And here’s a half-year report of how his hair is doing!

If you read our Japanese-language reporter Go Hatori’s analysis of the sturdiness of Prime Minister Abe’s reusable masks, you might have noticed from his pictures that something looks a little different about him. Can you tell what it is?

That’s right, his hair’s looking a little more luscious than usual!

No, he isn’t using some new shampoo that adds extra volume. Inspired by his coworker Seiji Nakazawa’s amazing transformation with hair transplant surgery, Go decided to do something about his own androgenetic alopecia (AGA), also known as male pattern baldness. So, as a Christmas present to himself last year, he bought medical treatments for his thinning hair. Now that it’s been six months and he’s taken a good look at the before and after photos, Go is happy to report that the treatments have been a major success!

To get the help he needed to restore his locks, Go went to Shonan Beauty Clinic (SBC) in Shinjuku, Tokyo. He picked SBC out of all the clinics that treat baldness because, well, it was the cheapest! Absurdly cheap, actually, compared to the other clinics. It was the best alternative, since Go was paying for it all himself. All in all, the treatments thus far cost him a little less than 100,000 yen (US$920).

The treatments were simply prescription medication taken daily by mouth as well as a topical spray. The were three kinds of tablets he took, which were all original medicines produced by SBC: one tablet of Finasteride and one of Minoxidil, both of which are used to treat baldness, and a nutritional tablet full of vitamins, minerals and amino acids. The liquid spray also contained Finasteride.

Unlike Seiji’s hair transplant surgery, there was no medical procedure involved in Go’s treatments, and he only had to go to the clinic three times in six months, including the first consultation, so it was a relatively painless procedure. Still, Go was serious about having success. If it didn’t work, he was prepared to fight to get his money back (though he wouldn’t have to fight that hard, since the clinic has a money-back guarantee). He was also ready to write a scathing critique of the procedure on his personal blog. He paid for it out of his own pocket, after all!!

But now that six months have passed and it’s time to see the before and after photos…

▼ For all photos, the photo on the left is before the treatment, and on the right is after.

He believes it was well worth the money!

After starting the treatments, he had some doubts about them, since his hair was falling out and his body hair was growing in very thickly. A lot happened over the course of that six months, but in the end Go can genuinely say that he’s happy he did it. Just look at the difference!

Let’s look from the front first. Though his hair is down in the after photo, you can clearly see that, after six months of treatments, it’s more voluminous. And, perhaps because of the vitamins, or because he hasn’t been eating out as much these last few months, his face also looks a bit thinner.

From a slight angle, you can tell that his bangs were thinning, which concerned him. But now they’re looking very thick, like a curtain, and he’s no longer worried about them.

What he’d like you to really look at from the other side is not the hair on his head, but the hair in his eyebrows. They’re clearly much thicker than before. Plus, the hair of his sideburns are also clearly much more abundant.

A view from the top of his head shows that spots that were thinning out ever so slightly at the crown are now nicely covered with rich black locks, as if he’d dusted some black powder over his head. But you can tell that those spots haven’t just been covered up, because the rest of his hair looks thicker and more luscious than before, too.

But that’s just the beginning. The real proof is in the hairline on his forehead. Just look at the progress he’s made in six months!

Six months ago, his hairline was at a critical point, about to retreat behind the horizon. But now, the front lines have been restored and the warrior hairs are ready to continue the fight against baldness!

Compared to six months ago, his forehead, though, in his words, still on the large side, is much better framed now, especially on the temples.

The distance between the eyebrows and the hairline has also decreased dramatically. The down hairs have definitely multiplied, and Go thinks he might have to shave them periodically to keep the hair on his head from joining with his eyebrows.

Before starting the treatment, Go had a severely angled hairline with a prominent widow’s peak that much resembled Vegeta’s from Dragon Ball, but the baby hairs have filled out those spaces to make his hairline much softer.

Truly, Go has no complaints. His forehead has clearly become smaller, and the hair that had previously looked as if it would fall out at any moment is getting thicker and thicker.

Since the focus of Go’s insecurities had been his forehead, he doesn’t see too much of a difference in the back of his head. However, he does note that the condition of his hair has visibly improved. It has a little more body than before and looks a bit healthier.

And lastly, the view of the top of the head hasn’t changed much, except that his hair does seem to have a bit more volume than before.

So all in all, Go is very satisfied with the treatment. This is only the results of the first six months of treatment, but his hair is clearly much thicker and more voluminous than before, and he no longer feels any concern about balding. The doctor who has been seeing him says his hair is coming along nicely.

Apparently, the most changes occur in the three to four-month range, and after six months it probably won’t change much. But the typical treatment period is about two years, so Go plans to follow the doctor’s recommendations. Well, he’s actually thinking he will do it for even longer…maybe until he’s tired of having so much hair!

Photos © SoraNews24
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