Amarachi Okeh
A Consultant Dermatologist, Dr. Sebastien Oiwoh, has said that there is no evidence to support the notion that carving to reshape the hair causes the hairline to recede.
Oiwoh explained that this is because cutting or shaving hair does not get to remove the hair shafts from the hair follicles – holes where each hair shaft comes from.
Rather, the skin expert explained that what carving hair does is to create a demarcating line between the parts of the scalp that have the bulk of hair and the parts that do not have the bulk of hair at the front or back of the scalp.
Carving of hair also serves to reduce the length of hair in the demarcated area but does not remove the entire hair, he added.
However, what causes a hairline to recede, the dermatologist said, is androgenetic alopecia also known as common baldness or pattern hair loss. This type of hair loss is a progressive loss of hair function and structure of hair, adding that the eventual loss of hair occurs with age.
Explaining this further in a chat with PUNCH HealthWise, Oiwoh said, “This progressive reduction in structure of the hair, which oftentimes is not fully obvious until the hair shafts fall off, tends to become more obvious with the carving of hair since the hairline recedes progressively with the hair loss.
“It is this coincidence that many confuse as being caused by the carving or shaving of hair.
“Some Nigerian research works have shown that between two to six Nigerians out of 10 have this progressive hair loss called common baldness that occurs as one increases in age.”
He, however, said common baldness can be managed if the affected person presents to the dermatologist.
Oiwoh also stated that “Common baldness is associated with internal diseases like the disease of the heart and its blood vessels, abnormal fat in the blood, systemic hypertension, diabetes mellitus among others.
“Common baldness has also been shown to impair the quality of life of those affected through a reduction in self-confidence and self-esteem and has also been shown to cause depression and in some cases suicide if not properly managed.
“So, all persons with hairline recession should present to the Dermatologist and venereologist for appropriate examination and follow-up.”
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