Archive for June, 2009
Friday, June 26th, 2009
Human beings share many common traits with our animal cousins. Although this is not the place for the debate about evolution, we do know that many animals also have hair on their bodies and their heads. Some of these are familiar to us because we have seen them in textbooks or at the local zoo. Mammals are the only species in nature that have been blessed with hair.
Many mammals like dogs, cats and other domesticated farm animals shed their hair according to the seasons. Some shed hair continuously. Since our pets and farm animals don’t have prehensile grip, they don’t find their dead hair in a comb or brush like we do. And apparently, this daily or seasonal hair loss doesn’t seem to bother them as much as it does humans. Hair loss is of little concern, except in harsh climates, where being bald makes it harder to retain body heat. For the majority of mammals, hair is functional.
If you are losing your hair, this observation might not be very comforting to you. On the other hand, you can take heart that humans are not one of the species of mammals that don’t have any hair at all. If the bald eagle comes to mind, you’re warm. Birds aren’t mammals and they have feathers, instead of hair. Yet, there are many species of mammals that enter and leave the world without ever having any hair to fret about.
Aquatic mammals like dolphins, whales and sharks don’t have hair because it would increase drag and resistance in the water. Elephants usually don’t have hair either; nor do hippopotamuses and rhinoceros. Of course, they have pretty thick skin, so hair might be functionally redundant for these species. There is also a hairless rat, hairless moles, hairless pigs and the hairless sphynx cat. You may find hair around their noses, ears or tails, but not much.
The main purpose of hair is to protect your skin from the elements of nature. Except for some naturally hairless mammals, humans have the least amount of skin covered with hair of all the mammals on the planet. Take comfort in knowing that your hair can do its job with little interference from you. All the same, it’s a good idea to protect your hair, so you can leave with the hair that you came into the world with.
Tags: animals, bald, body, body heat, dead hair, elements. skin, hair, hair loss, hairless, head, human beings, Mammals, purpose
Posted in Natural Hair Growth | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, June 24th, 2009
Perhaps, you have been under a rock and you don’t know about the recession. While history shows that the economy usually recovers, most people will need to tighten their belts for a while to get through the bad times. Some people take the bus to work; others have given up cable TV. Many people looking for ways to balance their personal budgets have started looking at how to cut the cost of hair upkeep.
Maybe you won’t get your hair cut as often. Perhaps, you need to reconsider coloring your hair and renewing your perm every month. Maybe you are even considering taking the plunge and doing your hair at home! Don’t worry. You do not have to suffer from bad hair days just to keep gas in your car. You do not even have to start buying shampoo at the dollar store or collecting hotel and cruise line shampoo samples.
Recession or not, taking care of your hair at home, is not as hard as you think. The great part is that you will find that most of the items you will need are right in your kitchen or your pantry! Along the way, these minor changes in your normal hair care routine might help you save a few hairs too.
Apple Cider vinegar is one of the oldest home fixes for your hair. Dilute a cup of vinegar with seven cups of water. Rinse your hair with the vinegar solution after shampooing. It will make you hair shinier and liven up fading hair coloring. The vinegar smell will evaporate after just a few minutes.
Mayonnaise is a great conditioner for dry hair. You don’t have to spring for the most expensive brand. Slather it on before shampooing. Leave it for five minutes. Remove all the mayonnaise from your hair by washing it with warm water and a mild shampoo. Style your hair as usual. It will shinier, fuller and easier to manage.
Olive oil and avocados will also help you accomplish similar results. Some people alternate pantry ingredients (depending on what’s on sale in the grocery). Others even combine them to make a conditioner that suits their hair’s unique needs.
There is no rule that you can’t eat the leftovers if you decide to experiment by combining some of these recession busting kitchen pantry hair care ingredients!
Tags: alternate, alternative, apple cider vinegar, avocados, bad hair days, budget, conditioner, hair care, hair loss, hair upkeep, kitchen, mayonnaise, olive oil, recession, routine, style, unique
Posted in Natural Hair Growth | 2 Comments »
Monday, June 22nd, 2009
Hair often plays a starring role in literature and theater productions worldwide. We can find hair loss tales everywhere from Greek mythology to Broadway and the silver screen. No doubt, human beings have a reverence for their hair. Our literature contains many details and clues about the role that plays in our relationships. Quite a few hair tales feature women’s hair. These are often love stories, featuring long hair!
Remember the fairy tale about Rapunzel who was forbidden to see the prince who had captured her heart? Well, these kids devised an ingenious plot that involved Rapunzel letting down her long “golden hair” to make their trysts possible. They were soon discovered and Rapunzel was given a haircut. However, the story has a happy ending when the two are reunited in the future and they live happily ever after.
William Sydney Porter (also known as O. Henry) was a prolific author of the early 20th century. His tale, “The Gift of the Magi” is a poignant Christmas story about hair. It captured his readers’ hearts and helped to make him famous.
Two lovers who live in abject poverty search for ways to get each other a present for the holidays. She spots a beautiful chain that she wants to give him to put on his pocket watch. He finds a set of tortoise shell combs that he wants her to have to put in her knee-length hair. So, he sells his watch in order to buy the combs for her. Meanwhile she sells her hair to a wigmaker so she can buy the watch chain! Both were shocked on Christmas day, but as the story goes, they were so madly in love that they were thrilled by the sacrifice that each of them had made. Besides, eventually her hair grew back. But the story ends without him getting a new watch for the chain.
Long hair has been fashionable for women throughout history. The theme of the lure of a woman with long hair is timeless. It is usually paired with attractiveness and love. That is just one of the reasons that hair loss for women can be more traumatic than many realize.
