The London Lassie has a wee blether with leading dermatologist and Sunsilk hair expert, Dr. Francesca Fusco, in New York on how to achieve thick healthy locks!

LL:

After year’s of wearing extensions my hair feels thin, and has the tendency to fall out. How can I prevent this?

FF:

If they’re long hairs with a little white bulb at the end that’s okay.

*she grabs a hair*

Do you see that little white bulb on the tip? If you’re seeing that little white bulb that’s okay to have hairs coming out. That means it was ready to fall out and there is a new hair behind it. But if you are losing a lot, like more than a hundred hairs a day that could indicate that there is a nutritional issue going on or a stress issue or a change in hormones. Probably one of the most frequent causes of hair loss is when women are going through stress; we aren’t getting the right dietary components in our body.

Are you a vegetarian or a vegan?

LL:

No.

Dr Fusco:

Ok, and do you get red meat and vegetables in your diet?

LL:

A lot of vegetables, I eat red meat around once a week.

Dr Fusco:

Ok, well one thing you could consider doing is taking a vitamin every day. There are a number of vitamins that you can buy in your local drug store that can help your skin and hair, and they contain a good amount of iron and things you may not be getting in your food.

And just remember there is always a 2-4 month lag between doing the right thing and then noticing it reflected in your hair. So you will have to be doing it for about 2-3 months before you see any results.

LL:

I see.

Dr Fusco:

So that’s for the sheddy part of it.

In terms of them snipping the ends of the hairs…May I look at your hair to see?

LL:

Sure.

Dr Fusco:

Normally everyday you blow dry your hair?

LL:

No, every few days but I always straighten it, which is very bad right if I do it everyday?

Dr. Fusco:

If you do it properly…It’s okay!

(Looking at the tips of the hair)

When was the last time you had your hair trimmed?

LL:

A month ago.

Dr Fusco:

Ok, it’s good! A bit dry, do you colour your hair too?

LL:

Yeah, but semi-permanent and haven’t done it in a while.

Dr Fusco:

I can see the colour on your hair!

*she continues looking*

So now what I am going to do is look mid-shaft to try find a bubble hair…

It’s not bad but a bubble hair comes from heat, the hair is almost woven like under a microscope and you see a little white bubble in the middle.

LL:

Oh my god! That sounds awful!

Dr Fusco:

Yeah, its called bubble hair and bubble hair means that you have to be more careful with the heating products that you’re using because that strand is more likely to break. And you don’t want it to break right in the middle.

*she finds a few!*

One thing you can do to prevent that is nourish your hair every day just like you would nourish your face.

You know when you wake up and your face is really dry and flaky? You can fix it by moisturising it and the same thing for your hair. So, you treat your hair to a hair mask once a week or whenever you can, pay a lot of attention to the tips.

A lot of women forget to put the conditioner and products on their scalp, afraid it is going to weigh down the hair and make it greasy but it won’t.

So, remember to really massage it thoroughly into the scalp and comb it through the hair and try to give your hair a holiday at least one day a week from the heat…if you can, if you can!

LL:

Wow I never thought of putting conditioner on my scalp!

FF:

Trust me, your scalp needs it!

LL:

I’ll be trying it!

Your hair is so full and bouncy *it really is*. How do you recommend women get volume like yours?

Dr Fusco:

So, part of that comes from the styling and when you speak to the stylist they will tell you how to use the right brush and also using the right product will make a big difference. You can talk to your stylist to help you choose the best product for your hair and achieving the volume.

I am sure you know the trick of when you go to bed at night wearing your hair up in a scrunchie, do you know that trick?

LL:

No… *I haven’t owned a scrunchie since 1996, but according to Ashish they’re making a comeback!*

FF:

Okay, so you want to wake up the next morning with volume… You put your hair in a ponytail on top, in a loose scrunchie and when you wake up in the morning and you take the hair down it’s perfect! That’s the trick. Use a scrunchie because they don’t damage the hair.

LL:

Great tip! And so easy! *note to self: buy scrunchie*

Dr Fusco:

Yeah, I know right!

Another thing is using dry shampoo. So what you do is lift the hair up  and you spray a little of the dry shampoo underneath and then when you let go it looks a little bit more volumised.

Good?

LL:

Yeah good!

Dr Fusco:

Any other questions you have?

LL:

Do you think there is an increase in hair fall for young women in recent years?

FF:

I have to say over the last five years I have been sitting in my office and all the young girls have hair fall due to the damage. So for me the message getting out to them is, take it easy with the heating products and extensions and if you can give your hair a holiday once a week. A Saturday or Sunday don’t use the heating products and condition, condition, condition.

Feed your hair from the roots, from the scalp.

LL:

Thanks Francesca!