You know when you think something is so great that you say it’s to die for? Well, don’t speak too quickly because that’s exactly what is happening to women in their extreme extent to obtain long, straightened, manageable hair. Seriously, there has been a barrage of news stories depicting African-American women and the extreme extent they are going through for hair extensions. We all know that for a woman our hair is our glory, which is no surprise as to why the black hair care industry is a billion dollar business.  But are luscious locks worth extreme hair loss conditions or even worse, death? This article will take a look at a few of the recent hair horror stories and un-be-weave-able woes that have befallen celebrities as well as average everyday people.

This is big business, folks! Even celebrities have cashed in on this extravagant hair extension trend with people such as Wendy Williams, Toya Wright, Tami Roman, Angela Simmons, and Vivica Foxx, who have their very own lines of hair extensions or wigs (Rochelle Yaneque).  Some of the more expensive hair product lines can range from $100 for a quick weave up to $2,000 for a celebrity quality weave depending on other variables such as a full head or partial weave, if the hair is sewn in, taped, micro-fusion, or bonded, and if the type of hair is human hair or synthetic hair (A.). The better quality of hair you select and the weaving technique that you chose will ultimately determine how much your hair weave will cost.  It was recently reported that Beyonce paid as much as $145,000 for her mane, but in the hood it can cost as low as $9.99 for a bag of synthetic hair and a couple of dollars for bonding glue (KSFM 1025 | CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc.). But are all weaves created equal? Of course not, and some of these weaves can cost you a lot more than just your money.

Recently, Countess Vaughn, former star of “227”, “Moesha”, and “The Parkers”, came out of hiding to tell the world about her horrible hair loss and scalp infection caused by the constant wear of wigs and lace front weave pieces (Wilson). The constant application of wig glue and tape had removed layers of Countess’ skin, leaving her scalp vulnerable to infection.  Now the former actress has to fill in her fading hair line with eyeliner, and has been in hiding because she was too embarrassed to be seen with a bald head, not to mention the puss and foul smell of the infection! Although I’m not quite sure if Countess has learned her lesson because even after all of that, she is still wearing some type of hair piece! Girl, if that was me, I would go back to that cute little natural afro that you wore in your younger days of “227”. But the diminishing hair line probably makes that almost impossible for Countess to do. My heart goes out to her!

Have you all noticed that recently it seems like everyone has a huge forehead? Remember growing up, when we use to slick down that baby hair…well, that seems to be a thing of the past. At first I was thinking that maybe these ladies were born that way, you know the joke, instead of a forehead you have a five-head, but now I am starting to speculate that these receding hairlines are due to the attack of the diminishing hairline caused by weaves and lace front wigs!!!! Ladies beware, you don’t want to end up with a barely there hair line like Naomi Campbell, or missing a huge plug of hair like Serena Williams. I am not laughing not one bit because this could have been me. Yes, I remember wearing weave myself and that bonding glue will have you tearing out your own hair trying to get that stuff out, but I digress. Just start looking at the women who wear weaves for long periods of time, and you will see too that their hair lines are slowly receding making it look like they have huge foreheads.

Men, y’all thought you were excluded? Nope! Remember the hair loss stories about Chris Kelly, former member of the rap duo Kriss Kross? Before Kelly’s death by drug overdose, he went on record saying that his hair loss was caused by alopecia, a condition that causes hair loss (Donley). I am not a physician, therefore I can’t say that Kelly’s hair loss was attributed to the constant pulling, and wear and tear of those braids that he wore, but after learning a little more about alopecia, those braids could have played a significant part in Kelly’s hair loss. There are many causes of alopecia such as medications, various illnesses, and inherited genetic traits, but alopecia can also be caused by various hair care habits such as the following (Health Grades, Inc) :

• Brushing, combing, or pulling hair  when wet
• Chemical treatments, such as relaxers, straighteners, or permanents (perms)
• Excessive shampooing, which dries out the scalp and hair follicles
• Hair accessories, such as clips, hairpins, and rubber bands
• High heat from blow-dryers or heating irons
• Peroxide and other hair dyes

Most of the hair care habits mentioned above are practiced by all of us, so it is very important to take note of them and ensure that you are aware of the dangers that certain types of hair products and practices may cause.

Perhaps the most troubling story of hair weave disasters is the one of Atasha Graham, the 34 year-old woman, who had used hair extensions for 14 years and suddenly collapsed after coming home from a night of dancing at the club.  A pathologist stated that Graham’s death could have been caused by a massive allergic reaction to the glue in her hair extensions (Daily Mail). What’s even more troubling is that pathologist Michael Heath went on record saying, “I’ve seen cases where people using solvent to apply extensions has actually caused anaphylactic shock” and that, ‘There are about ten to 20 deaths a year in this country(United Kingdom), many more in America. I have seen four in the last three months” (Daily Mail).

These stories aren’t meant to scare you straight, no pun intended, but to inform you of the many dangers of hair extensions and certain hair treatments such as relaxers, straighteners, and perms.  As I said before, this is a big business, and any business owner knows that the bulk of your revenue comes from your repeat customers. So it is safe to say that if you constantly wear weaves and wigs to the point of hair loss, then you will forever be paying for more wigs and weaves to hide your hair loss. What amounts to big cha-ching for hair vendors, can come at an even greater loss for the weave wearers, so beware of how you care for your hair because it may be your crown of glory but it shouldn’t take you on up to glory!

To view Countess Vaughns’ hair loss video click here. For more information on the dangers of hair extensions, perms, and relaxers check out this news video, or laugh along to Chris Rock’s documentary “Good Hair, Bad Hair”

Works Cited

A., Elaine. “Hair Weave – The Real Cost of a Hair Weave.” 25 June 2010. /ezinearticles.com. 17 April 2014. <http://ezinearticles.com/?Hair-Weave—The-Real-Cost-of-a-Hair-Weave&id=4552070>.

Daily Mail. “Killed by her hair extensions: Woman dies after allergic …” 2 February 2012. www.dailymail.co.uk. 17 April 2014. <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2095450/Atasha-Graham-dies-allergic-reaction-glue-hairdo-night-out.html#ixzz2z9oFoSSf>.

Donley, Kyle. “Kris Kross: Where Are They Now?” 30 March 2010. www.mademan.com. 17 April 2014. <http://www.mademan.com/mm/kris-kross-where-are-they-now.html>.

Health Grades, Inc. “Alopecia: Causes.” 2 May 2011. www.localhealth.com. 17 April 2014. <http://www.localhealth.com/article/alopecia/causes>.

KSFM 1025 | CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. “Beyonce’s New Weave Cost How Much? Over $100K!” 19 March 2014. ksfm.cbslocal.com. 17 April 2014. <http://ksfm.cbslocal.com/2014/03/19/beyonces-new-weave-cost-how-much-over-100k/>.

Rochelle Yaneque. “Celebrities Breaking into Hair Industry: Are You Sold?” 2012. www.iamrochelle.com. 17 April 2014. <http://www.iamrochelle.com/hair-reviews/celebrities-breaking-hair-industry/>.

Wilson, Julee. “Countess Vaughn Reminds Us Of The Dangers Of Wigs And Weaves.” 17 March 2014. www.huffingtonpost.com. 17 April 2014. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/17/countess-vaughn-hair-loss-lace-front-wigs_n_4980998.html>.