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The stunning ‘henna crowns’ helping cancer victims come to terms with their hair-loss

A photographer is on a mission to transform the bald heads of women with cancer and genetic alopecia using the ancient art form of henna.

Frances Darwin launched Henna Heals last year, where artists hand-paint intricate designs onto women’s scalps with a natural plant-based paste, giving them back their femininity, confidence and power.

Using a hairless head as a canvas, ‘the designs are customized and one-off works of art,’ Ms Darwin told Today, who wants to empower cancer sufferers to feel beautiful again.

Henna Heals: Tara Schubert, who has Stage 3 breast cancer, models her intricate design by Henna Lounge

Henna has been used since antiquity in countries such as Pakistan, Morocco, Somalia and India for decorative purposes, to bring the wearer luck, joy and enhanced beauty.  

Ms Darwin’s Henna Heals is on a path to make conditional female baldness not only acceptable, but also chic.

Known as henna crowns, the designs are not tattoos, involving no needles or pain, and last up to two weeks – offering women who suffer hair loss, and the lost sense of self, femininity and confidence it brings, a chance to feel beautifully adorned while at the same time also inviting dialogue about a sensitive subject.

Henna crowns: The designs offer women suffering hair loss, and the lost sense of femininity it brings, a chance to feel beautiful – as Sandee Waite discovers with her design by Tarquin Singh

Painted canvas: Kelly, who only gave her first name, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011 and recently finished her last chemotherapy treatment, believes the Henna crowns are a healing experience

Ms Darwin was inspired to start Henna Heals when she first saw the henna crown’s power to transform.

While taking pictures of a breast cancer patient whose head was adorned with a henna crown, the woman told Ms Darwin she had never felt as beautiful, even before she had cancer.

Ms Darwin knew she wanted to continue empowering women to feel beautiful and confident, while at the same time helping to de-stigamatize hair-loss.

Cleverly chic: Tara Schubert models another design by Henna Lounge, promoting positive conversations and interactions during such a challenging time

 Healing team: Henna Heals artists and participants (from left to right) Holly Monster, Luma R. Brieuc, Sandee Waite, Frances Darwin, Meg Montgomery, Sunni Rochelle, Nadia Bukhari and Tarquin Singh

Each design take between 60 and 90 minutes for the artist to create, which cost about $100. Ten per cent of profits also go into a fund to assist people who would like a henna crown but are unable to afford it.

Ms Darwin said: ‘For cancer patients, the henna crowns really are a healing experience. This is all about them reclaiming a part of themselves that would normally be perceived as ill or damaged or not nice to look at and making it more feminine and beautiful.’

Read more: Frances Darwin Photography: Frances Darwin Photography

HennaHeals.ca | We are a team of artists based in the Greater Toronto Area. We specialize in professional henna-art and photography services for people who are experiencing complete hair loss from Cancer or Alopecia

Our Trichologist pointed out that while hair loss is not life-threatening, it can be ‘life-altering’.

He said the problem should be taken seriously and that available treatments can greatly improve women’s psychological health and quality of life.

Contact The Hair Centre and CHECK OUT OUR RESULTS

Do you have Hair Loss Problems, read our Hair Loss Help

Researchers successfully grow hair on bald mouse: Humans next?

(CBS News) Great news for bald men men and women: Scientists in Japan have successfully regrown hair on a bald mouse.

Even though the technological advancement only happened on a rodent, this new development may mean that humans could look forward to a hair-filled future.

 Not only were Japanese scientists able to regrow hair in the study, which was published April 17 in Nature Communications, but they were able to manipulate the density and color of the locks.

“Our study provides a substantial contribution to the development of bioengineering technologies that will enable future regenerative therapy for hair loss caused by injury or by diseases such as alopecia and androgenic alopecia,” researchers wrote in the study.

 Researchers cultivated two different kinds of mice hair follicles and transplanted them on a mouse. Three weeks later, 74 percent of the hair follicles had grown into black hair. When human hair follicles cells were transplanted, human hair grew. The hair continued to regenerate after it fell out due to normal growth cycles.

Hair loss is a very common problem in both men and women. By 35, two-thirds of American men will experience some sort of noticeable hair loss, according to the American Hair Loss Association. At 50, 85 percent of men will have significantly thinning hair. Thought typically considered to be a male disease, 40 percent of women make up hair loss sufferers. The disease is not life-threatening, but it can cause many emotional problems because of the physical changes.

While researchers believe that this method won’t be able to cure premature baldness, it may give people a chance to relive their hairy youth and consider themselves locky.

 To see what the mice looked like with their new hair, check out the video below from Research SEA:

Contact The Hair Centre and see if you too can achieve the same results. 

CHECK OUT OUR RESULTS

Do you have Hair Loss Problems, read our Hair Loss Help

Is bald beautiful on a Barbie doll?

Bald is a word not usually associated with the most famous doll in the world, Barbie. However, Jane Bingham and Rebecca Sypin want to change this– the women have started an online movement requesting Mattel Inc. create a hairless Barbie doll.

