Bald patch alert!

A bald patch is your worst nightmare? Beware, using hair extensions, hair colour and chemical styling can make balding a reality.

Hair today, gone tomorrow is perhaps the most frightening pun on a proverb. Especially for women, as a luscious crown is crucial to their beauty. To make our hair look gorgeous we put them through various chemical styling and procedures, inviting a blow by a double-edged sword. The result is a heavy price — a bald patch. And it’s none other than the celebrities who remind us of this tragedy.

Kim-Kardashian-in-an-all-covered-black-gown-Photo-AP

Recently, reality TV star Kim Kardashian was spotted with a bald patch over her forehead, showing the horrors of chemical treatments, such as colouring, rebonding, straightening, and hair extensions, that once leveraged her to a stylista’s status. In the same ‘bald’wagon is actor Nicole Kidman, who is facing thinning hair because of prolonged use of hair dyes and bleach.

Ladies, watch your hairline
Is female baldness for real? Yes, say dermatologists, alarming that it has been on the rise over the past few years. They have cited stress, hormonal imbalance, improper diet and women’s exposure to chemical hair procedures as the reasons for it.

“When chemicals are used for hair treatments, the protective lipid layer of fat on the outside of the cuticle —responsible for making the hair shiny — is removed,” says Dr. Purvish Parikh. “If damage has reached the cuticle, then it is irreversible,” adds dermatologist, Dr Samir Soni.

Chemical woes
Although all chemical treatments are harmful, hair straightening and use of extensions are the biggest culprits. "Hair straightening damages the hair by thinning the hair shaft and drying out the hair, and scalp causing breakage and hair loss. Hair colouring with harmful chemicals like ammonia and peroxide affects the quality of hair. Over-tight hair extensions results in infection to roots known as folliculitis, breakage and baldness,” says dermatologist Dr. Navin Taneja.

“If colouring is important, then use p-Phenylenediamine (PPD)-free hair colour,” says Dr Vandana Chatrath.

Natural haircare
1 Instead of using tight hair extensions, use hair wigs. Also, use heena in place of harmful chemical colours.

2 For straight and shiny hair, try this home remedy. Take a cup of milk and add a few drops of honey to it. Mix in some mashed strawberries and apply the mixture on hair. Keep it on for two hours and then wash off with a mild shampoo. Blow-dry hair with a
wide tooth comb.

3 Hot oil treatment is another method to nourish and moisturise your hair, making it straighter in the long run. Heat a little oil,
be it coconut, olive, or any other oil of your choice, and apply it on the scalp. Wrap a hot towel on your head and leave it for some time. Wash your hair after
sometime and find glossy, smooth, and straight hair.

4 Beat two eggs and add a spoon of olive oil to them. Mix thoroughly. Take a wide tooth comb and divide your hair in different, small sections. Stretch the hair with the comb and thoroughly apply this paste on it with a small brush. Wrap it in silver foils and keep for a few hours. Wash it off with a very mild shampoo and find yourself with gorgeous straight hair.

By Aashmeen Munjaal, beauty expert

Diet for healthy hair
Poultry like chicken and turkey are rich in protein and are vital for healthy hair. Fish is also rich in proteins. If you’re a vegetarian, you can add flax seed in your daily diet.

Vegetables such as broccoli, spinach, peas, beans, etc, help in maintaining the quality of hair. Carrots are rich in vitamin A, which is important to keep the scalp healthy.

Brazil nuts are rich in selenium, a mineral essential for a healthy scalp. Other types of nuts, like walnuts, contain alpha-linolenic acid, a type of omega-3 that helps maintain healthy hair.

Low-fat dairy products, such as skimmed milk and yogurt, are a natural source of calcium, essential mineral for hair growth. Also, include yogurt in your diet for breakfast.

Biotin or vitamin H is part of vitamin B Complex that promotes hair growth and makes it hair thicker. Biotin is present foods like cheese, beef liver, cauliflower, eggs, mushrooms, chicken breasts, salmon, spinach, brewer’s yeast, nuts and can be manufactured in the body should a small shortfall occur. It is also available in form of supplements, which should be taken only after consulting a doctor.

Celebs losing their crowning glory
TV star Kim Kardashian with an awful bald spot as result of tight hair extensions
Actor Jessica Wright has a bald patch as a result of over-tight hair extensions
Actor Nicole Kidman’s hair are thinning because of extensive use of hair colour
Tennis player Serena Williams reveals her big bald spot
Super model Naomi Campbell’s receding hairline as a result of using hair extensions

Get Connected
Share your natural remedies to keep your the hair luscious and healthy at www.facebook.com/htcity