Men taking a common medication for hair loss should be aware of potentially serious psychiatric and sexual side effects including insomnia (sleeplessness).
The daily pill, used by millions of men worldwide, might trigger depression and sexual dysfunction in the form of low libido and erectile dysfunction.
The more common side effects that can occur with finasteride include decreased sex drive, trouble getting or keeping an erection, ejaculation disorder, increase in breast size and tenderness, skin rash, among others. If mild, the symptoms may disappear within a few days. If they persist and are more severe or don’t disappear, a doctor or pharmacist should be consulted.
The drug in question is Finasteride, belonging to a class of medications called 5-alpha reductase inhibitors and sold under brand names like Proscar and Propecia, as well as other generic names. While effective for treating male pattern baldness, it has been linked to these side effects in some users.
The drug is widely prescribed to men with male pattern baldness and an enlarged prostate, but safety concerns raised by health experts warn that users must immediately stop taking finasteride if they develop depression or suicidal thoughts. In some cases, the alarming effects persisted even after men stopped taking the drug in what patients have coined ‘post-finasteride syndrome’.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the UK’s drug safety watchdog, recently issued a warning about finasteride, The warning follows a surge in reports of serious side effects, including depression, insomnia, low libido, and erectile dysfunction.