Why? Cancer has touched both women’s lives – Bingham has lymphoma and Sypin’s 12-year-old daughter has leukemia. The friends recognized hair loss was a difficult aspect of cancer treatment, especially for females. A bald doll would reassure girls going through chemotherapy and radiation, as well as reassure girls who experience hair loss because of other disorders. The doll would help them feel beautiful and accepted, according to Sypin and Bingham. In addition, they feel a bald Barbie would raise awareness of children’s cancer. 

The women, who live on opposite coasts of the U.S., started a Facebook page, “Beautiful and Bald Barbie! Let’s see if we can get it made.” The page has garnered over 120, 000 “likes” since the page’s advent at Christmas time. Supporters worldwide have added comments, mostly in support, of a bald Barbie. Many of the comments are from childhood cancer survivors who say they would have loved a doll like the proposed Barbie when they were going through treatment. Parents of children with cancer have posted pictures on the page of their beautiful  – and bald – daughters asking Mattel to consider creating the doll. A petition in support of the doll is featured on the social change website Change.org and the story has spread to mainstream news organizations. 

Interestingly, Mattel created a one-of-a-kind bald Barbie doll for a little girl, Genesis Reyes, in 2011. “Princess Genesis” was made for the 4-year-old girl at the request of a friend of wife of Mattel’s chief executive. But, Mattel seems to have broken the mold with Princess Genesis, and so far, has not bowed to the pressure of the social media movement. In statements, the company said they were honored Barbie was being considered as a potential role model for children with cancer, but “Mattel doesn’t accept ideas from outside sources.”

Really, Mattel? Certainly a multi-billion dollar company could produce a limited run of the dolls, with a portion of the proceeds donated to childhood cancer organizations. Barbie has had so many incarnations over the years-NASCAR driver, astronaut, Totally Tattoos Barbie, a presidential candidate Barbie, a Barbie in a wheelchair and haute couture Barbies.

Why not a bald Barbie? While companies often believe creating a special line will dilute their brand, in essence a rare line of dolls would actually increase the value of the Barbie brand. Consumers drive brand appeal – in spite of what companies believe–and a bald Barbie would be a wise move on the part of Mattel.

Bingham, Sypin and their supporters are on to something big with their “Beautiful and Bald Barbie” Facebook page. If social media can act as a catalyst for revolution in other countries, I am sure we might see a bald Barbie on the shelves of our local toy stores sooner than later.

So, is bald beautiful for you? Would you buy this  toy for your child?

CHECK OUT OUR RESULTS

Do you have Hair Loss Problems, read our Hair Loss Help

Baldness May Be Reversed By Stem Cell Use

Baldness is an undesirable condition that afflicts both men and women, many of which have family members with significant hair loss. According to Health Day News, a new study of stem cells in mice shows promise for future treatments for people who battle hair loss.

The study was conducted on the fatty skin layers of mice by researchers at Yale University. Specifically, adipose precursor cells were found to spur new hair growth in mice, according to Health Day News.

Stem cells are present in hair follicles, which help generate hair growth. Health Day News explains that these cells are still present in people with baldness, but the follicles no longer receive signals to grow new hair. At the same time, hair loss causes a decrease in natural fat cells within the scalp.

“If we can get these fat cells in the skin to talk to the dormant stem cells at the base of the hair follicles, we might be able to get hair to grow again,” said senior study author Valerie Horsley, as quoted by Health Day News.

When scientists injected stem cells into the mice, 86 percent of the follicles experienced hair growth, according to Time Magazine. This growth occurred within two weeks of the initial injections.

The studies in mice show promise for hair growth and new fat cells in humans, but it is unclear at this time whether people will respond to signals in the exact same way as the mice did during the experiments.

The full study was published in this week’s trade journal, Cell.

Most people experience an average hair loss of 100 strands per day, according to the National Institutes of Health. Individuals who experience pattern baldness lack the ability of the follicles to generate new hair growth to make up for normal losses.

Or follow Trichologist advice:

For treatments that work without any side effect read:

• Vitastim Hair Stimulant
• Biostim Hair Stimulant
• Follicle Builder II

Do you have Hair Loss Problems, read our Hair Loss Help

Causes of Hair Loss: Chemotherapy

Cancer cells typically divide and grow faster than the body’s healthy cells. This is what allows chemotherapy to be so effective in stopping cancer, by targeting cells that grow rapidly. Unfortunately, there are other cells in the body that grow rapidly as well — like those in hair follicles! While there are cancer myths out there, experiencing near-total hair loss after chemotherapy isn’t one of them.

The loss could be gradual or dramatic, depending on the type of drug, but the end result is usually the same. Thankfully, the hair usually grows back!

Or follow Trichologist Gary Heron advice:

For treatments that work without any side effect read:

• Vitastim Hair Stimulant
• Biostim Hair Stimulant
• Follicle Builder II

Do you have Hair Loss Problems, read our Hair Loss Help