Finasteride Duration of Action and Half Life
Q:
I have read an article on the active half life of finasteride, which is a few hours, but you mentioned in one of the posts that its side effects may last up to 5 days after discountinuing the drug. How do you explain that?
A:
Finasteride (Propecia) functions through blocking the enzyme, 5 alpha reductase. The enzyme five-alpha reductase is responsible for conversion of the male hormone, testosterone to dihydroxytestosterone (DHT), which is the form of the hormone affecting hair follicles and causing hair loss. That is true that finasteride gets eliminated from our body in a few hours, but its blocking effects on the enzyme 5 alpha reductase continues for a long time. If you ever experience side effects of finasteride, you can stop the medication and its effect will be gone in 5 to 6 days.
Tags: 5 alpha reductase, finasteride, five alpha reductase, propecia, side effect