Tags: attractiveness, hair loss, haircut, literature, long hair, love, mythology, O. Henry, Rapunzel, womens hair loss
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Friday, June 12th, 2009
Dry hair is a signal that you are having more than just a few bad hair days. Hair is alive like your skin; it should be soft and supple. When you hair is constantly dry, this is a clue that something is wrong with your diet or your hair grooming routine. In some cases, severely dry hair is an early warning of a health condition that may eventually affect more than your tresses.
Dry hair is much more easily damaged than hair that has enough natural lubricants. The hair shaft is rough and breaks more easily when you brush or comb it. Split ends are also more likely to become a problem when your hair is excessively dry. This will often result in the loss of entire strands of hair, if you do not remove them. (Despite advertisements to the contrary, there are no products that can repair a hair shaft that has split.)
Blow dryers are one of the chief causes of dry hair. Never use the high setting on your blow dryer. Start with the medium setting and allow enough time to dry your hair with the least amount of heat possible. As the water in your hair evaporates, lower the heat setting until you are only using air.
Hair that is air-dried will never develop the constant dryness that we associate with blow dryers. Forgo the convenience of instantly dry hair occasionally. Towel dry your hair. Then use a detangling comb to help loosen your hair enough for air to flow through it. Use your fingers to fluff your locks and separate your hair, until it is all completely dry.
Apply oil and moisturizing products sparingly. Your scalp can usually produce enough natural oil to give your hair the lubrication it needs. Although hair is porous, it cannot absorb massive amounts of oil, other moisturizing products, mousse and styling gel. Over application of these products creates a vicious cycle that makes it necessary to shampoo your hair more frequently or to use more shampoo to clean your hair. And, in the process, you will wind up with dry hair all over again.
Tags: blow dryers, conditioners, dry hair, hair follicles, hair shaft, shampoos, split ends
Posted in Natural Hair Growth | 1 Comment »
Saturday, June 6th, 2009
Hair loss treatment has turned some new pages in recent years. For the current generation of Americans, there are more options than ever before. For the majority of people, these are not reasonable options; they cost far more than the old standbys, wigs and toupees. Some “new” hair loss treatments do not pass muster, and they cost an arm and a leg. Besides that, the consumers who buy these products lose money that they could have used for something truly beneficial.
We could naturally expect that the aging population of the planet would be running to get the latest proven hair loss treatments, if any of them had a high success rate. Moreover, if all these hair growth treatment claims were true, wouldn’t consumers spread the good news by “word of mouth”?
One “new treatment” is the laser comb. Its looks like a replay of an old idea used in beauty parlors during the middle of the 20th century. At that time, cosmetologists used a contraption that held a special fluorescent bulb; the wavelengths of the fluorescent light spectrum were touted to help restore dead hair follicles to life. This device has passed into obscurity (for obvious reasons).
The cost of the laser comb ranges from $370 to $500, depending on the seller. That is a hefty investment for any product that has no independent, unbiased test results. The manufacturer does NOT claim that the comb restores dead hair follicles. However, consumers who are losing hair are urged to use the product to prevent further hair loss.
The laser comb received marketing clearance from the Food and Drug Administration in 2007. However, this agency does not have the authority to require test results for this kind of consumer product before the fact.
The FDA’s medical device clearance procedure is not the same as the one used for prescription medications. It merely certifies that a device is similar in function to a device that is already on the market. That is hardly a resounding endorsement of the effectiveness of the laser comb.
Therefore, consumers who invest in the laser comb must do so at their own risk. Unless consumers suffer injuries from its use, the FDA can only require that the laser comb manufacturers change the wording of their advertisements if it is turns out to be an ineffective hair loss treatment.
Tags: hair follicles, hair loss, laser comb, treatment
Posted in Natural Hair Growth | Comments Off
Saturday, June 6th, 2009
Bald men do not get a date with the prom queen and women with thinning hair are not likely to date the captain of the football team. Of course, few people experience hair loss as early as high school; however, our cultural views about hair loss are usually firmly set by the time we reach adulthood. It does not take a scientific study to prove that hair loss can affect your social life, and your career.
The news is rife with stories of discrimination against overweight people. Most politically correct people will now call them weight challenged, but does that even begin to undo the average person’s first impression of people with substantial girth?
We assume that they have no discipline and self-control. Even when they have a relatively proportioned body, attractive facial features or a great head of hair, our cultural prejudices will kick in. We either ignore them, try to fix them, or make jokes about their condition.
With few legal cases on the books, it is difficult to prove that the weight challenged suffer from unfair discrimination in employment. However, certain jobs, including the military, do impose weight restrictions on potential applicants. So, career opportunities for people whose weight exceeds the standard can be limited.
Career discrimination against bald people and those who are losing their hair is one of the hidden costs of hair loss. Our cultural perceptions of competency and leadership potential are tied to a genetic message hardwired into the human psyche.
In the days of the hunter-gatherer lifestyle of early humanoids, the strongest men were appointed to track down dangerous predators like the saber-toothed tiger. Even those who were charged with hunting down the beasts that provided food had to meet certain requirements of speed, strength and virility. The bald and the old need not apply. With survival a priority, the subtle discrimination against people with hair loss took root in human culture.
We all know that appearance can affect career opportunities. Many people in line for management and corporate leadership positions go to great expense to hide any evidence of hair loss. They dress for success by investing in the right clothing, shoes and other career props. They also realize that they must treat hair loss aggressively before it affects their career opportunities.
Being the most competent and qualified often is not enough if your competition has more hair!
Tags: bald, baldness, career opportunities, cultural prejudices, discrimination, genetic message, hair growth, hair loss, hidden cost, strength, thinning hair, treatment, virility
Posted in Female Hair Loss, Natural Hair Growth | Comments Off
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