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Alternative
treatments introduction
We have only recently begun to see pharmaceutical companies take
the market for hair loss treatments seriously. While the profit
potential for an effective alopecia treatment is huge, the pharmaceutical
industry has been wary of entering this area of medicine. The problem
is there are so many quacks and scam artists promoting their wonder
"cures" for baldness that the pharmaceutical companies did not want
to place themselves in the same category for fear of gaining a bad
image with doctors and consumers. However, since UpJohn broke ranks
and started producing Rogaine (minoxidil) for hair loss other pharmaceutical
companies have been quick to jump on the band wagon.
While the pharmaceutical giants scramble to research and develop
their own proprietary products some generic treatments have been
available for many years. Most of the products listed below are
available from multiple sources. Unlike proprietary manufactured
drugs, companies cannot claim a patent and exclusive manufacturing
rights on a treatment that is naturally produced. The down side
is that without a patent there will be no big profits for any one
manufacturer of an alternative treatment. With no big profit potential
there is no motivation to conduct laboratory research and clinical
testing to define the true effectiveness of an alternative treatment
for androgenetic alopecia. The list of alternative treatments includes
those that have been previously recommended by alternative health
practitioners and consumers but note there is no direct information
on their specific activity in treating male pattern baldness. Perhaps
more importantly there is no reliable information on the potential
for side effects with these alternative treatments.
Almost all the treatments below are minerals or come from plants.
Up to 25% of prescription drugs are either plant derived or were
originally discovered in plants. This is just one indication of
the powerful potential for plants/herbs in treating human disease.
With this in mind, the potential for treatment side effects is very
real.
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