Category Archives: Rodney Sinclair

Rodney Sinclair, Sublingual Minoxidil

Minoxidil as a Sublingual Tablet

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Update: July 26, 2025

Sublingual Minoxidil for Hair Loss: Phase 3 Trials Beginning

Dermatologist and Professor Dr. Rodney Sinclair is recruiting 150 Australian volunteers for Phase 3 clinical trials of his proprietary sublingual minoxidil tablet. Per Dr. Sinclair, over the course of 15 years at Sinclair Dermatology, they have treated around 30,000 patients with this medication in different doses. They have thus managed to hone and optimize their technique. Key quote:

“If the treatment receives regulatory approval, it is anticipated to be available on the market within two years. If we can get this through the regulatory pathways and make it available in pharmacies, it may well be that baldness becomes something that is perfectly optional.”

I do not buy the “perfectly optional” part of the quote at all. But it is possible that the hair growth results from sublingual minoxidil turn out to be superior to that from oral minoxidil.

Note that Sinclair Dermatology also prescribes low-dose oral minoxidil via its “Hairy Pill“.

  • Also of note, in a June 2025 study from Sinclair Dermatology, it was reported that low-dose sublingual minoxidil (SLM) increased hair fiber diameter in a dose dependent manner.

“Among men receiving SLM 0.45 mg, 1.35 mg and 4.05 mg, the mean increase in fibre diameter was -2 µm (SD 1 µm), 3 µm (SD 1 µm) and 6 µm (SD 1 µm), respectively.”

Update: June 25, 2025

In a new study from Dr. Sinclair’s clinic, it was found that sublingual minoxidil (SLM) increased hair diameter. Among men receiving SLM 0.45 mg, 1.35 mg and 4.05 mg, the mean change in hair fiber diameter was -2 µm, 3 µm and 6 µm, respectively. For those that received placebo, fiber diameter changed by -2 µm.

April 9, 2018

Sublingual Minoxidil for Hair Loss

Since 2022, low-dose oral minoxidil for hair loss (LDOM) has become increasingly popular. These pills or tablets are directly ingested. However, a potentially superior method is to take oral minoxidil sublingually (via administering under the tongue). Update: September 2025 — Also check out Veradermics and its extended-release oral Minoxidil that is currently in Phase 3 clinical trials.

The biggest proponent of this sublingual ingestion method is Sinclair Dermatology in Australia, led by Dr. Rodney Sinclair. His clinic is undertaking clinical trials for sublingual minoxidil to treat male and female pattern hair loss.

Earlier today, a reader posted an interesting video about a new hair loss treatment from Australia that entails putting some kind of dissolvable listerine-style strip underneath the tongue.

At first, I thought that this seemed like yet another scam since the title of the video includes the word “breakthrough”. Moreover, the video does not even mention what ingredients are in the sublingual strip or patch itself.

However, since the famous Australian dermatologist Dr. Rodney Sinclair appears in the video, I decided to conduct further research. Dr. Sinclair is an extremely well respected researcher in the hair loss world. In the above video, he is honest and clearly says that this treatment will not bring back hair in totally bald scalps.

Having said that, so far it seems that the results from this treatment on people who have moderate levels of balding have been very positive. And this got me curious about what magic concoction was in the strip itself.

Clinical Trial

I did not have to conduct much further research to figure out what this new potential breakthrough for hair loss patients entailed. On Dr. Sinclair’s blog, the latest post from today discusses a new clinical trial they are conducting that is recruiting both men and women. Volunteers will be treated with low-dose oral minoxidil that will be given as a sublingual tablet (which will dissolve under the tongue).

I would not be surprised if the tablet is actually the strip/patch that was shown in the video I posted earlier. It would be very uncomfortable to put an actual tablet underneath the tongue and wait for it to dissolve, unless the dissolution happened very rapidly. On the other hand, a strip would be much easier to keep in place underneath the tongue for a longer period of time.

If you live in Australia or in the nearby vicinity, perhaps it is worth volunteering for these trials. Today I finally learnt the definition of “sublingual”.

Oral Minoxidil versus Sublingual Minoxidil

Many people are wondering if sublingual minoxidil is really more effective than oral minoxidil at growing hair? Dr. Sinclair and scientists from Brazil published a paper in December 2024 that is titled:

“Sublingual minoxidil 5 mg versus Oral Minoxidil 5 mg for male androgenetic alopecia: A double-blind randomized clinical trial.”

One brief online summary of this paper suggests that the results are comparable. I am unable to find the full contents of this paper to provide my own summary.

The below video provides a good comparison of sublingual vs oral minoxidil for hair loss:

Older Updates

Update: July 2020 — From Sinclair Dermatology comes a new case series report of 64 patients taking sublingual minoxidil (0.45 mg per day) for pattern hair loss.

