By Lucy Elkins

Sue Holderness is known to millions as the bouffant-haired Marlene from only Fools And Horses. It’s an image that endured when sue appeared as Marlene in the spin-off TV programme The Green Green Grass.

Yet her trademark big-haired look was achieved only with the help of make-up artist wizardry. For Sue, 60, like millions of other women, has been plagued with severe hair loss since her 30s. At times it has come out in handfuls, leaving her with bare patches of scalp.

Talking about this for the first time, sue says she has often had to resort to wigs and sometimes even painted her scalp with an eye liner to disguise how thin her hair was.

Sue Holderness as bouffant-haired Marlene from only Fools And Horses, with co-star John Challis. Sue has been plagued with severe hair loss since her 30s

‘I have lost hair ever since I had my children in my 30s,’ says Sue, who is married to theatre producer Mark Piper, 61, and lives in London.

‘Initially, I thought it was maybe part of being an exhausted new mum and didn’t do anything about it. But as I got older it got worse and, one day, after I turned 40, I woke up and saw a carpet of hair left on my pillow.

‘It was very frightening. I didn’t want to look in the mirror because I thought I must look bald.

‘When I did, on one side there was a big bit missing and the rest looked really thin. I went to see the doctor straight away to see if there was something medically wrong with me.

‘He referred me to an allergy specialist but no one could get to the bottom of it. looking back now, I wonder if it was as a result of delayed shock. My dad had died unexpectedly six months earlier and it had really taken me by surprise, but I will never know for sure what caused it.’

Hair loss or alopecia can affect not just the head but the body too. Hair loss among women is actually almost as common as with men.

A recent study found that a third of women aged 25 or over suffers from hair loss and almost five million women in the UK have a serious hair loss problem.

A recent study found that a third of women aged 25 or over suffers from hair loss and almost five million women in the UK have a serious hair loss problem.

No one would deny that hair loss can have a big impact on a man, but for women to lose their hair is a particularly devastating experience.
‘The one thing that has ground me down the most throughout my life has been the problem with my hair,’ says Sue.

‘As a woman, how you look changes your whole outlook on life. I have wasted so much time worrying and crying about it.

‘I have spent hours with volumisers and curlers trying to make it look fuller so I could face going out. When it was really bad, I would use eye liner or eyeshadow to cover my bare scalp.’

It is normal to lose 50 to 100 strands of hair a day on average, but sometimes hair is shed faster than this and the effects can be mortifying. There are many different causes of female hair loss, but the main ones are hormonal changes, diet, medications and illness.

‘With women, there are lots of different reasons, but with men hair loss tends to be inherited,’ says Dr Peter Williams, a hair transplant surgeon from The Hospital Group.

‘Women tend to get thinner hair all over because as they age they have less oestrogen circulating and this means they not only grow less hair, but it becomes thinner too.’

Marilyn Sherlock, of the Institute of Trichologists, adds: ‘There is always a cause for hair loss, but occasionally it can be something as innocuous as having had a fever.

‘The high temperature kills the hair, but it won’t fall out for about three months.

‘Healthy hair requires all vitamins and minerals and being low in certain ones, especially iron, can lead to thinning because iron is vital for new hair cells. A crash diet can lead to quite dramatic hair loss too.’

Sue’s trademark big-haired look was achieved only with the help of make-up artist wizardry

During pregnancy, normal hair loss slows down dramatically. However, once the baby is born all the hair loss that would have taken place during pregnancy happens all at once.

Normally hair recovers a few months later, but in Sue’s case it didn’t. She had her first daughter, Harriet, when she was 35.

‘During my pregnancy, my hair was gorgeous. Then I had Harriet and it all fell out after three months,’ she says. ‘It did frighten me, but I thought I was just tired and run down as new mothers are.

‘After I had Freddie in 1987, my hair fell out again, but not as badly. It was two years later that my hair fell out in earnest and I wondered if I might have to face the future bald.

‘After the allergist could find nothing wrong, I started reading up on hair loss and took fish oils, evening primrose oil, you name it, hoping that my hair would get better.

‘It did for a bit, but then for no obvious reason it would fall out again. I was appearing on television at the time. My character, Marlene, had big hair and achieving it was a struggle,’ she explains.

‘The hair and make-up people knew the problem. Sometimes we had to clip in bits of hair. When I did theatre, I usually used wigs. I have worn them when I had to go to parties and I could not stand the sight of my hair – or lack of it.’

When Sue hit the menopause, aged 52, she found her hair loss accelerated. ‘I would stand in the shower and watch blankets of hair come out,’ she says.

‘There were times when I felt sure I would be bald by the time I got out.’ Sue thinks another possible cause for her thinning hair was the debilitating stage fright she suffered during the 1990s.

She says: ‘I went through three years of panic attacks and my hair definitely suffered as a result. Not only did it fall out, but it become really dry and brittle. I was prescribed beta-blockers, which helped to a certain extent.’

