Hello,
for the past few month I have been on treatment with Methylphenidat (eg Ritalin), because I noticed increased hair loss and generally the hair getting thinner, I stopped this treatment and changed over to Amphetamine (DL-Amphetaminesulphate, prepared by chemist). Now it appears to be that this is causing hair loss too.

Does anyone know why these medications cause hair loss and whether the hair grows back normal after discontinuation of medication, and if so, after how long? I cant get any clear information on this, some say yes, others say no, yet other say, that these drugs may even cause resp. speed up androgenetic alopecia.

Looking forward to hints and infos.
Roger

Hey Hares,

Theres no known side effect of hair loss with these drugs that I could find. It maybe that your hair loss is down to some other cause. How long has your hair loss gone on for first of all? Also has any of your family experienced hair loss,ie. parents, granparents, great grandparents? It maybe that your hair loss is hereditary. Take a look at these other Causes Of Hair Loss, they may help you come to a decision on what is causing it. If you are still sure that your hair loss is down to the medication you are taking then it is best to consult with your doctor and see if he can change your medication to something other than the two you have already tried.

Hope this helps

sorry, but perhaps you should look harder (though it's not that hard really), hair loss is a well known side effect of these drugs.

try the Ritalin prescription guide from Novartis, section "side effects" (alopecea)

try "hair loss adderall" in google.

it is well known that amphetamine causes hair loss in some.

try www.baldingblog.com

quote:

hair loss adderall

Ok, well sorry for trying to help
I did a couple of searches on ritalin and the amphetamine drugs and I couldn't find anything, my mistake. It's not very well covered at all, more info should be posted on this.
I can answer your question about the length of time it takes the hair to grow back. It takes roughly 3-4 months after discontinuation of medication for the hair to start to grow back. It will then start to grow back to the original thickness and strength.

Hope this helps this time

quote:

Ok, well sorry for trying to help

yeah, sorry, but can you imagine how frustrating it is to get an answer like your first one? in addition to that, I live in a country of know-it-alls (Germany), even pharmacists will say "cant be, no side-effect" even though it explicitely says so in the precription guide of Ritalin for example...

quote:

I can answer your question about the length of time it takes the hair to grow back. It takes roughly 3-4 months after discontinuation of medication for the hair to start to grow back. It will then start to grow back to the original thickness and strength.

does this relate to hair regrowth in general or regrowth after loss due to medications? Where did you find this info?

thanks,
Hares

Hares,

With regards to the length of time it takes for the hair loss to regrow, that is general time it takes for the hair loss to enter it's growth phase after the cause has been shut out. In this case the medication stopped, as it says in my last reply. I know this from personal experience.

Jason

I've been on a bunch of perscription stimulants over the years. (Sleep issues, ADD, etc.)

I agree that stimulants inhibit growth of hair, but I think this issue can get over-emphasized sometimes. I find that it takes a pretty large dosage of a stimulant (read: illegal) before that even becomes an issue. Although everyone's body is different.

But just look at the widespread stimulant usage in Hollywood - Lots of people in that industry are on everything from Adderal, to Dex, to full-blown raging cocaine addictions. If big hair loss with even just prescribed amounts of stimulants were really that commonplace, then there wouldn't be any real hair left on TV.


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quote:

Originally posted by hares:

quote:

Ok, well sorry for trying to help

yeah, sorry, but can you imagine how frustrating it is to get an answer like your first one? in addition to that, I live in a country of know-it-alls (Germany), even pharmacists will say "cant be, no side-effect" even though it explicitely says so in the precription guide of Ritalin for example...

quote:

I can answer your question about the length of time it takes the hair to grow back. It takes roughly 3-4 months after discontinuation of medication for the hair to start to grow back. It will then start to grow back to the original thickness and strength.

does this relate to hair regrowth in general or regrowth after loss due to medications? Where did you find this info?

thanks,
Hares

Hares & Jason76,

Hey, I am a brand spankin new member to this forum!! Thanks for the very helpful info on Ritalin and hairloss! I have experienced some hair loss in the last 6 months. I have used Dr. prescribed Ritalin for many years but have only taken half the dose. I started take the full dose maybe around the time I started noticing hair loss. Hmmm! That maybe what the cause is. Thanks loads for the great disussion.