Skip to content

Research & editorial

What Helps Editorial Team

We turn published research, product labels and regulatory safety notices into plain-language guides. Each guide lists the sources its claims are tied to, and commercial relationships never decide what we recommend.

The team

How every page is written

The same rules apply to every guide, comparison and profile. They are set out in full on the methodology page.

Sources
Trials, labels, regulatorsPages are written from published trials, product labels and regulators' safety notices, listed at the end of each page.
Before publishing
Checked line by lineEvery page is read again against our research file, and wording that says more than the source is corrected.
Numbers
Kept with their contextA result stays next to the size of the trial, how long it ran, what it was compared with and who funded it.
Independence
No paid positionsWe sell no supplements, and no brand can pay to appear in a guide or change a label.
Limits
Not medical advicePages are educational. When a situation needs an assessment, the page says so.
Corrections
Checked and fixedFound an error? Write to ask@whathelps.health and we will check it against the source.

Guides and comparisons

Every guide, comparison, ranking and ingredient profile on the site.

A man in his late thirties running a hand through his hair, which is slightly thinner at the temples

Hair · Guide

Male pattern hair loss treatments and supplements explained

Which options have evidence for gradual thinning in adult men, what benefit you might expect, and what each one involves, before you choose a brand.

Updated 2 October 2026 16 min readRead the guide
A thoughtful man comparing a hair cap with visible red lights and a red-light comb, one in each hand

Hair · Guide

Red-light therapy for hair loss: does it really work?

Laser caps, light-up helmets and combs all promise help with thinning hair. Here is what the treatment involves, how the devices differ, and what to know about results, side effects and regular use.

Updated 2 October 2026 9 min readRead the guide
Gloved hands holding a syringe of golden plasma beside a man's parted scalp, with a sealed plasma tube on a tray

Hair · Guide

PRP for hair loss: does it work?

What PRP scalp injections involve, how much they may help, how treatment courses differ, and what to know about pain, prices and repeat visits.

Updated 2 October 2026 8 min readRead the guide
A red-light hair cap, a capped microneedling pen, and a syringe beside a sealed tube of golden plasma

Hair · Comparison

Hair loss procedures: microneedling, light therapy or PRP?

What microneedling, light devices and PRP injections do, where they fit beside medicines, and how to compare their results, side effects, time and cost.

Updated 2 October 2026 8 min readRead the comparison
A man examining a generic dutasteride box and an unfolded medicine information leaflet

Hair · Guide

Dutasteride side effects: what to watch for

A guide to possible sexual and mood changes, fertility questions and symptoms after stopping, with practical points to discuss before and during treatment.

Updated 2 October 2026 8 min readRead the guide
A man holding a dropper above his parted scalp and a generic bottle labelled topical dutasteride

Hair · Guide

Topical dutasteride: what it is, results and side effects

An introduction to dutasteride applied to the scalp: how it differs from capsules, what the hair-growth study found, and the safety and product questions to consider.

Updated 2 October 2026 8 min readRead the guide
A man looking at his hairline in a mirror and a single phone photograph, beside a generic finasteride pack

Hair · Guide

Finasteride results: how long it takes and what to expect

What to expect over the first months and longer term, how regrowth differs from keeping the hair you have, and how to judge progress before a treatment review.

Updated 2 October 2026 8 min readRead the guide
A generic biotin bottle beside two capsules in a ceramic dish and a wooden hairbrush

Hair · Guide

Biotin for hair growth: does it help thinning hair?

When biotin may help with hair loss, how to understand the amount on a bottle and what to know before having a blood test.

Updated 2 October 2026 7 min readRead the guide
A man comparing separate bottles labelled rosemary and minoxidil, with a rosemary sprig on the counter

Hair · Comparison

Rosemary vs minoxidil: which helps with hair loss?

How rosemary lotions and oils compare with minoxidil solution and foam, from hair results and scalp irritation to daily use and what happens after stopping.

Updated 2 October 2026 7 min readRead the comparison
A man comparing a generic saw palmetto bottle with a finasteride pack and tablet blister

Hair · Comparison

Saw palmetto vs finasteride: which helps with hair loss?

A plant supplement and a prescription tablet compared: how they differ, what results to expect and the questions about side effects and continued use.

Updated 2 October 2026 7 min readRead the comparison
A man reviewing a saved photograph of his crown on a phone mounted on a small tripod

Hair · How to

How to track hair growth and treatment progress

A simple photo setup, a record you can copy and a way to compare changes over time, with treatment review dates and symptoms kept in view.

Updated 2 October 2026 7 min readRead the guide
A young man with wavy auburn hair standing by a bright window, calmly looking at a wooden wide-tooth comb in his hand

Hair · Guide

Hair loss types in men, and when to get assessed first

Gradual thinning at the hairline or the crown is one kind of hair loss. Sudden shedding, patches, a sore scalp and breakage are different questions, and each leads somewhere else.

Updated 1 October 2026 12 min readRead the guide
A man in his fifties with thinning grey hair holding an unbranded white bottle and looking at two plain tablets in his other palm

Hair · Guide

Vitamins for hair loss: biotin, iron, zinc and vitamin D

Correcting a documented deficiency and taking a supplement to regrow hair are two different questions. This page goes through what was studied for each nutrient, and where that leaves a man with pattern hair loss.

