For generations, Black women have been surrounded by beauty standards that can make natural African hair seem as though it needs to be hidden, lengthened, straightened or replaced. It does not. Your natural hair is not something that needs to be covered. Hair extensions are artificial additions to the hair. They may temporarily create extra length, volume or a different appearance, but they do not make your natural hair healthier—and when extensions are repeatedly installed too tightly, made too heavy or worn continuously, they can damage the very hair they are supposed to enhance. Dermatologists warn that extensions, weaves, tight braids and other hairstyles that repeatedly pull on the scalp can cause (traction alopecia). This can begin with tenderness, broken hairs and thinning around the hairline. If the pulling continues long enough, the follicles can become permanently damaged and the lost hair may not grow back. Black women deserve particular awareness of this issue. The American Academy of Dermatology notes that traction alopecia is seen especially among girls and women of African descent and that extensions and weaves can contribute to the condition when they repeatedly pull on the hair. Think about the cycle: Natural hair grows. Heavy artificial hair is attached to it. The roots carry additional weight. The hairline is repeatedly pulled. The style comes out. Another one goes in. Then years later, some women wonder why their edges have disappeared. Pain is not beauty. A headache after installing your hair is not normal. A burning scalp is not something you should simply tolerate. Losing your edges should never be the price of a hairstyle. ⚖️ Dermatologists specifically advise that if an extension or weave causes pain or feels excessively tight, it should be loosened or removed. Constant tension can eventually cause permanent hair loss. And there is a bigger conversation we should have. Why should an African woman feel that the hair naturally growing from her own scalp is somehow incomplete? Afros are beautiful. Coils are beautiful. Curls are beautiful. Kinks are beautiful. Short natural hair is beautiful. Long natural hair is beautiful. Our hair grows differently—and that difference is not a defect. It's wrong changing your appearance. But Every woman has the right to choose how she wears her hair. But we should also challenge a culture in which artificial hair becomes something women feel they (need) in order to feel attractive, professional or feminine. But the truth is you are being brain washed to be proud with artificial thing is which is not yours! You've been promoted and make to believe you are not beautiful without your wigs! Choose your natural hair. Learn how to care for it. Protect your scalp. Protect your edges. Allow your follicles to rest. Teach young Black girls that the hair growing naturally from their heads is already worthy of being seen. (You do not need somebody else's texture, somebody else's length or artificial hair to complete your beauty.) Your natural hair is part of you. 👸🏾🎉 Protect it. ✅ Celebrate it. ✅ Show it proudly. ✅ “what if Hair extensions cause cancer. However, what about Black women can be exposed to numerous chemicals through synthetic hair, permanent dyes, relaxers, glues and other styling products. Some of these products have been associated in studies with hormone-sensitive cancers, while the long-term health effects of many chemicals used in synthetic hair remain studied it's bad to use this products.” Let's talk 🦜