first step, checking for nutritional gaps, hormone levels, and how well the thyroid is functioning.

In general terms, I sort hair loss into 2 buckets: androgen-related and not androgen-related (stress, hormonal changes, nutritional shortfalls, illness, and so on).

When the loss is androgen-driven (androgenetic alopecia), DHT blockers like finasteride or dutasteride may slow it down or stop it from getting worse, and a subset of users see some modest regrowth. Spironolactone does not really belong in that group, since its anti-androgen action is wider and not specifically aimed at DHT. Some people do well on it, but it is a broader tool rather than a precise one. Pumpkin seed oil, as far as I know, also acts as a DHT blocker, though its effect is clearly far weaker than finasteride or dutasteride.

With non-androgen-driven loss, the root cause can be virtually anything. Good nutrition, enough sleep, and optimal ferritin are things people frequently overlook. Low ferritin, or even levels that are not quite optimal, is a recognized factor in shedding, and plenty of people begin DHT blockers and then wonder why shedding continues when the real problem lies elsewhere. In women, low estrogen is another very frequent cause of hair loss.

As for regrowth, whatever the cause and whether the person is male or female, minoxidil is still among the most effective choices available. It can be applied topically, taken orally, or in certain cases used both ways.

Appreciate it! I'm fairly confident the cause ties back to losing 80lbs as well as my diet (I keep forgetting to take my multi vitamin daily). Since I haven't seen any shedding, I'm left wondering whether my follicles have become dormant. From what I've read, that can occur when weight comes off quickly. The thinning is mostly at the back of my head; around my face I haven't spotted any loss. Labs done a few months back came back good, so this seems to be something new. I went ahead and bought some minoxidil to test out. I'll also ask my doctor for their input. Thanks for sharing, it really helped!

Taking a multivitamin isn't necessarily the most effective fix for a nutritional shortfall. The doses of individual nutrients in them tend to be fairly low, and certain components may interfere with each other when it comes to absorption.

I went through something similar. My labs came back as "good" according to my doctor, who said there was no cause for concern — this was while I was shedding a lot of hair. What I later realized was that "good" to him just meant falling inside the standard reference range. When it comes to hair, certain markers — ferritin in particular — usually need to sit in the optimal range rather than merely the normal or "good enough to survive" range. If I were you, I'd have someone else review those labs, just to be safe.

Click to expand...

I decided to revisit the lab results, and it turns out my Ferritin was elevated. Could elevated levels be a factor in hair loss?

What kind of level are we talking about? It isn't connected to hair, but elevated ferritin over the long term brings a completely different set of problems.

A bit above the cutoff. According to my doctor, there was no reason for concern in her view.