The Origin of Hair
Wondering why hair should be so important. Is all of this just vanity or does hair have other secret meanings?
We often see our hair as a reflection of our identity because it is both personal and public. Many women feel that a bad hair day equals a bad day.
Hair and beauty is a multibillion-dollar industry, and the average woman spends approximately $50,000 on her hair over her lifetime and almost two hours a week washing and styling her hair. This is not just because many of us believe that appearances are important, but also because our hair represents our personality, thoughts and beliefs.
Hair symbolizes physical strength and virility; the virtues and properties of a person are said to be concentrated in his hair and nails. It is a symbol of instinct, of female seduction and physical attraction. Hair flowing depicts freedom and looseness.
Fetal Hair Development
Around week 14 or week 15, teeny tiny baby hairs start to poke through the skin at a slight angle, with the stage set for your baby’s hairline very soon.
And a precise pattern emerges, with all follicles perfectly and evenly spaced (in fact, not a single follicle forms after birth). Eyelashes and eyebrows are looking pretty good too right around week 22.
By week 22, a developing fetus has all of its hair follicles formed. At this stage of life there are about 5 million hair follicles on the body. There are a total of one million on the head, with one hundred thousand of those follicles residing on the scalp. This is the largest number of hair follicles a human will ever have, since we do not generate new hair follicles anytime during the course of our lives.
Most people will notice that the density of scalp hair is reduced as they grow from childhood to adulthood. The reason: Our scalps expand as we grow.
Hair Follicles
Hair has two distinct structures –
1.the follicle itself, which resides in the skin, and
2.the shaft, which is what is visible above the scalp.
The hair follicle is a tunnel-like segment of the epidermis that extends down into the dermis. The structure contains several layers that all have separate functions. At the base of the follicle is the papilla, which contains capillaries, or tiny blood vessels that nourish the cells.
STRUCTURE OF HAIR
Hair Growth Cycle
Hair growth goes through a cycle with three identified stages –
1.Catagen (transitional phase)- between 2 to 3 weeks
2.Telogen (resting phase)- 5% to 10%- between 2 to 3 months
3.Anagen (growing phase)- 90% to 95%- anagen growth phase lasts between 2 to 6 years.
Anagen Growth Phase
In the anagen phase, hairs grow at a rate of about 1cm per month which slows with age. Length of hair corresponds to the amount of time in the anagen phase. The length of the hair growth cycle is different for different parts of the body. This explains why hair on the head is longer than hair on other parts of the body, such as the eyebrows which only spend 30-45 days in the anagen phase.
Catagen Transition Phase
Catagen is the period of transition between the anagen growth phase and the telogen resting phase. Less than 1% of hairs are in this 2-3 week period at any one time. Changes take place in the structure of the hair follicle and at the end of catagen, telogen phase is entered.
Telogen Resting Phase
Telogen is the resting phase of the hair growth cycle. At the end of the telogen phase, the hair follicles will reenter the anagen growing phase and start growing again. Approximately 5-10% of scalp hair is in the telogen phase at any one time and these follicles are randomly distributed. It is during telogen hairs that hair is normally shed. Approixmately 25-100 hairs are shed each day. Telogen is also the part of the hair cycle which some of the transplanted hairs will enter. Because telogen can last 2-3 months, these hairs will not start regrowing for 2-3 months and therefore it can take 6 months or longer to see the results of hair transplantation.
Your Well-wisher,
Dr.Insiya
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