Hi, I’m Dr. Zelda Harding, Cosmetologist, Trichologist, Functional Nutritionist, and salon owner for 35 years. I received my Cosmetology License in 1976. I said to myself that I would not do hair for a living. I had other intentions; nursing school was in my view. I once heard someone say if you want to make  GOD laugh tell him what you’re not going to do. In 1987, I opened my first salon. I had such a thirst for knowledge I regularly got on a plane heading for  Dudley  Cosmetology University. I was married with two babies and a business owner when I received a phone call telling me I had accumulated enough hours to qualify for their doctorate program. I was shocked. I needed to complete some required papers and tests to get my Bachelor’s and Master’s degree first. Then, I wrote my book and defended it. Tell me God didn’t have plans for my life. Thank goodness he knows me better than I do; that was in 1993

Wanting to know more about how the body affected hair and how to recognize hair and scalp modalities, I ended up at the International Institute of Trichology, receiving a Master’s Certification in Trichology in 2007. Sprinkled throughout these years, I received numerous certifications and awards from wig-making to business classes. Recently, I completed a Functional Nutrition Course in 2022. Can you tell I love learning? The more I learned, the more I recognized what I didn’t know.

I assess hair loss through an Epigenetic lens. Developmental biologist Conrad H. Waddington first described epigenetics in 1942. He recognized that the underlying DNA sequence can be corrected. Epigenetics controls genes, and they do this by turning your gene switch on/off, and occurs because of nature (which cells become-skin cells, kidney cells, and hair cells…) and nurture (environment, diet, stress, etc.)