More than just a GI-Jane joke

Whether you watched the 2022 Oscars last month or not, you probably have an opinion about Will Smith’s slap “heard round the world”. But instead of focusing on the moments after Chris Rock chose to make Jada Smith’s baldness the butt of his distasteful joke, let’s make this an opportunity to have healthy, positive conversations about hair loss.

What is Alopecia?

Alopecia is an autoimmune disease that progresses when the body attacks its own hair follicles. This causes unpredictable hair loss anywhere on the body. Oftentimes, when someone has a few bald patches, hair could regrow without treatment, but it also could be permanent. People experience this at various ages but the majority of people see it develop during childhood or as a teenager. “When the hair regrows, it may never fall out again. It’s also possible to have unpredictable cycles of hair loss and regrowth for years.”1 Children with parents or close relatives with alopecia are at a greater risk of having alopecia themselves.

You or your child’s risk of developing alopecia may also be affected by your race. “In a large study, researchers found that Black and Hispanic nurses were more likely than non-Hispanic white nurses to develop this disease.” Alopecia disproportionally affects people with Black and Hispanic backgrounds.

No one is laughing about hair loss…

Hair loss is a sensitive subject for well… pretty much everyone! If you haven’t experienced hair loss yourself, you definitely know someone who has. You may not even know that your coworker is always around 10 minutes late because she’s trying to feel confident in her hair before she comes in. There’s so much negativity around losing hair, so people of all ages, races, and genders try to either cover up their bald spots or solve hair loss in unhealthy ways.

Protect your CROWN!

Here are some real ways to keep you and your child’s hair healthy, and prevent hair loss or any other damage to that beautiful head of hair:

Take care of your hair and scalp!

Stay away from harsh treatments and pay attention to what is in the products you put in your hair. Skylar J’s LushUs Kids provides natural hair care products that treat damaged hair and scalp conditions like scalp psoriasis and eczema. Use the LushUs Kids line to wash and treat your child’s hair regularly.

Loosen that ponytail every once in a while!

Too much tension on the scalp can cause very preventable hair loss and damage. Try to avoid keeping hair up for too long, and please don’t tighten until your edges scream. They need a break every once in a while too.

Chill out!

Stress is another major cause of hair loss. So take that break, watch that show you’ve been meaning to binge on Netflix, and chill until you’ve had your fill. Your hair will thank you!

Follow Skylar J’s LushUs Kids!

Stay informed about healthy hair care practices by following LushUs on social media @lushuskids and checking out lushuskids.com for more natural hair resources.

Sources:

1. https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/hair-loss/types/alopecia

2. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/how-to-stop-hair-loss/