Can you inherit Hair Loss from your Parents?

Many of us have parents who are suffering from Hair Loss issues of their own, and we often wonder if it's possible that our own Hair Loss situation is as a result of theirs. Sometimes, we might not even have Hair Loss, but worry if we will end up like them in our latter years. In this episode of Ask The Trichologist, we talk about the possibility of inheriting your parents' Hair Loss situation.

Ask The Trichologist is a show by African Naturalistas to answer your burning questions concerning Hair Loss and Shaft issues, and Scalp Disorders.

If you want us to answer your questions, ask them in the comment section, or send an email to att@africanaturalistas.com

Can Heat Damage my Hair? What is Bubble Hair?

Heat application to our Hair strands can make it look luscious and beautiful, but if not done rightly, can be the beginning of our journey to Hair Shaft disorders, including Bubble hair. In this episode, we talk about Heat damage in detail, and one of the Hair shaft disorders more common than we know, which is Bubble Hair

Ask The Trichologist is a show by African Naturalistas to answer your burning questions concerning Hair Loss and Shaft issues, and Scalp Disorders.

If you want us to answer your questions, ask them in the comment section, or send an email to att@africanaturalistas.com

Does Microneedling really work for Hair Growth?

Hair loss is becoming more commonplace, and many more people are getting comfortable talking about their Hair loss issue, and seeking solutions. Microneedling is one of the proposed solutions for regrowing lost hair. But does it really work? Under what conditions does it work? In this episode of Ask The Trichologist, we talk about this lightly without being too scientific.

Ask The Trichologist is a show by African Naturalistas to answer your burning questions concerning Hair Loss and Shaft issues, and Scalp Disorders.

If you want us to answer your questions, ask them in the comment section, or send an email to att@africanaturalistas.com

How to get rid of Head / Hair Lice

Head Lice is a highly infectious condition which can affect anyone of any age, but more common amongst Children. In this video, we give simple straight-to-the-point solutions and hacks on how to counter this issue, without being too scientific.

Ask The Trichologist is a show by African Naturalistas to answer your burning questions concerning Hair Loss and Shaft issues, and Scalp Disorders.

If you want us to answer your questions, ask them in the comment section, or send an email to att@africanaturalistas.com

How to keep your Edges from Receding

Traction Alopecia, Receding Hairline, Receding Edges, etc is the most common problem presented to me amongst Black Women, yet the incidences are still on the rise. This is largely due to ignorance, and late presentation of the issue to your Trichologist. 

Ask The Trichologist is a show by African Naturalistas to answer your burning questions concerning Hair Loss and Shaft issues, and Scalp Disorders.

If you want us to answer your questions, ask them in the comment section, or send an email to att@africanaturalistas.com

The problem with DIY Treatments for Hair Care

DIY Treatments for hair care is very common in the online hair care world. In this episode of Ask The Trichologist, we treat a listener's question about why some professionals in the industry don't promote it. 

Ask The Trichologist is a show by African Naturalistas to answer your burning questions concerning Hair Loss and Shaft issues, and Scalp Disorders.

If you want us to answer your questions, ask them in the comment section, or send an email to att@africanaturalistas.com

Help! I have Alopecia!!!

Alopecia is just a general term for Hair Loss, so what exactly is your specific issue when you say you have Alopecia? In this episode of Ask The Trichologist, we answer some burning questions about Alopecia. Ask The Trichologist is a show by African Naturalistas to answer your burning questions concerning Hair Loss and Shaft issues, and Scalp Disorders.

If you want us to answer your questions, ask them in the comment section, or send an email to att@africanaturalistas.com

Help! My Hair is Shedding!

What do you do when your hair is shedding? How are you even sure it is shedding and not breaking?In this episode of Ask The Trichologist, we address the shedding issue. Ask The Trichologist is a show by African Naturalistas to answer your burning questions concerning Hair Loss and Shaft issues, and Scalp Disorders.

If you want us to answer your questions, ask them in the comment section, or send an email to att@africanaturalistas.com

How to Restore Your Hair From Alopecia

If you have been in the natural hair community for even the shortest period, you must have heard the word Alopecia going around. Just to clear the air, and answer the big question before we proceed, Alopecia is not contagious, and neither is all forms of Alopecia a medical condition. Alopecia is basically the general term for hair loss and we would shed light on how to restore your hair from Alopecia.

Is Alopecia a Medical Condition? The Jada Pinkett Smith Edition

I’m sure that by now, you must have heard about the whole slap issue between Chris Rock and Will Smith. If you haven’t, well… I will not say anything to you, just head to over to google. 

I will not belabor the issue by analyzing who is right or wrong, but will send my dagger straight to what was being claimed as the root cause of the entire brouhaha

It is being said that Chris Rock made fun of Jada’s Alopecia, a Medical Condition she’s currently facing. I keep reading this categorization on all platforms and I say to myself? “Really? Alopecia? A medical condition?”

