When approaching the topic of hair chemistry, one may think about the question, where does hair come from? Saclike holes called follicles are located all over the human body. At the bottom of these follicles are a cluster of papilla responsible for the growth of hair. As the papilla, otherwise known as hair bulbs reproduce to make new hair cells, the old ones are pushed up towards the surface of the skin causing the hair to grow longer. This may seem like a simple concept to grasp.
However, the process of hair growth is a little more in depth.
Hair growth takes place in three phases the anogen phase, the catagen phase, and the telogen phase. The first phase to take place, the anogen stage, can last anywhere from three to seven years. During this stage, hair grows at an average rate of 1 centimeter per month which adds up to around 12 centimeters or 1 inch per year. It is also during this stage that melanin, the pigment that gives hair color, is created. As people get older, follicles gradually give up producing thick, strong hair. As a result, hair becomes thinner and shorter; baldness may even occur.
The next phase in hair growth is the catagen phase which takes place anywhere from two to four weeks. During this stage, the base of the follicle moves from underneath the skin to the face and rests near the opening of the sebaceous duct until it is ready to begin growing. This growing takes place during the telogen phase which lasts anywhere from three to four months. During this stage, new hair begins to grow from the hair follicle. As it grows upwards, the old hair will be shed naturally or may be pulled out. This shedding of telogen hairs happens easily and painlessly; these are the hairs that fall out when a person is shampooi...
... middle of paper ...
... ranging anywhere between 3.5 to 6.0 and are used to restore the pH balance after an alkaline treatment. Conditioners also keep cuticle layers from getting caught which keeps hair from tangling and reduce static electricity in the hair by sealing in moisture. There are many different types of conditioners aimed toward people with different hair textures. For example, protein conditioners are designed to slightly increase the diameter of the hair by adding a special coating to it. These conditioners are deigned to pass through the cuticle, penetrate the cortex, and replace any keratin that has been lost from hair.
Chemistry is also beneficial in studying the chemical construction of hair dye and therefore learning how and why it works. The first safe commercial hair color was created in 1909 by French chemist Eugene Schuller, using the chemical paraphenylenediamine.
the DNA from the roots of the hair. The replicated DNA samples were then placed into the
This cycle tends to last anywhere from five to seven years and is shorter for hair on the eyebrows, armpits and pubic area. Inside the bulb of each hair is a component called the dermal papilla which controls the hair growth while the matrix of the hair, which contains a large amount of epidermal cells that rapidly divide, is responsible for the length of the hair. Next is the catagen phase which is characterized as a transition period between the anagen and telogen phases. At this time the hair bulbs are pushed out in order to become keratinized and the hair appears short and thick. This phase tends to only last between two and three weeks. During the telogen phase, no new cell division occurs, which means that the length of the hair remains the same. This pause allows the dermal papilla to fill up the matrix with new cells in preparation for the anagen phase to begin again. This phase can last between three and nine months. After this phase, the anagen phase begins again. The telogen phase is periodically followed by shedding, or exogen. This leads to the last phase, the exogen phase. This phase is characterized by the shedding of hair. Each day about one hundred hairs are shed from the average individual’s scalp. The shaft of the hair is shed and the follicle remains. Despite the fat that the exogen phase usually follows the telogen phase, there are exceptions when it does not, resulting in hair follicles needing to go
According to 10 Weird and Wacky Beauty Facts by Andrea Lavinthal, in ancient Greece, the most sought-after hair color was blond. Not many Greeks were naturally blond, so light hair was probably perceived as beautiful because it was so exotic. Women would lighten their hair using plant extracts or arsenic. They also washed their locks with a mixture of ashes, olive oil, and water. She also explained how “it was a shame that extension weren’t available during the Heian period when a Japanese woman’s beauty was judges by the length of her hair, since the ideal was considered almost two feet longer than her waist. We’re assuming that ponytails were a popular hairstyle back then.” There are many other crazy facts about beauty facts like Vaseline makes your eyelashes grow and can take off makeup, or if your finger nails are discolored from using dark polish, use a slice of lemon on them and they will regain their color (The beauty magazine, Roselyn Miller, pg. 67). Going into the field of Cosmetology helps you express yourself and it brings out your inner creativity. That is one of the many reason I love this line of work, because when I do hair it lets me express myself while creating a hairstyle of my own. The first time I started doing hair was when I was about 10 or 11, I was a natural! I want to be able to know my clients and exactly what will look right on my clients and read people, so I would know what they do like just by talking to them. I need to learn to separate family from business. I do know some things about this field I before this assignment that cosmetology is not just about doing hair, it’s also about learning about the Skin; Doing make up, eye lashes, etc. You also learn about nails; doing a...
Throughout the semester we have studied the black vernacular tradition and its attributes of competition, group interaction, the in- group, and pattern of call and response and we have learned to take those attributes and apply then to the complex subject of Black Hair. Black Hair is a complex subject not only because so little is known about it but because of the aesthetic, political, and interpersonal context through which Black hair can be studied and interpreted. Hair is honestly in just about every text and it is used to not only add insight to characters identity but to also give context to time. Many of the black vernacular tenets are seen throughout Margo Jefferson’s chapter in Negroland, in particular the first section called “The
Many people choose to avoid "sulfates" because they can be overly drying to some hairtypes and strip the cuticle of its natural oils and cause scalp irritation.
