Female alopecia: What happens to Jada Pinkett, Will Smith's wife?

 

Jada Pinkett Smith shared her hair loss on social media - Reuters

The 2022 Oscars will go down in history as the edition in which actor Will Smith slapped gala presenter Chris Rock after joking about his wife's alopecia, Jada Pinkett Smith .

At the end of 2021, the actress acknowledged on her social networks that she has alopecia and that she has decided to accept it: "This alopecia and I are going to be friends... period!"

Although hair loss is a circumstance that has always affected men more, female cases have increased significantly for a long time . It is estimated that 30% of women will suffer from some type of alopecia throughout their lives.

There are more than a hundred types, although the most common in women is androgenic alopecia , of hormonal and genetic origin.

Those affected lose capillary density, the line becomes wider and the scalp is visible.

Another type of alopecia that also affects women is frontal fibrosing alopecia , a type of cicatricial baldness of autoimmune and hormonal origin in which the eyebrows are usually lost and there is alopecia in the area of ​​the forehead and sideburns; and alopecia areata , the one that Jada Pinkett seems to have, whose origin is autoimmune (the immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys healthy hair follicles), and in which circular areas of alopecia appear quickly, which can lead to a general loss.

They should not be confused with telogen effluvium , an intense but punctual hair loss caused by physical or emotional stress, which is reversible, since the hair will grow back after a few months.

Before putting treatment , it is necessary to have a correct diagnosis. The dermatologist is the specialist we should consult when we notice a problem with the hair.