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On the latest episode of her hugely popular series, Red Table Talk, Pinkett Smith turned her husband’s moment of anger into something others can learn from, dedicating the episode to the hair loss disorder that affects her and millions of others. Alopecia is an autoimmune disorder that causes hair to come out, often in clumps. While the amount of hair loss is different for everyone, some can find their hair grows back, while others will have it grow back only to fall out again later.
According to the National Alopecia Areata Foundation, as many as 6.8 million people in the US are affected by the disorder, which doesn’t discriminate by age, sex or ethnic group. As The Guardian reports, “The condition, particularly for Black women, can affect a person’s perception of themselves and force them to frequently confront others’ perceptions about beauty, hair and race and culture.” Pinkett Smith explained, “Considering what I’ve been through with my own health and what happened at the Oscars, thousands have reached out to me with their stories.”
Guests on the show included the mother of 12-year-old girl, Rio Allred, who was bullied over her hair loss and died by suicide, as well as a physician who explained the different types of the disorder. Rio’s mother, Nicole Ball, spoke of the impact the Oscar incident had, after it took place less than two weeks after her daughter’s death. “What is the universe doing right now? This is crazy,” Ball said. “People are going to be Googling, ‘what is alopecia…what is this that we’ve never heard of?’ It’s not a joke.”
“I think the part that makes it most difficult for me is that it comes and goes. You’re going through a spell of something, and [you’ve] got to shave your head,” said Pinkett Smith.
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