Another Female Celebrity Suffering Hair Loss Due To Extensions? Perhaps Not
3rd October 2014
Seeing female celebrities suffering from hair loss is not an unusual occurrence nowadays.
Often, this loss is caused due to the ongoing trend of wearing hair extensions to provide thicker, fuller, longer locks.
Celebrities including Naomi Campbell, Kim Kardashian and Britney Spears, have all been photographed sporting patchy bald spots – tell-tale signs of the overuse of extensions, which cause hair loss by pulling on the dermal papilla and hair follicles.
Worn continuously over a long period of time (as many celebrities tend to do), hair extensions lead to high tension, pulling and the eventual breakage of hair.
With so many female stars appearing to fall victim to this trend, it’s perhaps unsurprising that, when Helen Flanagan was photographed recently with what appeared to be thinning hair, some members of the press immediately jumped to the conclusion that she too was suffering from loss due to the extensions she often favours.
Having not treated Helen personally, I cannot say for sure whether she is in fact suffering from hair loss due to wearing extensions, or for any other reason for that matter.
However, looking at her pictures, it does appear that some hair loss has occurred. I would suspect though, that it is Helen’s lifestyle that has affected her hair growth and not extensions, as has been reported.
Her parting lines look pretty level and even, which suggests the loss isn’t caused by extensions or hair colouring, the way clumpy patches would.
Looking at the images further, I would suggest that there are two reasons Helen’s hair may look like this. The first is a stress orientated hair loss, where the growth cycle is interrupted, or she could have hormone related hair loss, which is quite common in many women.
Stress, a poor diet, poor health, or a hormone imbalance can all affect your hair. Helen should get checked for problems, such as polycystic ovaries or anaemia, and also look at her diet and lifestyle to determine the root cause of the problem.
Women worried about hair loss should first consult their GP. Depending on his or her findings, they may be referred to a dermatologist (skin specialist doctor), endocrinologist (hormone specialist doctor) or gynaecologist.
When female patients are referred to us here at The Farjo Hair Institute, we arrange consultations with one of our doctors or our trichologist (hair and scalp specialist) depending on the issue concerned.
In almost all cases, female patients require blood tests: full blood count, glucose, serum ferritin (iron stores), thyroid hormones and, where relevant, gestational hormone levels amongst others. The treatment required, whether medical, surgical or simply cosmetic, then depends on the identified cause of the hair loss.
In many cases where there is permanent hair loss and a sufficient area of normal hair growth at the back, hair transplantation can be contemplated once any underlying problem has been treated.
If you have any concerns about your hair, please give our team a call and we’ll advise on the best course of action to take.
