What happened to Whoopi Goldberg eyebrows? Does she or doesn’t she have them?

Formally known as Caryn Elaine Johnson, Whoopi Goldberg is a popular comedienne, political activist, actress and singer-songwriter, among her other talents. She’s a talented actress and each time someone mentions her name, one of the things that comes to mind are her eyebrows. Having no eyebrows is actually her trademark, besides dreadlocks.

Reasons of Whoopi Goldberg Eyebrows

So, does Whoopi have eyebrows?

Yes, she does have them but she shaves them off, according to her 2007 interview. But why would someone shave her own brows? According to Whoopi, her eyebrows are becoming itchy each time they grow back. So, she just shaves them off.

Having no eyebrows has become her trademark and identity. And some say that not having them could be the reason of her popularity and uniqueness.

However, in one of the answers from ChaCha about Whoopi’s eyebrows, it is said that the actress is actually suffering from alopecia, which is a common hair disorder that would result in baldness. It would make sense if she had no scalp hair but she does. So, alopecia is not entirely a good explanation of why she doesn’t have eyebrows.

Another explanation of this issue is that she’s suffering from trichotillomania. It’s a disorder that makes you out of control in plucking off your brow hairs. This might be true for her considering the fact that she shaved them off as they tend to be itchy.

Whoopi Goldberg and Alopecia

If you do believe that she has alopecia, then you might be thinking that she’s only wearing a wig on her head. This means that her dreadlocks aren’t her own hair. So, if she’s indeed suffering from this hair disorder, then this could be the real explanation of why she doesn’t have eyebrows.

Is it true that she donates her eyebrow hair to a certain foundation?

This could be another explanation of the absence of her eyebrow hair. There are several sources saying that Whoopi donates her hair to a foundation that she has established. It’s an organization that encourages people to donate their eyebrows in order to make wigs for those who are battling pinky toe cancer.

Other sources also claimed that the issue is the result of a rare disease. That is she’s hairless and her scalp hair isn’t real.

Medical Reasons for Eyebrow Hair Loss

Medically known as superciliary madarosis, eyebrow hair loss has a variety of medical reasons. This condition can affect one or both your eyebrows. It can also cause partial or complete hair loss.

Among the medical reasons of this condition will include autoimmune diseases, chronic skin disorders and infections.

It’s important to identify the reason of the underlying condition to finally identify the real treatment of this illness. When treatment is identified, sufferers can now experience regrowth of their eyebrows.

However, if you’re suffering from a permanent damage to your hair follicles, your eyebrow hair will never grow back.

Chemotherapy

Another reason of an eyebrow hair loss is chemotherapy. But this isn’t the case of Whoopi Goldberg since she hasn’t undergone cancer treatment.

Some cancer patients who had to undergo chemotherapy would experience temporary hair loss, including their eyebrow hair. Drugs that are known to cause hair loss would include cisplatin, actinomycin-D and etoposide, among others.

Hair loss starts two to three weeks after chemotherapy begins. However, hair will regrow in weeks or months after completing the cancer treatment.

Hypothyroidism

This is another cause of eyebrow hair loss. Having an underactive thyroid gland can negatively affect the growth of your hair in your scalp and body. When you have thin eyebrows, it could be a late sign that you’re suffering from this condition.

Besides thin eyebrows, other signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism will include chronic fatigue, constipation, weight gain and skin dryness. The treatment of this condition will include thyroid hormone replacement medication. This will also help in the regrowth of your eyebrow hair.

As for Whoopi’s condition, there’s no report of her suffering from this condition. So, it would be wrong to assume that her thin or no eyebrow hair is the result of hyperthyroidism.

Atopic dermatitis

Besides hypothyroidism, atopic dermatitis could also cause eyebrow hair loss. It’s a condition that causes itchy patches of your skin. It involves the skin surrounding your eyes, which could lead to swelling and skin inflammation.

The soap and cosmetics that you’re using could aggravate atopic dermatitis. When your condition is healed, eyebrow hair regrows.

Then again, there’s no report about Whoopi’s suffering from this condition.

Alopecia areata

It’s a chronic autoimmune disease. In this medical condition, your immune system attacks your own immune system and the hair follicles causing inflammation. And yes, it will result in temporary hair loss.

Any site of your skin that bears hair can be affected by this disease. And this includes the eyebrows. Your eyebrow hair would grow back after treatment. However, it could be in a different color or texture than your normal hair.

Hansen’s disease

Also known as leprosy, Hansen’s disease is an infection that affects the skin and nerves caused by Mycobacterium leprae. It often affects the skin of the eyebrow, resulting in loss of sensation and permanent eyebrow hair loss.