The complete process is carried out under local anesthesia to numb the scalp. These grafts grow into natural hairs with the progress of time. Hence, hair transplantation is able to complete the process of hair restoration successfully.
All the products that contain mineral oils and petrolatum clog your pores and rob your hair of the necessary moisture. This can actually hinder your hair growth. Thick pomades and alcohol based products also dry your hair.
...on. Treatments should be applied to the hair as a protector before the chemicals are added because they can apply serious damage to the healthy hair. If the hair isn’t treated properly with several chemicals being added such as relaxers or dye, the hair can easily become dry, brittle, and create many split ends throughout your hair even rising up to the roots. As I was doing my research paper I did experience some difficulties because I didn’t stick with one topic in the cosmetology field like hairstyling, coloring hair, nails, and even trimming of the hair so that caused me to even research harder, but it’s nothing wrong with challenging yourself at times.
It is no surprise hair texture varies based on ethnic background. But what exactly determines the hair texture of someone based on their ethnic background? In today’s society, image is everything and hair is a great part of one’s image. In fact, the total revenue of the hair care industry in 2013 was $64.8 billion, according to the 2013 Professional Salon Industry Haircare Study. Because the hair industry is so lucrative, it is safe to say that hair is important to many.
“The Shampoo” by Elizabeth Bishop was written near the beginning of Bishop’s residence in Brazil and is a direct homage to her lover Lota. Even though Lota is not directly addressed in the poem, an earlier draft of the poem reveals a connection to her longtime lover. Bishop uses the mundane act of washing a loved one’s hair as the basis for a brilliant meditation on the nature and progression of time. In “The Shampoo” Elizabeth Bishop uses imagery of nature, metaphor of time, and deliberate diction to compare the gradual movements in nature over time with the process of aging. Bishop draws a contrast between the process of aging and the timeless relationship she has with
The properties inside of coconut oil have been proven to enhance appearance and strengthen the roots of the hair. In many hair mask, coconut oil is used. The natural hair movement starts and ends with one essential item. Many black women suffer from having either extremely high or low hair porosity. Porosity is how well your hair can hold and retain moisture. Coconut oil especially stands out because it acts as both a moisturizer and acts as hair sealant. Coconut oil’s ability to prevent protein loss and reduce hair porosity makes it a valuable oil for those who straighten their hair constantly or permanently those who color their hair. The natural hair movement has greatly shown benefits of switching from harsh chemical treatments to coconut oil. Coconut oil also reduces split ends, thinning and dandruff, which are things that black people are heavily discriminated against
They have several different factors that determine hair color such as melanin containing iron and sulfur. If there is a lack of melanin, the hair will be white or gray. Stem cells located in the dermis are responsible for the production of hair. The shape and texture of the hair follicle determine an individual’s hair. The growth process of hair goes through the following three phases. The anagen phase which takes approximately twenty eight days and grows about one centimeter. The catagen phase lasts for approximately two to three weeks and the blood supply to the hair is cut off. The telogen phase is the final phase also known as the resting phase, lasting approximately three
Hair is an important part of our body. It can be found anywhere and can be a useful evidence in forensic science. It consists of three layers, namely cuticle, cortex and medulla. Cuticle- is a covering that consists of hard scales made of keratin, which is a protein approaching tip ends of the hair. There are three types of cuticle: coronal, imbricated and spinous types. Cortex consists of stretched out beam shaped cells, buried with pigment granules for hair to cede with color and is the main body of the hair shaft. It may also contain pigment granula, ovoid bodies and cortical fusi (Wright, 2008). Furthermore, medulla can be categorized into continuous, fragmental, absent and interrupted types. If medulla
In the short story ‘growing my hair again’, the author explains how women in the African traditions are held captive by the traditional culture and their struggles to trying to break away them using the main character Nneka. In Nigeria as well as in the other parts of Africa, culture was and still is given a lot of emphasizes especially when it comes to the traditional practices and beliefs. The culture however vary from one community to the other and ranges from the rights of passage, religious beliefs to other religious practices such as offering sacrifices and the role of women in the community .Nneka was married to a rich man in traditional Nigerian community and as in other areas, women had a role of being submissive to their husbands
Hair analysis begins with the identification phase. First, the hair has to be determined if it is human or not. Human hair is classified into two main categories: vellus hair and terminal hair. Vellus hair is very fine and hard to see and can be found all over the body. Terminal hair is the hair you frequently see in eyebrows, beards, head hair, pubic hair, arm hair, and leg hair. Since there are so many different types of animals, non-human hair has several different characteristics. The four classifications that generally apply to forensic investigations are: fur or wool, vibrissa or tactile, bristles, and other hairs such as manes or tails on horses. Animal hairs can be distinguished from human hairs in numerous ways. The medulla is a tubular structure that runs down the middle of the hair. It can be thick or thin and continuous or discontinuous. Animal medullas’ are usually thicker, where as human hairs have fragmented, inconsistent medullas, or