subject: How Your Hair Grows And How To Get Help When It Stops Growing [print this page] Keratin is a special protein that produces our fingernails, toenails and our hair and also provides a layer of protection on our skin. Our head of hair is made up of individual strands and each strand of hair is made up of three layers called medulla, cortex and the cuticle. Hair growth begins inside the follicle and the follicle actually contains the only living part of the hair.
Each part of your hair has a vital role to play in producing, displaying and keeping your hair on your head. All hair colours are a result of various pigment cause and effects. For example Blonde hair comes about as a result of little pigmentation in the hair strand. When the melanin production in the hair is stopped or it dramatically reduced results in Grey hair.
The medulla is the innermost layer of hair and reflects light giving hair the various color tones it has and is why hair color looks a lot different in sunlight than it does in the shade. Type of hair such as curly or straight hair is determined by the cross section of your cortex and if your cortex has a cross section that is round then you will have straight hair for example.
Your hair growth commences inside your hair follicle that is a skin organ that produces hair. Hair production doesn't occur in one step the growth occurs in stages. There is a growth phase, a stop phase and a rest phase. On average 50-100 hairs are lost due to this natural growth process every day. This is normal hair loss and accounts for the hair loss seen every day in the shower and with hair combing. In healthy follicles these hairs will soon be replaced by new hair.
The hair follicles are the basis for the two main methods of hair restoration being Hair Transplantation and Follicular Unit Transplantation and Follicular Unit Extraction( FUE) In both of these procedures follicular units, that is groupings of naturally occurring hairs of between one and four hairs are removed from the patient and then these follicular units are surgically implanted into the balding area. The follicles are typically extracted from the scalp or other parts of the body that are suitable for the procedure. Hair transplantation was first occurring back in the 1950's however FUE or Follicular Unit Extraction was not introduced until the 1990's. Today the procedure is well know and there are expert practitioners around the world performing highly successful FUE procedures.
