It appears as though years of chemical and heat treatments on Kim Kardashian’s hair have taken a toll, leaving her strands thin and wispy.

Fans of the reality TV star were no doubt shocked by her appearence in the trailer for this week’s episode of The Kardashians.

The 43 year-old unveiled her natural hair during a scene in the gym – revealing short,  brittle-looking strands.

It’s not the first time the glamorous social media icon has given fans a glimpse of her real locks.

In August, Kim was pictured disemarking a private jet in Los Angeles (below) without her characteristic long, thick hair.

Now, experts have revealed to DailyMail.com the likely reasons why Kim’s natural hair looks as it does – based on the past two years of her extreme hairstyles.

Kim Kardashian is a known hairstyle chameleon, often sampling a range of different looks from platinum blond waist-length extensions to a taut long dark ponytail all within the same month.

But hair damage is unavoidable when the scalp is subjected to extreme treatments no matter how talented the stylist is, though the most qualified among them are typically better able to gauge how much the hair can take.

Bleaching hair to strip it of all color and applying high heat repeatedly takes a toll on the integrity of the hair as well as the health of the scalp, raising the odds of seeing permanent hair loss.

Ms Kardashian often wears hair extensions extending to her navel, though it is not clear whether the extensions are installed via microbeads fused to the hair, taped in, or sewn in.

But experts maintain that no extensions are good for the hair.

Anabel Kingsley, a hair and scalp specialist and Brand President of Philip Kingsley hair products, told DailyMail.com: ‘I wouldn’t recommend hair extensions, full-stop.

Instead, it was tied up in a bun, with thin wisps falling out the back.  And last December, the mother of-four posted a video to her TikTok channel, revealing thin, crispy hair that was clearly damaged from several rounds of bleach.