Do any "thickening" products actually work to prevent hair loss/thinning?

Okay, I'm here to help.

Shave.

Seriously. The amount of pressure put on guys around balding is horrendous, and it can consume your attention if you let it. The moment that superfluous, vestigial hair comes off, it's such a breath of fresh air (no pun intended). No more fussing, worrying or stressing about it. Plus, in many cases it looks pretty good. Give it a couple of weeks and it'll just become your face.

Give it a couple of months and the moment there's a scratchy, annoying milimeter of hair on your head will be a natural call to give it a shave for the comfort alone.

I started balding in my late teens. Shaved my head for the first time at 20. Never looked back. Wished I'd done it sooner.
Still remember an offhand comment from a girl who said I have a nice shaped head.
A quick once over with the clippers once a week and you're good.
Whatever you decided to do don't stress about it! I'm sure that will only make it worse.
Bonus: the freshly shaved head acts as velcro to keep your hat on during windy days!

I use topical Minoxidil. It's clearly made some difference, replacing a bald patch with a thin patch, and making my scalp noticeably warmer to the touch due to the extra bloodflow. It wasn't the brilliant instantaneous wonderdrug some people told me it would be, nor totally ineffectual like others said, so I guess it's something whose efficacy varies from person to person.

The Big 3 are: Hair Transplant, Hair Systems, or Shaving.

The Medium 3: are Oral Dutasteride, Oral Minoxidil, and Microneedling.

The Small 3: are Oral Finasteride, Topical Minoxidil, and Ketoconazole.

The Meh 3: are Head Massage, Vitamins, and Laser Caps.

Minoxidil and finasteride will prevent further hair loss and thicken up what you still have. I highly recommend them.

Finasteride is a hormone based therapy which prohibits the production of DHT which strangles hair follicles, but it can effect male reproductive health so I recommend taking it typically instead of orally to prevent systemic exposure.

I have been using a combo spray for almost a year with great results.

I started using Rogaine (generic versions) when I was around 25. I’m 40 now. It slowed my hair loss considerably and I have a pretty good head of hair still. My dad was completely done by 35.

I recently added Finasteride to the mix and I’m comfortable with the results.

Some people will tell you to embrace it and that’s ok too. I just didn’t want to if I didn’t have to.

No there are no thickening products that fix hair loss. Monoxadil and other similar products work but you can never stop using them or your hair will fall out again.

As per my cosmetologist friend, those thickening products are great! At thickening the wallets of the company.

They're not any better than a good conditioner.

Same with the pills that aren't prescription.

It's not that they don't do anything at all, it's that they don't do anything a healthy diet and decent hair care can't do. Now, if your diet is shit, those supplements can fill gaps. And, if you're using shit hair products (and by that I don't mean inexpensive, it's about how they're made and what's in them), those extras can help if you're willing to pony up for them instead of finding a good sulfate, paraben free products.

Seriously folks, just avoiding sulfates will improve the health of your hair. Parabens are more about overall health, what with cancer suspicions. Phthalates aren't great either. Shit with "ethicone" as part of the name are bad for hair, but you don't really see them on shampoos much any more.

In general, everyone should look up the chemicals in anything they put on or in their bodies, there's a lot of shit used as preservatives or for other uses in cosmetics and skin/hair products that really shouldn't be in them.

But for basic hair care, sulfate free is likely to be on the packaging in big letters, so that's easier to find. Parabens aren't always advertised the same way, but can be. So avoiding one or both of those requires no more effort than looking at the bottle.

It's all bollocks. You'll can buy your hair back like Musk, but it takes fuck you money.

Shave it off. That's how poor people look good when they're balding. It's not a disease. Throw off the shackles of the advertising industry and just roll with it.

Before you get into products or transplants or whatever, maybe try changing some habits? American College of Dermatology has an article on 10 things you may be doing that lead to damage or hair loss (along with what you can change to do it "right"). "Wrong" things include rubbing your hair dry with a towel and using the wrong-size comb.

Article here.

I think the thickening products just try to coat your hairs in oil or something to make each individual hair appear thicker to make the overall hair appear more full.

There are products like minoxidil that actually promote hair growth.

the only thing that works is finding out if you have nutriotional deficencies. minerals, vitamins. protein fat, and fiber. all of this is important. in my case, i had diabetis. so i ate keto. i developed copper deficencie, which led to vitamin c deficencie. very hard to find out. many vitamins and minerals battle each other. what nobody totld me: you dont need fiber to have good poop. you need it for the short fatty chain acids that turns into fuel for cells, or does catalyst stuff that needs be doing to absorb all kinds of things.

fat is essential for hair, likewise proteins. proteins and fat are the building blocks, minerals and vitamins are the cement. nothing will work without the other.

oh yeah you need the sun. if yu have copper deficency, you cant take in iron. and there is many more things like that.

so go to a lab and mak a mineral and vitamin profile.

