The headline is broadly defensible, but the qualifications matter. Effect sizes vary by population, the strongest claims rest on shorter trials, and credible voices push back on how it's typically framed.
Topical dutasteride is likely a tiny bit systemically absorbed, but it's unique because it's half life is much faster at a lower dose. So topical dutasteride will not affect your systemic DHT at all, and I've seen this anecdotally on many people on topical dutasteride therapy.
Every Sunday: the week’s new conflicts and verdict changes — and nothing else.
Native comments, Twitter mentions, and Reddit threads about this claim — surfaced together so the conversation isn't fragmented across platforms.
Bookmarking — the dossier-vs-overview split is the right call. Most of the time I want overview; sometimes I want receipts.
Would love a "what would change this verdict" RSS feed. Sign me up if it exists.
Topical finasteride is also a smaller molecule, so it is also systemically absorbed, but it is not extremely well systemically absorbed. If you take topical finasteride, then usually your systemic DHT will decrease by about 30%.