Kayla Martell: Bald Beauty Queen Inspires New Generation of Follicle-Free Kids

(CBS/AP) It takes poise and good looks to be a beauty queen. But as Kayla Martell proved when she was crowned Miss Delaware on June 12, it doesn't take hair.

Martell, a bubbly 21-year-old Milford native, is bald as a result of having alopecia areata, an autoimmune disease that attacks hair follicles.

She had competed in the contest several times previously and was thinking of giving up her dream of winning the Miss Delaware crown. But she says a five-year-old girl named Lilliana Hakim, who suffers from the same disorder, inspired her to keep on trying.

Both Kayla and Lilliana appeared on CBS News' "The Early Show" Monday to discuss their stories with co-anchor Erica Hill.

When Hill asked Lilliana how she'd inspired Kayla, Lilliana gave a smile and a nod but was too shy to answer.

"Do you remember what you said to me when I said I didn't know if I wanted to come back to Miss Delaware?" coaxed Kayla. "Do you remember you told me that I was your Miss America and I had to keep trying, right?"

And now Kayla is the one inspiring other alopecia sufferers.

A recent post on Kayla's blog reads:

"My granddaughter was diagnosed with alopecia areata late last year. Our main worry with this is how other children will treat her and how it will affect her self-confidence. She's a sweet happy little 3-yr old right now but already we see the looks that people throw her way (she has several large bald spots already)."

Kayla began losing her hair at the age of 10. In fifth grade, she noticed that her part was widening, and when the bald spot kept growing, her condition was diagnosed.

She handled her own baldness with grace, especially through her adolescent years.

"For me, I was just very confident in myself because of the great family and friends that I have. And, you know, I think I was a better person because of the faith that I had. It didn't make me nervous to go out without the wig for any reason," Kayla said.

Kayla still wears a wig sometimes, because she feels more approachable that way. But she gladly took the wig off during "The Early Show" to show how comfortable and confident she is.

"I think I can be a better Miss Delaware and Miss America by taking the wig off, because it shows people the initial reaction that I am healthy and I'm fine. All we do is we lose our hair, right?" Kayla asked rhetorically.

But Kayla doesn't think she won because she happened to have hair on that night. Asked if she thinks her win has anything to do with the fact that she competed with a wig this time around, she responded, "Not at all. I hope the judges picked me because I knew I could fulfill the jobs of Miss Delaware."

For Kayla, the next step is to use her new position to raise awareness about the disease, and those who have it.

"The biggest thing is just to find other people out there who have alopecia," she said. "If you find someone who can be supportive of you and you can learn from, that's the greatest thing, to build relationships, and that's why I'm so happy Lilly and I can be close."

For more on alopecia, visit the National Alopecia Areata Foundation.