Most curly hair rules improve how a curl looks, not how healthy the hair or scalp is, so the only rules worth keeping strict are washing according to your scalp, detangling gently and seeing a dermatologist when your part widens.

• What to do: Wash when your scalp is oily, itchy, flaky, sweaty or full of buildup, which for this dermatologist means about twice a week. Detangle damp, conditioned hair from the ends up and keep heat moderate with a heat protectant.
• Why it matters: Curls and scalp need different things. Curls need gentleness, while the scalp keeps producing oil, sweat and dead skin and collects product buildup. Breakage and hair loss also need different treatments.
• How to apply it: Treat styling products as optional. Shampoo and conditioner are the basic maintenance, and heat protection matters only if you use heat. Keep the diffuser moving and use a curling wand only occasionally.
• Metrics: Watch for a wider hair part, a thinner ponytail, more visible scalp under overhead light, bald patches or sudden heavy shedding.
• Tools: Diffuser, heat protectant, a clarifying shampoo when hard water leaves mineral buildup, and light sprays, mousses or gels for definition.
• Risks: Washing day shedding looks dramatic on curly hair because it traps a week of normal shedding. Buying another serum for real hair loss delays the right diagnosis.
• Exceptions: With seborrheic dermatitis, calming scalp inflammation matters more than preserving the curl pattern.

• What to do: Track six visible clues, jawline acne with coarse new hair, a sudden smooth bald patch, a butterfly rash across both cheeks, yellowish plaques at the inner eyelids, deep grooves across several fingernails, and dark velvety skin at the neck or underarms, and mention any of them to a doctor rather than treating them as purely cosmetic.
• Why it matters: These signs can reflect elevated androgens and POS, autoimmune alopecia areata, lupus, cholesterol deposits, a past physical stress event, or insulin resistance, conditions that skincare products alone cannot fix.
• How to apply it: Ask for targeted tests, testosterone levels and an ovarian ultrasound for jawline acne with hair changes, vitamin D, thyroid, iron panel and A1C for a bald patch, bloodwork for cholesterol and blood sugar for eyelid plaques, and a hemoglobin A1C for dark velvety skin. Photograph a butterfly rash while it is active before your appointment.
• Risks: Untreated alopecia areata and lupus can progress, xanthelasma can point to cardiovascular risk, and dark velvety skin can precede type 2 diabetes, so delaying evaluation has real downsides.
• Exceptions: Dark velvety patches that appear gradually over years are usually the common insulin resistance pattern, but patches that show up over just weeks are a rare red flag for stomach cancer and warrant prompt evaluation.

• What to do: Prioritize sleep, hydration, and stress management as the foundation; add key antioxidants and support mitochondrial function with creatine and NAD precursors.
• Why it matters: Graying is not fully irreversible: hair pigmentation responds to the cellular environment and some follicles can regain pigment when conditions improve.
• How to apply it: Add NAC (400-600 mg/day in 3-week cycles), creatine (5-10 g/day), sulforaphane (raw or lightly blanched broccoli), moringa, and vitamin C; manage chronic stress with morning sunlight, breathwork, and restorative sleep.
• Tools: NAC, NMN or NR, creatine, beta-alanine, moringa, vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, zinc, magnesium, and serine (3 g) as antioxidant and mitochondrial support.
• Risks: Excessive fasting or severe caloric restriction can increase oxidative stress and accelerate graying.

• What to do: prioritize morning sunlight, regular sleep, a moderate daily fasting window, and exercise that improves mitochondrial function before leaning on supplements.
• Why it matters: the video explains that skin and hair age faster when NAD falls, inflammation rises, and the body loses DNA repair and energy production capacity.
• How to apply it: use a 12 hour fasting base, add 18 hour fasts only if you tolerate them well, do zone 2 cardio several times per week, and avoid late eating and chronic stress.
• Tools: the video mentions NMN as an NAD precursor, together with support from sleep, light exposure, exercise, green tea, niacin, tryptophan, and TMG.
• Risks: excessive fasting, too much hard training, and poor sleep can exhaust stem cells and worsen skin and hair regeneration.
• Exceptions: the video explicitly says NMN does not compensate for a disordered lifestyle or replace eating enough and recovering well.