Yes....or no. There's more than one reason for balding. You might try a DHT blocker. Caffeine(more caffiene helps, supposedly), vitamin B, and many other things could effect your hair loss.

For a non guessing approach, you want a full blood panel and testosterone/dht level done up at a legit specialist for hair loss.

Or just go the Mr.Clean route.

Not really, but some drugs can help. Minoxidil, either topical or oral, can help for some people, but it's hit and miss. Finesteride works for a lot of people, but there's a 3% chance that you permanently lose your libido, and your penis shrinks. I'm not going to play with that, despite the low odds. As for appearance, Topik powder actually does make it look better. That combined with a fibrous hair paste can hide the loss for a time. Otherwise, a trip to Turkey and a few grand can reset the clock, but it'll probably be required again at some point.

For what it's worth, there's decent evidence that rosemary oil works just as well as Minoxidil. It's certainly a WHOLE LOT cheaper....

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/319444

I've never tried any. My friends have been telling me since the '60s that I'd be bald tomorrow. Still have hair, and though 'see through' on top, there's no 'dome'; I'm not bald.
That being said, I went from long-ish hair to brush cuts 40 years ago, and they're the best. Lowest maintenance, wash 'n wear, never care. True freedom.

Free yourself from the wear and tear of hair care.

Kind of. I've never bothered with them myself because it requires constant use and is kind of more trouble than it's worth. It's the same concept as something like Ginko Biloba in that it does have benefits, but different people will see different results based on their own body chemistry so the results you see will vary from person to person.

...finesteride works, not a placebo...

No product here, more like an advice. Instead of trying to thicken your hair, just embrace what's happening. You will save a lot of time and money.

No but they can make amazing sauces.

Rogaine (sp?) worked to trigger better facial hair growth for me. I read that somewhere online and it actually worked.

AFAIK you can only slow down hair loss, not regrow any lost hair.

I think Minoxidil is the only thing proven to work. You can take it orally or apply it to the scalp via a serum or shampoo.

I'm in my early 30s and started taking hims about a year ago. I've definitely seen regrowth of hair in my slightly receding hairline, but it's just the more 'recent' stuff that had started falling out. I saw about a third of an inch regrowth, it isn't full on thick regrowth but it's enough to make a difference in how my hair looks.

I started taking it because it was as easy as just taking a pill in the morning, if it had been more involved like creams and stuff I wouldn't have bothered. My hairline wasn't all that bad either before tbh but I figured this product was to help keep it that way so I went for it.

If anyone is interested it's worth checking out their website for information about how it works and seeing before and after pics of people who take it.

It's a doctor prescription and you can do everything through the app including getting prescribed through in app texting with the doc.

I've also heard biotin pills help, these are otc and my hims prescription actually include some too. I can't verify how much they help by themselves but people online seem to think they do, it might be worth starting with some research there if a doctors prescription is too involved for you at this time.

If possible, save up for a trip to Turkey. My barber 1/2 jokes about it, says its like $6k, includes airfare, and are all inclusive. Turkey has entire villages that have become dedicated to cosmetic surgeries, like hair transplants. Some of them filled with men walking around with their head in bandages 😅

balding < bald

just shave it. get a buzz cut if you're uncomfortable. i know once my hairline starts receding i won't try to kid myself by spending money on temporary fixes.

As DHT is partially responsible for androgenetic scalp hair loss, dutasteride (a 5α-reductase inhibitor) at least has some evidence of slowing hair loss, as it blocks the action of the 5α-reductase enzymes that convert testosterone into DHT [1]. I am not a medical professional, so do your own research, but this is one of the few substance shown to have a positive effect on hair loss prevention. As this is usually a genetic problem your mileage may vary significantly.

[1] Bostwick DG, Cheng L (24 January 2014). Urologic Surgical Pathology. Elsevier Health Sciences. pp. 492–. ISBN 978-0-323-08619-6.

What's your motivation? Do you want to appear attractive, and you decided that you are not up to your own level of expectation based on your hair? Do you want to attract a partner or an audience? Do you require respect from peers and you think hair will help?

Any supplement is likely not going to bring the required results. If you are not satisfied with your hair, get a toupee or a transplant. Don't fuck around with half measures. You will only waste time and money.

In general, hair is not suitable for half measures. Don't kid yourself. People notice thin hair. People notice a tattooed scalp. People notice a calm over. These all make you appear insecure and the opposite of what you might be aiming for. You must be comfortable, but be aware that you are not buying into the wrong comfort.

Iirc only caffeine shampoo works

soft water with low calciumhydrocarbonate also makes soft hair and skin.

afaik derma stamps and rosemarie oil helps a bit. and head skin massages. maybe get a head massage band. i got these tips from "Doctor Gary Linkov" on youtube.

Ovation cell therapy

Look it up

My hairstylist told me to get biotin gummies even the really cheap ones. I did, and my hair is noticeably thicker