The problem with a hair loss cure is that if it works, why are there so many different products on the market. If an actual cure for baldness were found, it would be in the headlines of all the major newspapers and magazines. While these so-called hairloss cures may work and spur hair growth, the process takes a long time and anyone using the products has to have a lot of patience.

Minoxidil is a vasodilator and originally was exclusively used as an oral drug (Loniten®) to treat high blood pressure. It was discovered, however, to have the side effect of hair growth and reversing baldness, and in the 1980s, Upjohn Corporation received FDA approval to market a topical solution that contained 2% minoxidil to be used to treat baldness and hair loss as Rogaine. Minoxidil is applied topically to the scalp, and has been shown to promote hair growth in about 25% of men and women, though it may take several months to work.

While there are a number of genetic factors which determine a persons susceptibility to androgenic alopecia including androgen receptor polymorphisms, 5-alpha-reductase levels in the scalp, androgen receptor density and distribution in the scalp, and other factors some of which may not have been discovered. Some speculate the increase in baldness in the population of Japan after World War II demonstrates that hair loss can be influenced by diet and lifestyle.