Changing your haircut can change the way you look or add something new to your personality. Although there are about a million things you can do to your hair, the hair itself, in its color and texture, remains constant and is determined by your genes. Cells known as melanocytes that exist under the epidermis produce the melanin that finally decides the color of your hair. Here are 7 other facts about hair that you might find interesting.
[caption id="attachment_372" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Hair - how much do you really know about it?"]
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1. The whole human body with the exception of the soles of the feet, palms, lips and mucous membranes are covered with hair. The growth, density, thickness, texture and rate of growth depends largely on the genetic makeup of the individual. There are however various changes that can be brought about by chemicals and the environment. Hair can be nourished from within and without. So as you consume eggs, liver, kidney, carrots and green vegetables as part of your hair nourishing diet, make sure that you apply some henna, egg yolks and yogurt to it too.
2. Hair growth and the thickness of hair is something that many people fret about, although it is commonly associated with women. It may interest you to know that the rate at which a woman’s hair grows and the extent to which it is thick is on average higher among men than women.
3. The average growth of normal healthy hair is about half an inch per month. It is estimated that losing about 100 hairs in a day is normal and should not cause panic about balding.
4. While hair on the head is a desirable, elsewhere in American culture it is viewed as a nuisance. Hair removal techniques include short term tactics like shaving, waxing and tweezing, while long term tactics like lasers, creams and flash lamps are popular and permanent methods exist like electrolysis.
5. A large proportion of hair is made up of material that is incombustible and therefore is probably the most indestructible part of our bodies, after the teeth. In fact, the hair on some ancient Egyptian mummies is really well preserved. Hair consists of 23 percent alkaline sulfates, 5 to 10 percent iron oxide (higher in red heads and lower among brunettes) and about 40 percent silica.
6. There are many popular and still believed myths about hair. It is often believed that cutting hair makes it grow faster, tight hats can cause people to lose hair, and plucking a white hair will cause another one to appear. None of these are true!
7. Last but not least, it is said that exposure to swimming pools can cause a green tint in the hair. This is, in fact, true and those who have blonde or naturally light hair that is porous may actually experience a green tint over time. This can be avoided with moisturizing shampoos and leave on conditioners that prevent the chlorine from entering.
And of course, as a bonus 8th fact, you can test your hair for drugs conveniently and easily with a
hair drug test from Home Health Testing. Check out our product line today!
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Article by Anne Hamilton.
Photo credit: Woman with hair straightener by Petr Kratochvil