The only treatment for hair loss normally given to women is minoxidil, which is applied to the scalp. It improves blood supply to the hair follicle, but it is only effective in 20-25 per cent of cases.

‘Before women are given this, there are other things that should be checked first, to see if there is an underlying condition causing the hair loss’ says Dr Williams.

‘You should check for low iron, thyroid problems, autoimmune conditions – all of which can cause hair loss. Often, these issues can then be treated and the hair loss will resolve itself.’

Sue’s hair is thicker than ever – partly, she believes, through a good diet. ‘I eat a good balanced-diet these days, with plenty of oily fish and vegetables,’ she says.

‘I used to try diets such as a grapefruit or a protein-only diet, especially if I had a big role coming up, and I do wonder if that contributed to the hair loss.’

She believes her new, thicker hair is also partly due to taking a natural one-a-day tablet called Viviscal which contains marine proteins, silica and vitamin C.

‘I took it for three months two years ago and noticed a real difference,’ she says. ’since then, I have taken it as and when I need it, and my hair looks fuller and thicker.’

While some studies have found that it can promote hair growth, some experts remain unconvinced. ‘Whether or not this product works I don’t know, but because there are so many different causes of hair loss I find it unlikely that one pill will help everyone.’ says Dr Williams.

But for Sue, who is on a tour of the theatre production of Calendar Girls, it has certainly helped.

‘For one of the very first times in my life, my hair is not an issue – and I cannot tell you what a relief that is.’

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

Dr Christian Jessen

It may seem to many that something of a medical miracle has occurred, rather gloriously, this week: television presenter Gail Porter has revealed a new head of hair, having been totally bald from alopecia for the last five years. It’s cathartic to read a recovery story for a change, as this will be a useful tool for us doctors, who really have very little in our armoury for the fight against alopecia, other than resorting to an only half-believed reassurance that it may well grow back in the future. Not really a very satisfactory prognosis for a woman who has just lost all her head and body hair. But finally here is a living and vocal proof that it does happen.

All the medical textbooks that I have read state that more often than not, alopecia areata usually resolves itself, a fact I’m sure most of us students doubted. But we must once again adjust what we think we know as Gail appeared on television earlier this week with a near-full head of hair.

It’s been estimated that about one in every 10 people will suffer the affects of alopecia at some point in their lives. It can cause total loss of all body and facial hair, alopecia universalis, loss of head hair, alopecia totalis, or diffuse loss in patches, alopecia areata. I think it is true that too many of our normal life processes have been medicalised; menopause, childbirth, ageing and even hair loss are classic examples. Indeed, most hair loss is not a disease either but a perfectly normal process of ageing and/or hormone change. But I agree that there is a fine line between normal and excessive hair loss, and it does cause considerable distress to those suffering from it. A correct diagnosis should be made of patchy hair loss, diffuse shedding and thinning/balding, as the psychological effects can be serious.

Alopecia is an auto-immune condition in which the hair follicles are attacked by the body’s own immune surveillance cells and antibodies form against them, preventing normal growth of hair. Research has found definite genetic influences behind the condition, including four genetic characterisations that appear to play a role in its development. We also know that if one identical twin has the disease, the other twin has a 55 per cent chance of developing it too.

People with immediate family members with alopecia have 10 times the normal risk of developing the disease.

There are plenty of diseases in existence that we seemingly infallible doctors are unable to do much about, but patients talking openly about their issues and how they get round them is vital therapy, better than any tonic the medical profession can provide. It helps to normalise previously stigmatised conditions, and when good news does happen, and a condition like alopecia does spontaneously resolve itself in a public figure, then it offers a therapeutic dose of hope to fellow sufferers.

Alopecia Can Be Beaten

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ALOPECIA AREATA

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

By Donna Mcconnell

After spending years adjusting to her hair loss, Gail Porter has more recently had a new problem to deal with.

The presenter’s hair begun to grow back after five years of baldness after she was struck by alopecia, which left her in some confusion about what to do with it.

But Gail, 39, has clearly found her groove as she showed off a chic new look on The Matthew Wright Show today.

New chic look: Gail Porter showed off her lengthening locks and a new chic look after five years of baldness on The Matthew Wright Show today

Golden locks: Gail Porter posted this picture of herself from the rear to update her followers on Twitter

The 39-year-old presenter also posted the latest update of her ‘Fluff Report’ . A new picture of her rapidly growing locks on Twitter recently.

Gail’s hair began to grow back earlier this year, and by March 75 per cent of her scalp was covered in hair again.
But amazingly the hair began to grow back brunette, and she has since bleached it after complaining that she was blonde before losing her locks.

Hair we grow: The 38-year-old presenter’s hair began to grow back earlier this year, and by March 75 per cent of her scalp was covered in hair again

And Gail sounded less than thrilled as she told followers of her Twitter page: ‘Don’t know what to do with my dodgy hair! I’m too used to being bald…I love being bald!’
She added: ‘I’ve been bald for so long now – it’s been five years – and I suddenly think, what am I going to do if it came back?

