“Young men could be risking their sexual health by taking a commonly used anti-baldness drug, claim some doctors.
They say finasteride, sold in the UK as Propecia, can cause serious side effects and isn’t adequately labelled.
A quarter of men in their 20s show signs of male pattern baldness, with six and a half million males in the UK affected.
Propecia manufacturer Merck says it continually monitors the drug’s safety and has updated the label.
James, 26, from Edinburgh suffered side effects after using the drug.
“I noticed hair loss, hair coming out in the shower and on the pillow, and I freaked out basically.
“I went onto the internet and researched it. I found out there was a drug called Propecia, and soon enough I started buying that and it worked a treat.”
The prescription pill is extremely effective at stopping hair loss and in clinical trials nine out of 10 men didn’t lose any more hair over a five year period.
Drugs’ company Merck, which manufactures Propecia, claims on its website that less than 2% of men could suffer sexual side effects.
‘Completely impotent’
It mentions things like difficulty achieving an erection, but says the problems will go away for men who stop taking the drug.”