Updated 2 October 2026 15 min readRead the guide
A man in his late twenties at a bathroom shelf, setting a small white tablet bottle down next to an amber dropper bottle

Hair · Guide

Routines for hair loss: what to combine and what to choose between

A routine is a small number of things used consistently. This page sets out what has been studied together, what should not be stacked, what the labels say about use, and how long to give it.

Updated 2 October 2026 16 min readRead the guide
A man in a denim shirt standing in a bright hallway, holding a white foam can in one hand and a small tablet bottle in the other and looking from one to the other

Hair · Comparison

Minoxidil vs finasteride for hair loss: how the two core options compare

A scalp product used twice a day and a prescription tablet taken once a day. Our review does not establish a winner between them, so this page compares what each was tested against, what each asks of you and what each risks.

Updated 1 October 2026 15 min readRead the comparison
A man sitting at a kitchen table by a window, holding a small white tablet bottle in one hand and a small amber capsule bottle in the other, looking from one to the other

Hair · Comparison

Finasteride vs dutasteride for hair loss

Two prescription medicines from the same group. One large trial compared them over six months. Approval, long-term data, side-effect warnings and how long each stays in the body differ.

Updated 2 October 2026 16 min readRead the comparison
A man in his mid-forties at a bathroom counter holding a small amber dropper bottle, with a single tablet on a white dish and a glass of water beside him

Hair · Guide

Minoxidil and finasteride together: what the combination evidence shows

Finasteride tablets with minoxidil on the scalp is the pairing with direct trial evidence. Here are its numbers and their limits, the other ways of combining the two, and what product labels say.

Updated 1 October 2026 16 min readRead the guide
A man in a light denim shirt holding a small amber bottle and looking at the liquid in its glass dropper, in a bright bedroom

Hair · How to

How to use minoxidil according to the labels, and how long it takes

What four US and UK men's labels say about how much to use, how to put on the solution and the foam, and when to expect a change. Then what the trials counted at 16 and 48 weeks.

Updated 2 October 2026 15 min readRead the guide
A man in his late thirties sitting at a kitchen table by a window, reading a folded paper leaflet, with a small white tablet bottle on the table in front of him

Hair · Guide

Oral minoxidil for hair loss: what the trials show, and how it compares with the scalp forms

A tablet once a day sounds easier, and stronger, than a foam twice a day. Here is what the trials in men measured, which side effects were counted, and how the tablet compares with the solution and the foam.

Updated 1 October 2026 15 min readRead the guide
A man in a light denim shirt standing in a bright hallway, holding a white foam can in one hand and a small amber dropper bottle in the other, looking from one to the other

Hair · Comparison

Minoxidil foam vs liquid: which form to choose

The 5% foam and the 5% liquid are two forms of one medicine. Each has its own trial in men, its own label and its own base. No trial we rely on shows which one regrows more hair.

Updated 1 October 2026 13 min readRead the comparison
A man in his early thirties standing in a bright hallway, pushing his dark hair back from his forehead with one hand, his hairline a little higher at the temples

Hair · Guide

Minoxidil for a receding hairline: what the labels and trials say

The two US men's labels say minoxidil is for the top of the scalp, not a receding hairline. Here is what the labels and the trials cover at the front, and what stays open.

Updated 1 October 2026 12 min readRead the guide
A man in his early thirties in a bright bedroom, holding a slim white pump-spray bottle and looking at it

Hair · Guide

Topical finasteride spray: the trial, and how it compares with the tablet

A scalp spray is meant to deliver finasteride where the hair grows and less of it to the rest of the body. One trial tested one spray for 24 weeks. Here is what it measured, and what it did not settle against the tablet.

Updated 2 October 2026 13 min readRead the guide
A man in his mid thirties with very short dark hair standing in a bright bathroom, calmly reading the paper leaflet from a medicine pack

Hair · Guide

Minoxidil side effects: what the labels and trials recorded

What was counted with the solution and foam, what was counted with the tablets, and which symptoms the US labels tell users to stop for.

Updated 1 October 2026 16 min readRead the guide
A man in his mid-thirties in a terracotta sweatshirt standing in a bright hallway, calmly reading the side of a small white tablet bottle with a blank label

Hair · Guide

Finasteride side effects in trials, labels and regulators' warnings

What was counted in trials of the 1 mg tablet, what regulators in Europe, the UK and the US have added since, and what nobody can yet put a number on.

Updated 2 October 2026 15 min readRead the guide
A man in a grey sweatshirt sitting at a desk by a window, looking at a capped derma roller in its case and a small dropper bottle on the desk in front of him

Hair · Guide

Microneedling for hair loss: what the trials with minoxidil show

Rolling short needles over the scalp is said to make minoxidil work better. Small trials in men point that way, but each used its own protocol, their numbers are poorly reported, and none is a guide for a roller at home.

Updated 2 October 2026 12 min readRead the guide
Hair loss treatments, rankedSix ingredients for male pattern hair loss, from 1 to 6, with the reason for each position.See the ranking

Ingredient profiles