Scalp expert welcomes spotlight on alopecia

Following the event's of Sunday's 94th Academy Awards where Will Smith assaulted comedian Chris Rock for jokes he made about his wife's hair loss, local trichologist Karl Richmond says alopecia awareness is no joke.

Alopecia is the medical term for all forms of hair loss. One of the more common types, alopecia areata, is an autoimmune disorder.

"If you drop a general sensitisation that alopecia is out there and there are many different types, then you know I see people getting a better understanding of it, because they are now going to be wondering which of the variety do they have. Most alopecia situations are treatable and they become complicated after two years of inactivity, meaning you have it sitting down for the past two years and you haven't treated it," said Richmond.

Pinkett-Smith has openly spoken about her condition. According to Richmond, who specialises in disorders of the hair and scalp, the version of the disorder that she suffers from does not result in complete baldness and said that she did not have to clean shave her head.

"Most people with alopecia areata can cover it. It's not something that takes up a wide area," he said. Richmond, who has been a trichologist for more than 20 years, says alopecia is common among Jamaicans and many cases go undiagnosed.

"You know the hairdressers will get a bad rap sometimes because they'll see the hair loss and they don't know what is causing it," he said. "The first thing that it takes away from you is your confidence. An important thing to note is that alopecia areata is not an adult disorder but it can be found in children as early as the ones doing PEP [Primary Exit Profile]. Sometimes it is triggered by a stressful event and it has long been associated with stress."

While genetics does also play a role, Richmond says when diagnosed early, alopecia patients can regain almost all of their hair through stimulation treatment as well as the use of vitamins and a balanced diet.

"Normally as long as you start your treatment in the first two years of having it, you normally get back some hair there within 90 days. So the earlier you start the better. The treatment is surrounding stimulating the area, and normally what we do before we stimulate the area is put you on vitamins. Once blood rush to it, it must grow, it's like water in grass. Eat properly, a nice balanced diet is what we like to say," he said.

Oil, however, is not a proven treatment of hair loss, the trichologist added.

"They (patients) probably run go put some oil on it and the great majority of times, oil is not a treatment. Sometimes you put oil on scalp and you make the situation worse," he said.