AN ex EastEnders star has revealed that her hair has fallen out amid her chronic health battle.

Former Lucy Beale star Melissa, 32, was diagnosed with small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) after experiencing “horrible nausea” in 2023.

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Melissa Suffield, who played Lucy Beale in EastEnders, has experienced her hair falling outCredit: Instagram

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Melissa was diagnosed with SIBO and has since experienced a whole host of health issuesCredit: Instagram

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She has lost a lot of weight and now her hair is falling out ‘in clumps’Credit: Instagram
Since battling SIBO, the former Walford resident has shed weight unintentionally, with the results of this now visible in more ways than just her slender figure and ribs that show.

Melissa has lost a lot of her hair, and has now opened up about this and how greatly it is weighing on her.

Sharing two snaps, one from August 2023, and one from June 2025, Melissa got candid about the hair loss she has experienced.

“I wanna talk about hair (again),” she said in the lengthy post.

She then explained how when she was making an Instagram reel with her sister the other day and looking at old snaps, she was able to compare “just how much” her illness has changed her hair.

“It’s always been super fine and fairly thing,” she said, adding, “But the difference since becoming unwell is actually WILD.

“I’ve lost length (no this isn’t the result of a haircut), density, moisture, and gloss. All the great things basically.”

Melissa continued: “My hair and body aren’t getting the nutrients they need to thrive, and on top of that, the treatments are stressful on the body, even if ultimately they are doing good.

“And one surefire way to lose hair is stress – physical or emotional will do it, and SIBO has given me both.

“The fact that I’ve managed to stop the hair falling out is absolutely great, but I have a very long way to go and I have to remind myself that it’s not going to be overnight, especially with so many things actively working against me,” she added.

Former EastEnders star has had ’40 doctors appointments’ and spent ‘over five figures’ amid gruelling health condition

She then urged how she is “depending” on her hair growth journey.

“I’m not some girl who already has think hair, or loses a few strands when she brushes, or who just wants a bit of length.

“I’m someone whose hair refuses to grow, has fallen out in literal clumps, and who is willing to try anything to stop it.

“Basically, you can trust me not to bullsh*t you, and just know that nobody is more invested in my journey than me,” she concluded.

‘THERE’S NO JOY’

Last year, Melissa opened up about her unintentional weight loss exclusively to The Sun.

“Obviously, I’ve lost quite a lot of weight this year,” Melissa began, adding: “But absolutely none of that has been through choice. None of it. Like I’m back in my pre-pregnancy jeans.”

‘She added: “But there’s no joy,” noting: “I don’t enjoy the fact that that’s happened at all in the way that you know, that’s like a goal for a lot of people.

“A) It was never a goal for me. But B) this is the complete antithesis of whatever I’ve ever wanted with my body.

“So that’s been tricky for sure. And then also, just on top of that, like my skin and my hair has been like affected.

“Now I’m dealing with feelings of, you know, not enjoying the way that I look, which is frustrating because I’ve done such a lot of work to get me to a place where.”

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Melissa is more slender these days than she was a couple of years agoCredit: Instagram

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She played the role of Lucy Beale in EastEndersCredit: BBC