Loose Women regular Nadia Sawalha has revealed her shock after being diagnosed with the balding gene and her devastation at the results.
Presenter Nadia has spoken out on Loose Women about her battle with hair loss and the effect it's had on her.
She's known for having beautiful curly hair, but Nadia has since lost her confidence after admitting it's 'a quarter of what it used to be'.
After giving birth Nadia noticed that her hair began thinning, initially thinking it could be a normal symptom of pregnancy, but when lots of hair fell out without growing back she knew it was something more.
Nadia, who is mum to Maddy, 13, and Kiki, nine, said, 'All mums lose some hair when they have a baby, but I noticed that more and more hair started coming out and it wasn't growing back.'
The 51 year old took action, 'I eventually went to a top guy in London. He got this massive magnifying glass out. He said, "I'm very sorry to tell you, you have the balding gene. You don't lose hair just because you age, you have to have the gene".'
The thinning of her hair has even affected her trademark bouncy curls, which she now has to get curled in hair and make up, causing Nadia a huge dent in her self confidence.
Speaking of the pride women take in their appearance, particularly their hair, Nadia said, 'I do define myself by my hair... I feel really shallow about it... I feel almost guilty. A lot of women don't talk about it because we're like, "Well, I haven't got cancer, why am I worrying about losing my hair?"'
And it seems there is nothing that can be done, with Nadia noting that her hair follicles look visibly different, 'I can see all the follicles that have closed and hair will never grow there again. It's just devastating. I'm really, really worried about it.'
