I regularly update my old popular post on oral Minoxidil for hair loss. Almost every week there are interesting new stories and testimonials on low-dose oral Minoxidil (LDOM) growing hair in people. And the news media has become extremely interested in this subject.
However, in that post, I purposely neglected including links to Reddit before and after hair growth transformation stories. There are just too many to count. I have now made this post for that specific purpose.
The Most Efficacious Hair Loss Drugs Ranked
I feel like there are even more hair growth success stories in regards to oral Minoxidil than the gold standard oral Dutasteride (Avodart). Make sure to go through the numerous comments in my post on oral Dutasteride for hair loss reviews.
Note that Dutasteride is only officially approved to treat hair loss in Japan and South Korea. In the rest of the world, this enlarged prostate medication is used off-label to treat androgenic alopecia (male pattern hair loss).
Countering my increasingly pro oral Minoxidil bias, a widely cited 2021 systemic review of 23 studies via meta-analysis found the following efficacy ranking for the main hair loss medications:
- 0.5 mg/d of oral dutasteride.
- 5 mg/d of oral finasteride.
- 5 mg/d of oral minoxidil.
- 1 mg/d of oral finasteride.
- 5% topical minoxidil.’
- 2% topical minoxidil.
- 0.25 mg/d of oral minoxidil.
I wish this analysis had also tried to include extra strength Minoxidil 10% or 15%. In any case, I would be curious to see a similar study that covers the years 2022 and 2023. Oral Minoxidil for hair loss only became popular in the US and Europe over the past two years. In Thailand (and, to a lesser extent, Australia), this popularity came much earlier.
Reddit Oral Minoxidil Hair Growth Stories
On Reddit Tressless, there are daily success stories of people regrowing hair while on oral Minoxidil. In most cases, people are taking 2.5 mg per day (like myself), though many take 5 mg per day or even more. Please talk to your doctor if you ever take this drug, especially if you have any pre-existing heart conditions.
Over the past year, I collected many of these success story links. Below is a list of some of the most inspiring transformations that oftentimes include extraordinary before and after photos. Make sure to swipe through all the images in each link, and not just see the first one.
In many cases, people were taking Finasteride or Dutasteride for a while too, but adding oral Minoxidil into the mix truly made the biggest difference. In some cases, a person got on two drugs around the same time, but I still counted the result as supportive of oral Minoxidil.
You can click on each of the images below and go through the original poster’s responses to comments and questions. This will give you a decent idea on what drug seemed to make the biggest impact on the hair regrowth.
Note that all of these people are likely legitimate. In many cases, I checked out their past posting history. Moreover, there is absolutely no financial benefit in someone promoting oral Minoxidil. If you use GoodRx in the US and select the generic option, low-dose oral Minoxidil will cost you less than $10 per month. Even cheaper than topical Minoxidil foam. I just do not see any financial incentive for people to push this medication over other alternatives.
If any of the below people post future updates, please feel free to add the relevant link in the comments to this post. Or, for that matter, if you see any new Reddit testimonial that blows your mind, feel free to share. Especially if the person is only taking low-dose oral Minoxidil and nothing else.
8 mos: oral (Du, Min), topical (Min, Ru, Ketoconazole), microneedling. NW7 for 7 years
byu/ClayPot357 intressless
3 Month Progress – Fin & Oral Min
byu/tresslessthr0waway intressless
Dut (2years) / RU58841 (5 months) / Oral Min (1 year)
byu/nuKaross intressless
Update on hair, will be posting monthly! Nov 8 – Jan 14
byu/Hairevrywherebuthead intressless
4 Months Progress (1mg Fin, 5mg Oral Min & Nizoral 2x/week)
byu/djbaroud intressless
Oral Fin/Min 6 month before and after
byu/minicoopj intressless
(26 M) 9 months on oral minoxidil and oral finasteride
byu/Stock_Adeptness_9134 intressless
Oral min 2.5mg closing in on 3 months
byu/_the_orange_box_ intressless
It works. About a 1 year transformation.
byu/HarryBalsagna_ intressless
6 months update: Dut 3x/week / oral min / dut+prp mesotherapy
byu/salsasanluis intressless
[M30] 15 months progress on Oral Dutasteride and Sublingual Minoxidil
byu/Throwaway_no_hair intressless
[24M] – 70 days progress on > daily oral fin (1mg) + daily topical and oral min (1.5mg)
byu/No-Bodybuilder4389 intressless
My progress story for my hair loss treatment
byu/sohaibkkhan intressless
Oral minoxidil works wonders!!!
byu/Affectionate-Fill319 intressless
~6 months of chemicals and needles
byu/Competitive_Help_513 intressless