So you found this beautiful dress you want to wear to your upcoming college reunion and think you should shed those extra pounds now. Before you go on a diet and live on biscuits and soup for the weeks to come as you take that diet pill, maybe it is worth learning how crash dieting can cause you to lose your hair. You heard it right. While dieting to the extreme can help shrink those flabs, your crown may pay the price.

Experts agree that making sudden changes to one’s diet causes the body to experience a ‘shock’. According to Live Strong, focusing your diet on only one food group creates disruptions in the body’s processes, just like illness and trauma would. This unplanned diet puts the body in a malnourished state. As a response to this attack, it stops supplying nutrients the hair follicles use in order to focus all of its energies in nourishing the more vital organs. When this happens, lots of your hair in the growing phase (around 85% in a given time) will prematurely skip to the resting phase.

This condition, Telogen effluvium, is different from alopecia areata (characterized by bald patches often due to tight braiding- a common problem among black women), it can cause the hair in the resting phase to shed in large quantities months after the shock was triggered, resulting in noticeable hair thinning. Fortunately, you hair can grow back as soon as the source of stress goes, though it may take months before your hair reaches the ideal length for styling.

If this is your case, hair extensions can add the volume and length you’re looking for, helping hide thinning areas as well as allowing you to style your crown freely. The only difference this time is that you’re giving your natural hair a break, helping it grow more healthily. AllWomensTalks.com suggest coloring your hair light to create the illusion of volume. Real human hair extensions sold in the market are basically black but you can color them if you want.

Among the best hair extensions for black women is Malaysian hair, which can be styled and maintained just like natural hair. Malaysian hair available through sellers like Virgin Hair Fixx doesn’t just blend well with African hair; it’s also lightweight so it’s relatively gentler to natural hair. Of course you have to ensure you’re getting professional installations. After all, hair extensions do only as well as the stylist who handles them.

In the future, avoid abruptly changing your diet. Don’t cease carb consumption just to reduce your calorie level. Instead, eat the same healthy foods you need but just trim their portions to maintain a balanced ratio.

Source: 7 Ways to Hide Thinning Hair, AllWomensTalk.com

Source: Causes of My Hair Falling out after Losing Weight, LiveStrong/.com