Hair and its Components
Almost everyone goes through the days without giving a
second thought to the strange and wonderful things that are going on in and
around our bodies, and we have even less of an idea of how these processes
really work. Reasonably,
understanding anatomy is several college courses in itself; and figuring out
something as seemingly simple as how the hair works can be daunting in
detail. So, it is reasonable to
expect most people not to know how the hair works.
Aren’t you curious though?
How many times does a person cut,
clean and comb one’s hair in a lifetime? If
you care about the hairs on your head, it is probably a good idea to have a
simple grasp of what’s going on under you scalp.
Hair is a kind of protein filament composed of old
cells. You know the hair that
you style, color, and care about so much? That’s
already practically dead. The hair
that we see isn’t technically alive. That
part is called the hair fiber or shaft, and it can be divided into three
parts: the cuticle which is the rough outer layer, the cortex which is
composed of keratin, and the medulla or core of the hair.
All of these parts continue all the
way down into the root, and it is here that the magic happens.
The root is surrounded by what is called the hair
follicle. The most important part of
the follicle is the matrix, which is composed of epithelial cells.
Its importance lies in its function.
The matrix is responsible for cell
division, and the cells this creates make up the major components of your
hair. It is also this area that is
attacked by chemo or radiotherapy, treatments that prevent cell division,
explaining why cancer patients lose hair.
Now, hair is actually pretty tough.
That myth saying long hair strains
the scalp and causes hair loss really isn’t true.
If a single strand of hair can carry
a hundred grams, then it can stand to grow a little longer.
The reason hair is so strong is
attributed to three things: keratin, lipids, and sebum.
As mentioned, keratin is found in the
cortex and is a special protein composed of 18 kinds of amino acid.
It is also responsible for the hair’s
cohesion. Lipids on the other hand,
come from the bulb surrounding the hair follicle, while the subcutaneous
glands connected to the hair follicle is responsible for sebum.
Both lipids and sebum are the reasons
behind the greasiness of hair. They
are also responsible for giving hair an extra protective coating and its
shiny luster.
With this information in mind, eating a lot of protein
can do you some good. This will
ensure hair grows stronger and faster. Also,
don’t be too hard on oily hair and go crazy with shampoo.
Doing so will only weaken the strands
and cause them to break off. Hair
that’s a little greasy is also a little healthy.
One suggests using shampoo just a few
times a week, and wash with water instead on the other days, unless the
level of humidity is high and warrants shampooing more frequently.
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