Fashion

Could it be a fashion statement for Whoopi Goldberg? Artificial eyebrow loss is the result of plucking some of your eyebrow hair to make it look presentable or be in line with fashion. The use of dyes, tints and pencils could contribute to thinning of the eyebrow hair. When you continue to use them, it could lead to permanent eyebrow hair loss.

Repeated plucking of your eyebrow hair could cause permanent hair loss in this region. That said, it’s only ideal to pluck your eyebrows whenever necessary. When you do apply brow pencil, make sure that you’re not rubbing your eyebrows too much as it can cause your hair to fall off.

How about diet?

Having a poor or unbalanced diet could lead to hair loss on your eyebrow. Just like the other parts of your body, your eyebrow hair also requires proper nutrition for it to grow. If your diet lacks the essential nutrients, proteins and vitamins, it could lead to a major damage to your hair on your head, including your eyebrow.

It won’t only be your eyebrow hair that will be affected. Rather, your body hair will also be affected.

One of the most important nutrients that you must not miss is sulfur. If you’re not eating enough of it, it could cause hair loss.

Growth on eyebrow region

Any unusual growth on your brow area could hamper the growth of eyebrow hair. Warts, for example, could cause a thick barrier in that region making it impossible for your eyebrow hair to grow. Other growths that could affect eyebrow hair growth will include moles, seborrheic keratosis and hemangiomas.

Fungal infection, too, could result in this condition.

Is there a cure for eyebrow hair loss?

Whoopi Goldberg doesn’t have to look for a cure of her eyebrow hair since she did it on purpose.

Currently, there’s no approved medicine or treatment for eyebrow hair loss. But there are plenty of successful ways to treat this condition. A hair transplant surgery is one of them. But, just because you’re experiencing this condition doesn’t mean that you can take advantage of it. It would usually depend on the cause of the hair loss.

For instance, if your hair loss in the eyebrow area is the result of alopecia areata, then the ideal treatment would be corticosteroids injections. If it’s the cause of atopic dermatitis, it could be remedied by avoiding skin irritants. Bear in mind that cosmetics don’t always work for everyone. If they don’t work for you, you should immediately stop using them as the result would be less than satisfactory.

Eyebrow hair transplant

This is a type of treatment used to allow regrowth of eyebrow hair. Your dermatologist will make a minute incision using a small surgical needle. The new hair will be placed at the right angle and with precision in sites where the natural hair grows.

Hair regrowth may be experienced after a few months. Trimming may still be required when the new hair grows into new position.

The cost of the treatment is high. And if Whoopi Goldberg had indeed lost her hair on her eyebrows, she might have considered this treatment considering the fact that she could afford it. But she hasn’t done that, probably because she’s not suffering from a medical condition that would cause eyebrow hair loss. This means that she intentionally lost her hair in this region through shaving.

Eyebrow hair loss is no longer a problem these days because of the latest development in the hair growth industry. To alleviate the problem, doctors need to scan and determine the real reason of the hair loss. This way they could make a recommendation for the proper treatment. If you’re suffering from it, properly taking care of your health and eating the right diet could help you recover easily.

Remedies that help eyebrow growth

There are also natural home remedies that anyone with no eyebrow hair can use. One of them is coconut oil. If you’re like Whoopi with thin or no eyebrow hair, you could apply olive or coconut oil on your eyebrows. These oils are known to help with hair growth and it’s a good natural way to grow your hair in that region.

Another remedy that Whoopi and anyone with no eyebrow hair could try is onion juice. It has been reported to aid in the growth of new eyebrow hair. If you do consider it, you should endure the smell of the onions on your face. It might not be too appealing but it’s for your own good.

And if you really want your eyebrow hair to grow, you should stop plucking the hair. The use of brow makeup and plucking the hair could cause eyebrow hair loss.

Do you believe that her eyebrows are real?

Her eyebrows are real. According to news.com.au, she admitted to shaving them off. They appear to be gone because she shaves them continuously as they cause itchiness when they regrow.

If she didn’t have eyebrows, she could just opt for a brow hair restoration or an implant. Or she would choose to have permanent brow tattoos but she hasn’t done any of these treatments. It’s probably her style or identity. It’s a trademark of hers that some people don’t understand.

She might appear to have no eyebrow hair. But when you look at her eyebrows closely, you would notice that they are thin and scanty.

References:

http://askville.amazon.com/noticed-Whoopi-Goldberg-eyebrows-eyelashes-hard/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=6728555

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk%3AWhoopi_Goldberg/Archive_1

https://www.quora.com/Why-doesnt-Whoopi-Goldberg-have-eyebrows

http://www.debate.org/opinions/do-you-believe-whoopi-goldbergs-eyebrows-are-real