One Direction star Harry Styles is almost as famous for his lustrous locks as his music, these days, with entire websites devoted to discussions of his ‘man bun’. So it cames as quite a surprise to many of his fans when he revealed he is to have it all chopped off.
Girls across the UK heaved a sigh of relief, however, when Harry asserted that it will be a while yet before he undergoes this transformation; as he explained to presenter James Corden on The Late Late Show, he wants to donate his hair to charity, and to do that it needs to be at least 9 inches long.
Donate his hair to charity?
Yes, but not just any charity – there are charities that are specifically set up to make wigs for children suffering from hair loss, like The Little Princess Trust.
The LPT was launched in 2006 by the parents of Hannah Tarplee, a little girl who – after a long battle – died of cancer in 2005. At the time, it was difficult to find wigs to fit a child, and Hannah had suffered greatly throughout her treatment, as the hair loss made her illness so obvious to others.
After Hannah’s death, her parents decided they wanted to help other children in the same situation, so they set up the Little Princess Trust to help create realistic child-sized wigs from donated human hair.
Why else would children need wigs?
Cancer treatment is, of course, a major reason for hair loss in children, but other causes include alopecia areata – an autoimmune condition that causes some or all of the hair to fall out at once. The hair may grow back after a few months, but this is unpredictable and varies from person to person.
Burns and other forms of scarring can also result in hair loss, which can be devastating for a child, as it provides a lasting reminder of the trauma they have suffered.
How can I donate?
If you want to donate your hair to be made into a wig for a child suffering from hair loss, visit the Little Princess Trust website to find out the requirements. You can also donate money to the charity, or hold a fundraising event, which can serve the dual purpose of raising both money and awareness of the charity and its cause.
