A little girl has been diagnosed with an extremely rare uncombable hair syndrome as her hair stands up on its ends and can’t be flattened.
Layla Davis is 17 months old and hails from Great Blakenham in Suffolk.
She is one of 100 people diagnosed with hair growing in ‘unruly bundles’.
Layla’s mother, Charlotte Davis said: “She was fluffy from when she was about one and then after that it started growing more and more outwards.”
Charlotte said that Layla’s wild hair has even earned her the nicknames 'Boris Johnson' and 'Einstein'.
Charlotte continued: “I am really proud to get the diagnosis because it's so rare; part of the reason I delayed getting her tested for it is because there's only one hundred people with it in the world - the chances of having it are so slim.
“I don't think she realises how awesome it is.
“I just want her to grow up and know it is awesome even though she looks different to other people.”
According to a 2016 study published in The American Journal of Human Genetics, scientists analysed children with the condition and found they shared three altered genes (PADI3, TGM3 and TCHH) that were responsible for the hair shaft forms.
Any mutations to these genes cause the hair shape to be changed.
However, the condition typically gets better with age as children diagnosed usually form smoother, straighter hair by the time they reach adolescence.
Similarly, a child living in Northallerton, North Yorkshire, was also diagnosed with the condition, according to The Independent.
Her father told the outlet: “Holly is really proud of her hair. If anything, she is a bit sad that her wild hair is calming down as she gets older – which is a characteristic of the condition.
“She’s very sociable and outgoing and very confident in herself and so she loves having different hair.”
Her mother, Emma, also shared that while she was worried about her daughter getting bullied at school, many kids marvelled over Holly’s hair and thought it was fascinating.
She said: “When people did make comments in front of her, I would always just say, ‘I think her hair is beautiful,’ so she would not grow up feeling bad about herself or how she looks.”
Emma added: “It is like a beautiful Lion’s mane. So, being a Leo, I think of her as my little lioness.”
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