So , do you think Alopecia is a medical condition or the news outlets have been categorizing it that way, in order to make the story weightier?

Firstly, what is Alopecia? This is just a general term for Hair loss, no matter the cause. So how can something which is a general term be tied to medical cause.

I always cringe when someone comes to me for help, and says things like

“I have alopecia, help me.”

“What is the cure for alopecia?”

This is equivalent to someone asking a paediatrician “How do I stop tears from flowing from my child’s eyes?” Of course, the first thing the doctor will ask is “what type of tears? What caused the tears? Is it tears of joy or does it emanate from pain?”

There are several types of Alopecia, and many of those Alopecia have different causes. Many of the Alopecia faced are as a result of what we have done to our hair, and are in no way medical. An example is Traction Alopecia. Very few of them are medical in nature, such as Alopecia Areata, Alopecia Totalis, and Alopecia Universalis.

For some others, Alopecia is not even the main issue, but a byproduct of a bigger medical issue, such as a cancer patient who loses her hair as a result of Chemotherapy.

As for Jada Pinkett Smith’s issue, I can’t really tell the cause of her Hair loss, so I don’t know whether it is a Medical Condition or not.

So, to summarize, some types of Alopecia are not medical in nature, while some are not. To determine if it is a medical condition, tests have to be done, and diagnosis has to be passed.

Most importantly, no matter the kind of Hair loss you are facing, just know you can always rock your hair in confidence, like Jada did.

Just in case you have any form of Alopecia that has caused you some tears and embarrassment, and you have not found solutions, I encourage you to join the waitlist for AN Superstars. Once you join this program, your alopecia will not stand a chance. The results speak for themselves

Redefining your motives for going natural

Hello Naturalistas,

I went to a private university owned by a worship centre and one of the rules included us not using any form of hair extension. You had no choice but to maintain your hair in it's natural state either, short, relaxed, locked or natural. Because of this rule and the fact that school had a lot of members, there were alot of people who maintained their unprocessed natural hair but the motive was flawed.

With the flawed motive it was very common to see unhealthy natural hair around school. There are different reasons why people decide to maintain their natural hair, there are the ones who out of convenience just want to keep their hair on a permanent BC and there are some who being natural is all they've known either for religious reasons or any other reason. Whatever your motive for maintaining your natural hair, here are 2 things to help you redefine your motive:

Relaxer is not your only enemy: I have watched naturalistas who wouldn't use any form of relaxer on their hair use heat to damage their hair. While you might feel that the worst thing that can happen to your hair is using a relaxer, there are alot more practices that can equally damage your hair e.g Using heat without protecting your hair properly, Tight protective style can damage your edges, lack of proper care etc.

Education is Key: To change your motive, you have to educate yourself. I have a friend whose hair was damaged by heat and just by asking questions and researching online her hair is thriving today. Put in the work, read blogs, online forums, tips and tricks, youtube videos, attend natural hair meet-up and generally whatever works for your hair. Education can and will make the difference.

You are on this natural hair journey for the long haul, why not just give it your best shot?

What's your motive for maintaining your natural hair? Do you think it's time to redefine it?

Regrowing bald patches on the scalp

Two weeks ago, I noticed something on my right temple. It looked like a bald patch, but I wasn't so sure

I had my second didi on but I wasn't exposing it like I did last time around. I wasn't in the country and I didn't want my hair to be heavily manipulated while I was out of town. I also didn't want to do braids so I opted for didi, which I hid under a braided wig.

After about a week out of town, I noticed that a part of my temple seemed strange. It was particularly itchy, flaky and smooth but I couldn't be too sure.

When I got back home, I took out my didi and I confirmed it.

Yes, I had a bald patch

It wasn't noticeable to people looking at me at first glance cos my edges are generally full. Only someone conversant with her hair and a good stylist would know it's a patch.

First of all, the hair around my edges are extremely soft, fine and curly so it is not as strong

I began to wonder what triggered the patch

The possible scenarios were

1. I was wearing the wig on a wig cap, which is cotton. Even though I moisturised my hair regularly, the edge of the wig was rubbing around my own edges, and the friction wasn’t good for my hair, especially in the cold weather
2. The weather was cold and I had dry scalp so my scalp had been flaking from the get go. The flakes were a lot and my scalp was itchy so it's possible that it was as the point of removing the flakes and scratching that the hair around that part came off
3. I went through severe stress in August and even worse in September. We underestimate how stress can affect our health, and have a resultant bad effect on our hair. The effect of the stress usually doesn't show up until few weeks or months after the stressful period 

It's one of these things above or a combination of two or three of them that would have resulted in my patch.

So what I plan to do to make it grow back is nothing serious. I'll just keep on with a healthy hair care regimen. Thankfully, I don't have to use the wig and wig cap cos I'm back in town. I will try not to put myself through any stress. I'm sure this would solve the problem.

I don't know how long it will take to fill up but I will be monitoring it.

Have you ever had a patch before, even though your hair was healthy? How did you combat it, and how long did it take?