Update: March 2021 — An excellent video presentation on sublingual minoxidil from Dr. Bevin Bhoyrul from Sinclair Dermatology:

Update: September 2021 — Sinclair Dermatology’s clinical trial of 40 male and female patients receiving sublingual minoxidil (SM) for androgenetic alopecia just ended. Per the summary, SM produced a dose-dependent increase in mean terminal hair count of the frontal and vertex scalp and an improvement in hair density. There was no affect on blood pressure. In another article (link no longer active), reviewer Dr. Mirmirani says the following:

“The authors suggest that sublingual minoxidil (SM) may have better bioavailability and fewer hemodynamic effects by avoiding first-pass liver metabolism. Although the data in this study are positive, it will take more to convince me that it is significantly better than oral minoxidil (OM). Very few of my patients on low-dose OM for hair loss discontinue the medication due to side-effects. The other consideration is cost. OM it is an inexpensive, generic drug, that is covered by medical benefits.”

Update: January 2023 — I posted something on Twitter about sublingual minoxidil possibly being more effective than oral minoxidil. Below are the interesting responses from Dr. Corralo and Dr. Bhoyrul (affiliated with Sinclair Dermatology):

Sublingual vs Oral Minoxidil
Sublingual vs Oral Minoxidil.
Sublingual Minoxidil Sulfate
Sublingual Minoxidil Sulfate.

Update: February 2023 — A HRN forum member named “Viney” is posting excellent details with photos of his hair regrowth from sublingual minoxidil and Dutasteride. He sees a dermatologist at Sinclair Dermatology (Melbourne, Australia).

The Hairy Pill, Rodney Sinclair

The Hairy Pill and Dr. Rodney Sinclair

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The Hairy Pill for Hair Loss
The Hairy Pill: One tablet to rule them all.

My popular post on oral Minoxidil for hair loss is updated regularly and I even use that medication for my own hair loss. One of the main proponents of low-dose oral Minoxidil (LDOM) is Dr. Rodney Sinclair of Australia. He is a world renowned dermatologist and hair loss specialist, who is also a keen proponent of sublingual Minoxidil. In 2019, he released a product called “The Hairy Pill” that contains LDOM, Finasteride or Dutasteride, vitamins and amino acids.

Recent Updates:

  • A great Hairy Pill testimonial from 2023 on Reddit that shows excellent before and after 6-month results. The crown hair regrowth on this 31-year old male is exceptional.
  • A local Australian news story from 2023 with before and after photos from a guy who had Norwood 7 hair loss. He recovered most of his hair other than part of the frontal hairline.

The Hairy Pill®

In 2019, a company associated with Dr. Sinclair released something called The Hairy Pill (registered trademark). While the company website does not seem to mention oral Minoxidil, the pill does contain Minoxidil as the key ingredient. Some online discussions suggest it also contains Finasteride, but I am not as yet certain. Update: Now verified per company response at the bottom of this post.

The Hairy Pill results page (link no longer there) has many before and after photos, of both men and women. Also make sure to visit their Instagram page and their Facebook page.

The reason I decided to write about this pill today is due to the following Australian video that was just released:

Ratings

  • So far, the Google reviews and ratings for The Hairy Pill are a perfect 5/5 stars. Even after accounting for fake reviews, it is rare to see Google reviews averaging 5 stars. I am sure this rating will decline going forward. Update: I no longer see the below on Google.
The Hairy Pill Reviews
The Hairy Pill Google Reviews.

The Hairy Pill Cost and Side Effects

The monthly cost of 30 Hairy Pill capsules tablets is AU $75 for both males and females. You supposedly get personalized dosing and doctor consultations every 3 months, 6 months, 12 months and beyond. Sounds very professional, even though I would prefer them declaring the ingredients with full transparency.

It does not seem like anyone is reporting serious side effects so far, based on all the customer reviews that I read. According to the company itself:

“The underlying technology of The Hairy Pill® has been clinically tested by Professor Sinclair and his team via his clinical research company Samson Clinical.”

Note that I do not get any kind of commission from this product, and have not tried it myself. I assume that “The Hairy Pill” is available for shipping worldwide, but need to get confirmation.

Update from the Manufacturer

The manufacturer sent me the following e-mail summarizing their product:

The Hairy Pill® for men is a pharmaceutical compound in one single pill, which you would take daily, containing:

  • A starting dose of Minoxidil (low if the patient has never had oral Minoxidil before or a converted dose if the patient is taking topical Minoxidil) to stimulate hair growth, reduce thinning/loss and increase and thicken your hair.
  • A starting dose of Finasteride (low if the patient has never had it before or matching if the patient is currently taking Finasteride); OR Dutasteride (depending on the patient and severity of hair loss) to stop your hair loss in its tracks.
  • A collection of vitamins to promote healthy hair. Your hair is alive, so the healthier you are, the better your hair will be.
  • A collection of elements for regenerative purposes. These elements assist in strengthening and improving your hair as it grows.
  • A collection of amino acids (proteins) to provide the building blocks for the above active ingredients. These proteins assist in the building of your hair follicles.

Please note that since the pill is compounded each time, the doctor can add or exclude ingredients as needed. Some patients choose to have both active ingredients in the pill (Finasteride OR Dutasteride + Minoxidil combination), and some choose to have the one active ingredient (Minoxidil). Either option provides an effective treatment.

The women’s version also includes Spironolactone.