Propecia Causes Birth Defects

[wylie]

The accepted wisdom on this forum is telling people to "get on meds", especially young guys. This is usually the advice given to someone considering a hair transplant, to "stabilize" their hair loss and potentially avoiding surgery this way. This means getting on Propecia/Proscar. I have always thought that telling people, especially young people, to "get on meds" is irresponsible and potentially worse.

 

So I'm donating blood today and I see that I should not donate blood if I'm taking Propecia, as it "has been linked to birth defects"

 

A young guy who might start a family someday is potentially the worst candidate to start taking Propecia.

[hairlosscpa]

Great post..I asked something similar in an earlier post if you're interested in checking out the responses.

 

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/180084-fin-conceiving.html

[Dr Blake Bloxham]

The 5-alpha-reductase enzyme, which is inhibited (or a certain subtype of which is inhibited) by finasteride, is crucial in the development of secondary sexual characteristics (IE external genitals) during the embryological period. Especially the development of male secondary sexual structures (you get what I'm talking about here).

 

Male embryos with a condition called "5-alpha-reductase enzyme deficiency" will not develop traditional male genitalia despite having the chromosomal makeup telling the body to do so. This is because the fetus doesn't have the DHT hormone (which is made by the 5-alpha-reductase enzyme) needed to form these structures. As you can probably guess, these children will be born genetically male, but will not have the traditional external organs.

 

This is the theoretical risk with finasteride and pregnancy. And obviously this is why the manufactures are VERY persistent about keeping pregnant women completely clear of the drug.

[GPS3]

One of the main reasons why I don't want to try propecia is the possibility of this. I Plan on having kids and rather have a not so thick head of hair then the possibility of having children with such risk

 

I do plan on using minoxidil. Have any birth defects been found with men who take it and have children ?

[SunSeeker]

Wow. I didn't know that is why you can't have propecia around pregnant women. Wow.

[KO]

I think mods should delete this thread. It is intentionally inflammatory and misleading. Birth defects happen if a pregnant WOMAN is exposed to the drug. This is something that is very well known and has ALWAYS been part of the literature for finasteride. If you were not aware of this, it is YOUR fault, and YOUR lack of knowledge. Do not cover up your own ignorance by claiming this advice is irresponsible. It will not happen because you take the drug. Furthermore, there has to be a certain threshold of exposure before the effect is significant. Just because you are taking finasteride doesn't mean that your kid will have birth defects. Now if your wife starts popping finasteride, then you have a problem.

 

 

A young guy who might start a family someday is potentially the worst candidate to start taking Propecia.

 

This is stupidity.

 

Um...before posting an obviously inflammatory title, could you please try and actually think about the topic?

[Dr Blake Bloxham]

KO,

 

Very important points of clarification. Thank you for sharing.

[Noodles123]

I get that this was well-intentioned, but what's new here? This has been known since Propecia came onto the market. They specifically state that pregnant women or women who may become pregnant do not handle broken pills.

[chrisdav]

Can you link us to and show the actual cases of reported birth defects?

[wylie]

I think mods should delete this thread. It is intentionally inflammatory and misleading. Birth defects happen if a pregnant WOMAN is exposed to the drug. This is something that is very well known and has ALWAYS been part of the literature for finasteride. If you were not aware of this, it is YOUR fault, and YOUR lack of knowledge. Do not cover up your own ignorance by claiming this advice is irresponsible. It will not happen because you take the drug. Furthermore, there has to be a certain threshold of exposure before the effect is significant. Just because you are taking finasteride doesn't mean that your kid will have birth defects. Now if your wife starts popping finasteride, then you have a problem.

 

 

 

 

This is stupidity.

 

Um...before posting an obviously inflammatory title, could you please try and actually think about the topic?

 

It was not intentionally inflammatory, and this was never my intent. I stated clearly that I donated blood and I was given a sheet stating that I should not donate blood if taking this drug, as it has been known to be linked to birth defects.

 

This was not specific to women, this was a red flag, as indicated by the Red Cross, that they would not accept my blood if I indicated to them I was taking Propecia. Simple as that.

 

The information I shared came from them. No need to be a tool, but clearly you can't help yourself.

[wylie]

Can you link us to and show the actual cases of reported birth defects?

 

No, I can't. You might check here for further information.

[KO]

It was not intentionally inflammatory, and this was never my intent. I stated clearly that I donated blood and I was given a sheet stating that I should not donate blood if taking this drug, as it has been known to be linked to birth defects.

 

This was not specific to women, this was a red flag, as indicated by the Red Cross, that they would not accept my blood if I indicated to them I was taking Propecia. Simple as that.

 

The information I shared came from them. No need to be a tool, but clearly you can't help yourself.

It is specific to women. If a woman takes your blood then she can risk BDs for the baby. Reality is, you made a foolish post, posted an inflammatory title about a property of finasteride that is well known, and then decided to tell everybody that it was a poor idea to recommend fin based on this fact you suddenly "discovered".

 

A better title could have been "don't donate blood while on fin", that would make a lot of sense and been helpful, but hey this is the internet.

[Melvin- Admin]

The title is not wrong, finasteride could cause birth defects if taken by a woman, however the tablets are coated so there wouldn't be an issue unless a pregnant woman touched crushed pills, many guys cut tablets which potentially could pose a risk if handled by a pregnant woman. But in most scenarios this wouldn't occur, however it's not wrong to warm guys about such things, because many men take things without knowing the risks associated, what if a guy had cut up pills and his wife happens to touch them, there is risk involved in that, why would this not be shared to the public?

[wylie]

It is specific to women. If a woman takes your blood then she can risk BDs for the baby. Reality is, you made a foolish post, posted an inflammatory title about a property of finasteride that is well known, and then decided to tell everybody that it was a poor idea to recommend fin based on this fact you suddenly "discovered".

 

A better title could have been "don't donate blood while on fin", that would make a lot of sense and been helpful, but hey this is the internet.

 

First off, your signature touts the benefits of Dutasteride, so it's fairly evident to me while you got so upset with my post, you may have a vested financial interest in the topic. I don't expect you to make a full disclosure because, like you say, it's the internet.

 

I posted that the Red Cross wouldn't take my blood because their literature stated that this medication "has been linked to birth defects"

 

I realize your paycheck may rely on you selling this product or another similar product, so forgive me for dismissing your claims. They may indeed be true, and that's great. But I'm old enough to not believe everything that is touted at "safe", as I've seen contradicting evidence over the years on other products deemed safe.

 

I'd recommend any young guy simply stay far away from the stuff, unless they find themselves with an enlarged prostrate. How many young guys do you know who suffer from this condition?

[KO]

I have a financial interest in dutasteride and get a paycheck from GSK? I'm amazed. Keep talking. This is truly hilarious. You made a foolish post because you lacked knowledge on this topic, and you cover it up by accusing me of being paid to represent a drugco.

 

 

 

Bravo.