| For something that has been on top of our head | | | | However, it moves away from the skin-form and |
| (and all around our body, actually), hair is one of | | | | differentiates itself through the tubular structure |
| the most ignored things in the human anatomy. | | | | and its predisposition to make use of melanin; the |
| The pre-conception that hairs are just tubular | | | | natural pigment found on the human skin. |
| assemblages of dead cells made of protein has | | | | The melanin is there to protect you from the |
| made some people complacent, or even careless. | | | | direct ravages of the sun's radiation. That's why |
| Is Hair Dead? | | | | extreme exposure to sunlight causes the hair to |
| To clarify, hair is dead matter. The material that | | | | shrivel up and lose some of its original color which |
| composes human hair is very common to the | | | | is a sure sign of sun damage. |
| integument system of the human body. By | | | | An average person would have more than a |
| integuments, we refer to the human hair, the nails | | | | hundred thousand follicles at any one time. Babies |
| on the hands and on the feet and the small, down | | | | have more than double this number, but |
| like hair that surrounds the human body. What's | | | | eventually lose the extra follicles as they physically |
| the common denominator between all these | | | | mature. If you count the whole body, the number |
| different appendages? | | | | jumps to five million easily. |
| That would be the protein-like compound known | | | | What is Anagen & Telogen Phases? |
| as keratin. Keratin is responsible for making our | | | | You must remember that hair follicles have two |
| nails grow back, and is also responsible in | | | | distinct, biological phases. The first phase is called |
| continually reproducing our hair. | | | | the anagen phase. This phase allows the hair |
| Keratin is produced in the human body with the | | | | follicles to actively reproduce hair strands as they |
| help of the most common micro-nutrients around, | | | | are being shed everyday. If you're young (and |
| namely: vitamin C (or ascorbic acid), vitamin A | | | | don't have male-pattern baldness yet) then at |
| (the 'eye' vitamin is also a hair vitamin), vitamin B | | | | least ninety percent of your follicles are in this |
| (all B-vitamins are helpful) and of course, vitamin D | | | | phase. |
| (found in milk and dairy products, and produced in | | | | What happens when the anagen phase abruptly |
| small amounts in the skin when sunlight is | | | | quits on you? Well, the hair enters the second, |
| present). | | | | unfortunate phase: the telogen phase. The telogen |
| Hair, as you may already know, is 'stacked' into | | | | phase is the time when follicles simply wave |
| tubes. These tubes, which number in the hundreds | | | | goodbye, and your hair falls out. |
| of thousands, is the hair that we stroke when | | | | Anyway, the human hair can grow at least half an |
| we're happy or sad. | | | | inch per month, depending on how healthy your |
| Is Hair Part of Skin? | | | | scalp is. When your hair reaches more than three |
| Is hair part of your skin? If so, why does it look | | | | feet, the body detects the relative length, and the |
| different? The answers to these questions are as | | | | hair simply stops lengthening itself. |
| follows. Technically, your hair is skin material. | | | | |