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Hair loss and thinning: Everything to know, according to leading scalp expert Emma King
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Emma King, founder and CEO of Cascata Hair, started experiencing hair loss after she became a mum. With little information available, she returned to school to study the hair and scalp, and is now armed with the knowledge needed to create confidence that flows for herself and her clients.
More than a third of Irish women have issues with hair thinning, and a whopping 76% said they’ve noticed hair loss during periods of stress, according to a Peter Mark survey. Yet, it’s an issue that’s often not openly discussed – clients shyly ask hairdressers for discreet solutions.
One such hairdresser is Emma King, founder and CEO of Cascata Hair. With over 17 years of experience in the industry as a bridal hairstylist, colour technician and managing director of Unique Hair Design, she’s seen just how prevalent hair loss and thinning is with her clients. “It’s such a private thing, and women lack so much confidence. But it’s such a common issue – there needs to be more knowledge about what to do and what not to do. I have a passion towards fine hair and dealing with these problems.”
This passion was also inspired by her own experience with hair thinning. After becoming a mother of five, she started struggling with her own hair and pursued her masters degree in hair and scalp to equip herself with the knowledge she needed, for both herself and her clients. Thus, Cascata Hair was born, providing seamless, clip-in hair extensions and side fillers that are fine hair-friendly, requiring no backcombing or harmful tapes. Sparked by her passion, Emma shares what she’s learned about female hair loss, and how it actually starts from the inside out.
What causes our hair to thin? Is it age, genetics, or hormones?
It’s everything; it all has to do with the time in your life. For instance, menopause is primarily triggered by a decline in estrogen and progesterone, so hormones play a crucial role in maintaining our hair, promoting growth and preventing excessive shedding. When it comes to hormonal changes, having babies is massive – your hair changes straightaway just like your skin. As you get older, your hair will become thinner. If you have curly hair, you could end up with straight hair. The changes in the body are amazing and it’s important to understand how they affect the hair as we age.
How has your own hair changed as you have aged and had children?
I’m hitting 40 and I have five children, so I’ve seen changes in my own appearance. At the time, I struggled massively with my hair and experienced hair loss. When I went to my GP, I felt like he didn’t listen to me as it wasn’t life threatening, he told me not to worry about it. “It’s just hair on your head,” he said,” don’t worry about it.”
So it was from there that I went back to college and studied the scalp. and what I have learned is just phenomenal – how our body works, how hair and thinning work and what we can do to help that. We can tell so much from the scalp. Like with your skin, you have to treat it from the inside out. So, I started taking the right vitamins, eating well and following a good hair regime. Now, I want to be able to give back and show women that there is a solution and that they don’t need to keep on going for those tapes or bonds that can be damaging to the hair.
What diet and supplements do you recommend for healthy hair growth?
I’m no medic but I do know what ingredients we need to support healthy hair growth. For instance, folic acid, iron, biotin and zinc are all so important. Nowadays, there’s so much on the market that I always tell people to read the label. If you have too much biotin, it’ll cancel out the zinc and vice versa. So many of my clients have scalp concerns and when they’re wondering why their hair is thinning, they don’t realise that they may be lacking B12, iron or folic acid. What we can tell from the scalp and hairline is unbelievable.
For supplements, I recommend Nourkrin Post-Pregnancy tablets. They are phenomenal vitamins and we’ve seen a massive success rate with them. I always recommend post-pregnancy supplements – the simple reason being I started them after my babies. To this day, I will go back on them if I find my hair sheds a lot. I have a hormonal imbalance which is affecting my hair massively still, even though my youngest is eight.
What should I do if I’m noticing hair thinning or loss?
The first thing I always recommend is to go and get your bloods done. It’s so important. Thyroid is another massive one that women don’t realise will contribute to hair loss, so that’s important to check too. Hairdressers need to encourage clients to get their bloods done and I encourage my staff to do that. We need to find out what’s going on from the inside out.
Also, I’m always telling people to exfoliate their scalp just like our skin. If your hair only lasts a day before getting greasy, then you’re probably not exfoliating. You need to remove all the build-up of sebum (oil). A kind, soft scrub like the Kérastase Fusio Energising Hair Scrub is amazing for removing all those dead cells and the build-up of sprays, products, and pollution in the air. I would recommend using that once a month.