‘The majority of it, 75 per cent, has come back but then I have patches round the front so it looks ridiculous.’
But now the hair growth appears more uniform, and it looks like she is finally leaving her bald days behind her for good.

Gail seen back in March with 75 per cent of her scalp covered in hair, and right, completely bald in 2008

Gail, always refused to wear wigs, and instead has always worn her bald head with pride.

‘I put up pictures of my hair every day and then I shave it off and everyone says, ‘Ah, it was growing so well!’ You see, it’s growing back in patches so I have to keep cutting it and shaving it off so it’s quite annoying,’ she posted on her Twitter.

Divorcee Gail, who has one daughter Honey, 8, from her marriage to Toploader guitarist Dan Hipgrave, has presented programmes including Dead Famous and The Gadget Show.

She is an ambassador for the Little Princess Trust – a charity which provides wigs to children with hair loss.

ALOPECIA AREATA

See our ‘Before and After’ Photos

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

A former model and television presenter who suffers from alopecia has revealed a substantial regrowth of hair. After five years of baldness, Gail Porter, 39, who refused to wear wigs, appeared on television yesterday with a near-full head of hair. She said that it was growing back in patches, but now covered 75 per cent of her scalp.

Bessam Farjo, a leading hair restoration surgeon and medical director of the Institute of Trichologists, said that alopecia remained a mystery, but Porter “was one of the fortunate ones”. He added that he hoped the regrowth would show people that more severe cases could be overcome.

However, Porter, whose naked image was beamed on to Parliament for a mens’ magazine in 1999, sounded a note of caution on her Twitter page: “I’ve been bald for so long now — it’s been five years — and I suddenly think, what am I going to do if it came back?”

Alopecia is an auto-immune condition in which hair, normally “immune-privileged”, is identified as a foreign target and attacked by antibodies. Alopecia areata causes hair loss in small patches, usually on the scalp, and can be temporary, while alopecia totalis covers the head. Alopecia universalis involves hair loss over the whole body.

Scientists have identified four genetic characterisations that appear to play a role in the development of alopecia areata. Researchers have also found that when one identical twin has the disease, the other twin has a 55 per cent chance of having it, while people with immediate family members with alopecia have ten times the normal risk of developing the disease. Porter, a patron of Alopecia UK, began to experience regrowth earlier this year.

Dr Farjo said that her apparently thick regrowth was a good sign, as many sufferers often ended up with a finer and more fragile version of their hair.

Andrew Langford, chief executive of the Skin Care Campaign, said: “For other people battling the condition it sends out a glimmer of hope.”

Shining stars

· Sir Patrick Stewart Stage and film actor, lost his hair as a teenager

· Matt Lucas Comedian, star of Little Britain

· Duncan Goodhew Olympic swimmer, lost his hair apparently as a result of falling from a tree as child

· Princess Caroline of Monaco lost her hair in 1995 but it grew back subsequently

· Christopher Reeve

· The late Superman actor began suffering from alopecia areata as a teenager, which returned sporadically throughout his life

ALOPECIA AREATA

See our ‘Before and After’ Photos

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

Amelia Hill guardian.co.uk,

What is it with sportsmen and their enthusiasm for hair-thickening treatments? Ryan Giggs was yesterday photographed leaving a hair clinic with a grin on his face and a “progress report” clutched in his hand.

Giggs’s scalp is just the latest to be collected by the follicle-regenerating industry. Cricketers Graham Gooch, Michael Vaughan and Shane Warne have admitted putting their faith in “hair regeneration” regimes costing between £6,000 and £10,000, as has rugby player Austin Healey. Wayne Rooney is also thought to have undergone hair-replacement treatment – aged just 24.

Giggs’s treatment of choice is, apparently, a weekly 40-minute laser therapy said to help regrow hair follicles, a special shampoo and a “liquid regrowth” formula rubbed into the scalp twice a day.

Vaughan opted for a more expensive option: a £10,000, “strand by strand” replacement of thinning hair with “farmed” Russian hair that is woven in over several treatments.

Such operations do not necessarily deliver all they promise. The Advanced Hair Studio (AHS) – salon of choice for the above-mentioned sports stars – has twice been censured by the Advertising Standards Authority. Last year, it banned an AHS advert that featured Warne and Gooch, ruling that the AHS had misleadingly implied their treatment could stop hair loss or cause hair to regrow.

Dr Andrew Messenger, a consultant dermatologist at Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield, advises those suffering male-pattern baldness to beware of private clinics making extravagant claims. “Nothing can bring back hair on bald areas, and even the two medicines that are known to be effective in treating male-patten baldness – finasteride and minoxidil – can only bring about a 5-15% increase in hair density where growth is still occurring.”

Instead, Messenger makes a plea for understanding. “I think the only way to stop those people who sail close to the legal wind with their claims for hair regeneration is to persuade society to look more kindly on male-pattern baldness.”

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