Propecia: Is It Safe?
Nothing is entirely safe. Even things that are good for us, such as like exercise, fresh air, and fresh fruits and vegetables can be damaging in excess. Too much exercise and you develop muscles that cannot be sustained on a normal diet (not to mention sprains, strains and fatigue). Fresh air is great, and most of us should spend more time outdoors than we do. Spend too much time outdoors and you risk skin cancer, or frostbite. Fruit is an excellent source of antioxidants; too much, and you develop obesity, and/or Type II diabetes.
What is Propecia?
Propecia, a medication developed to treat male pattern baldness, has demonstrated a high degree of safety. Approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1997, Propecia has been in use in the general population for 10 years with less than a 2% rate of side effects. Even aspirin (to which one in ten people are allergic) has a lower safety rating, and can cause everything from ulcers to gastrointestinal bleeding, or persistent rashes and even pancreatic cancer when used over long periods of time. In fact, aspirin should never be used to treat children’s’ fevers, due to an increased risk of Reyes Syndrome.
How safe is Propecia?
The correct question is: how safe is Propecia? Well, after clinical trials, aftermarket trials and 10 years in the general population, the worst side effects of Propecia appear to be allergic reactions, or rashes, and these occurred in about 2% of users. Coming in second were adverse reactions related to sexual behavior which include decreased libido or sex drive (1.8%), erectile dysfunction (1.3%), and ejaculation disorders (specifically less ejaculate, at 1.2%). The incidence of all side effects fell to 0.3% by the fifth year of use, and men who experienced side effects and stopped using Propecia altogether reported a complete return to sexual function.
Participants also completed an anonymous questionnaire on sexual activity, and less than 2% reported a significant difference in their performance or satisfaction levels when using Propecia, confirming the results of the study that was mentioned in the previous paragraph..
Interestingly enough, the dosage of Propecia does not have to be adjusted by age; it is the same for a 60-year old as it is for an 18-year old. Propecia is well tolerated even by patients who have some form of renal insufficiency (i.e., kidney problems, whether chronic or acute). Since the kidneys are the bodies toxic waste filters, this indicates that Propecia is considerably less toxic than drugs like Bextra, which was widely prescribed to treat pain, until it was linked to cardiovascular disturbances and recalled. In fact, by incidence, Propecia is safer than aspirin.
Researchers have yet to determine the relationship between Propecia and male breast Neoplasia (breast cancer). In one test, 0.7% of Propecia users developed Neoplasia, while the placebo group did not. In another, similar test, 1.5% in the placebo group developed cancer, but none of the Propecia users did, which leads me to conclude that – of the male population in general – close to 1% of males are likely to develop Neoplasia in their lifetimes.
Propecia should not be used, or touched, by women who are pregnant or expect to become pregnant, because of a specific birth defect in male fetuses. Propecia has not been tested among women, and is not recommended for use by women. People with liver problems, or liver damage, should not use Propecia, as it is metabolized extensively in the liver.