What solutions do you offer to your clients?
Our mantra is “confidence that flows” and our hair extensions are exactly that for those experiencing hair thinning or hair loss. A lot of people struggle with fullness at the back, and their sides are broken from straightening and curling irons because they’re easily accessible spots. Our side fillers give such a natural look and blend into the back. Plus, the top of them is silicone, so you don’t need to backcomb your hair. We have a very special clip on them that slides right into the hair and when clipped down, the silicone attaches to it, so there should be very little damage, if not no damage, and it shouldn’t cause friction on the hair.
We do recommend you take them out at nighttime. And, if your hair is quite oily and slippy, add a little bit of dust before applying. Again, I would always say to read the instructions, look up the dust you’re buying and make sure it doesn’t itch your scalp. We recommend the L’oréal Professionnel Paris Tecni.Art Volume Super Dust.
What makes Cascata Hair extensions stand out from others?
First of all, all our hair is ethically sourced. When I first started, I was adamant that I wanted two things – I wanted high quality and the colours to be correct. There was such a gap in the market then and as a bridal stylist, I struggled to get clip-in hair extensions in Ireland full stop.
To ensure the highest quality, I consistently had meetings with the manufacturers over the past three years. Our journey culminated in our final visit to Dubai last month, marking the end of this long process. I am delighted with the outcome! At Unique Hair Design in Carrickmacross, I worked with my team of ten talented colourists to meticulously design and apply colours in-house. Each strand of hair was individually coloured to perfection before being dispatched to the supplier. We are so proud to announce that we can confidently claim the label of being “Guaranteed Irish.”
So, we do feel that our quality, our colours, and their application make them stand out. Also, with every other extension on the market, you are told to backcomb your hair, except for ours. Anybody with fine hair should not backcomb their hair excessively, and if they have very thin hair they shouldn’t do it at all. With the fillers in, I can see my clients’ confidence rise to 110%. It’s such an amazing feeling!
What are the biggest mistakes you see clients make when trying to correct fine or thinning hair?
They need to listen to their bodies. Sometimes, people don’t like to hear they have to work on it from the inside out. They need to be more open to going to the GP or a trichologist, chatting about how they’re feeling inside and getting their bodies checked to see what they’re lacking.
They’re using the wrong home care. You don’t always necessarily have to go for high-end products. There’s always one in the middle range you can go for. I always say to read the labels. A lot of shampoos and conditioners can weigh your hair down and can make your hair look dull. You often hear people saying, “I can never get that shine that you get when you leave a hair salon,” and that’s when I tell them to look at their regime. I feel like that it is vital to find the correct hairdresser who can give you the correct knowledge and advice on what to use because everything should be tailored to our needs.
Bonds or tapes. As you get older, things change and your hair is not as strong as it was. The elasticity in your strands is different, so the less friction on your hair the better. It’s incredible how many people don’t see this until they’re nearly so far gone it’s hard to bring their hair back. I have seen clients who have been left with bald patches and so many different things. If you do want to use bonds or tapes, there are gentle ones like Great Lengths and Gold Fever – I love those. I would say go for kinder ones, and go to a professional. Unfortunately, extensions are going to damage your hair if they’re not applied correctly.
What’s next for Cascata Hair?
We’re getting a great boost at the minute. We just launched our side fillers in our first salon here in Dublin – Zeba. We chose them because they’re so premium, which is exactly where our product lies. You can come into any of the four salons – Maynooth, Sandymount, Salon Zeba in Arnotts and Zeba on South William Street.
You can also buy them at Unique Hair Design in Carrickmacross, and then online we have a fabulous service where they can send our colourists pictures for a perfect colour match. After Christmas, we hope to have more stockists in the Cork and Kilkenny area.We’re slowly but surely creeping into the market, and we want to make sure that we get the right people behind us who feel the same way about our brand that we do.
There are not enough things out there in the market for thinning hair and people don’t speak about it enough. It’s unbelievable how it affects a woman’s confidence, so we really want to make a difference.
To learn more about Cascata Hair and shop their extensions, visit Cascata Hair online.
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