Ask Mike: All about hair
Hey Guys,
When I was a kid and I’d get a bad haircut, people used to tell me not to worry because short hair grows back fast. Not being particularly bright, I believed them. But over the years, I kept hearing this piece of wisdom. I got to wondering: Is it really true?
I’m not the only one who wonders. A Yahoo! Answers community member who goes by the name Princess Penguin asked whether or not hair goes back more quickly if it is trimmed regularly. Conventional wisdom says yes, but science says nope.
An article from MSN explains that simply cutting one’s hair does not make it grow faster. The reason: “Your hair doesn’t know it’s being cut, so it grows at its own pace.” OK, fair enough, but that begs the question — how quickly does the average head of hair grow?
HowStuffWorks.com explains that while there is not a universal law of hair growth, on average the human hair grows at about .44 millimeters per day. That equals out to around half an inch per month. And it doesn’t matter if you just cut it or if it’s all the way down to your ankles — it’ll still grow at the same rate.
Another related question has to do with whether or not shaved hair grows back thicker. The urban legend experts at Snopes.com write that it doesn’t. The perception likely stems from the belief that short hair appears to be “tougher” than longer hair. Oh, and also according to Snopes, wearing hats does not (repeat: does NOT) cause baldness. As an avid fan of baseball caps, I find this to be a great relief.
You guys have any myths or beliefs about hair you’d like debunked or proven true? Please leave a comment below, and I’ll check ‘em out.
Thanks for reading,
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
- Rating:
(18 votes, average: 3.61) - Permalink
- Comments (24)
Loading ...
Subscribe
what about body hair, will it grow longer if shaved ? Because it it doesn’t grow like head hair, so when shaving it, does it grow back to the length it used to be or keep growing?
Also, when young boys get beards, the hair is soft and grows very slow, first they only have to shave about 3-4 times a week, but after some months the hair becomes rough and they have to shave more often, eventually every day. How do you explain that ?
I THINK ALL THIS IS STORY TELLING MIKE. I DONT EXPECT U TO BELIEVE IN THIS. THANKS A LOT. FATIMA FOUAD
Is it true that bleaching or dying your hair will make it thin out faster as you get older?
Can you make your hair grow thicker by eating more protein?
Thanx!!
As a licensed cosmetologist & hairdresser, I can tell you having studied these questions, that in part what you said is true. The hair is “dead” once it leaves the follicle and “doesn’t know” it’s been cut, HOWEVER in some cases cutting very short or shaving the head WILL make it grow somewhat faster IF you live in a colder climate, in an effort to do what hair is designed to do, cover the head for warmth and protection. When it’s a few inches long, then it will go back to it’s normal growth rate regardless of length. Hair is also known to grow faster in summer, slower in winter. Same with fingernails. The difference is minimal though.
also interesting is the fact that natural blondes have the highest number of hairs per square inch, followed by brunette, and lastly redheads.
Hair goes through 3 stages, anagen, catagen, and telogen, or growth, resting, and shedding.
Wearing a hat CAN cause faster hair loss, IF the person wears it continuously, sweats a lot, and doesn’t keep the scalp clean, since an abundance of oils and dead skin cells coupled with less air circulation can clog the follicles and “gum up the works” around the tiny opening the hair grows from. Wearing a hat and sweating continuously can also create a breeding ground for bacteria and fungus that causes certain scalp conditions which can then lead to hair loss.
Did you also know that it takes more hours of schooling & study to become a licensed hairdresser in many states than it takes to become a licensed practical nurse? A hairdresser (or barber) learns not just cutting, and styling techniques, but also pathology, anatomy, sanitation, chemistry, and more.
If you shave upper lip? Is that bad? Which is better bleaching or waxing or laser hair removal? What type of layers would look best with a person with a oval face and bangs? and for eyebrows is threading a good idea?
I can put a reasoning behind the roughening of facial hair. Basically as your hair grows, it thickens. The thickening enlarges the pore from which the hair grows, allowing it to grow more thick. Therefore the more it thickens, the more it thickens, until it is no longer restricted and can grow to its full thickness.
I have a question. Is hair loss really inherited from the mother’s side of the family?
How do you get your hair to be big, like they did in the 80s. You know, those big hair looking dudes. How do they do that?
what slows hair growth…is there anything that speeds it up?
hey my hair is flat and grows realy slow is there any food or some thinh i can do to speed it up Is it true that bleaching or dying your hair will make it thin out faster as you get older?
thanks
A few things in this article are wrong. It is proven that hair grows back faster if you use a razor to shave it. This is because your body KNOWS and FEELS that the razor is pulling out hairs.
If you just cut hair without actually pulling it, the hair is obviously dead and cannot feel it is being cut.
my haircut is confusing, one maze is short and the other is long as a result the long hair looks like extensions. i dont want that. im waiting until the short hair “grow up” but i’ll wait a long time i think. the short hair is sholder length and the long hair are breasts length(a lil bit more down)
what can i do?
it looks bad
it looks extensions :S
is it true that people of younger age will have their hair grow in faster than someone of older age?
hey
do you know how to make curley hair straight?
cause i have curley hair and i don’t like it cause i want straight hair do you know how to do that
okay. to Leon Gorani- its called product and a straightner. you can get them at any drug store- hope i helped.
The whole thing is not true. Along with the fact ‘your hair doesn’t know it’s being cut’, hair grows at the top of your head, not at the bottom. So really, no, cutting your hair does not make it grow faster. I learned that this summer at my hair salon(:
Leon Gorani: Buy a hair straightener, also known as a flat iron. They have them in most stores like Rite Aid, Walmart ,Target, and hair salon stores. It is like a curling iron only made to straighten your hair.
Who needs hair anyway?
even i used to and i still get the feeling that if i don’t cut my hair every 2-3 months i it doesn’t grow that quickly.
Cutting hair does not cause it to grow back heavier, although it may SEEM that way. A new hair has a tapered end. The end of a cut hair is the same diameter as the rest of the hair.
Stimulating the tissue around hair can make it grow heavier. So, if you have a rash and keep scratching your skin, individual hairs may become thicker. But they’ll go back to normal thickness when you stop scratching.
Nice to know!
Now why doesn’t my hair ever grow past a certain point? Even if I don’t trim it for years it just stays at the same place.
I have noticed two things about hair that I know from experience seem to be true. #1 If the scalp is stimu lated frequently it encourages it to grow somewhat quicker. I noticed this from my hair washing ritual. When it is winter I wash my hair less frequently and it grows much slower. I can estimate this more accurately by keeping a schedule on how long between intervals that my hair color needs redone. #2 about body or facial hair….when plucked, waxed, or shaved it does grow back thicker and darker. The more you pluck the more you have to pluck!
When you cut your hair, you get rid of most split ends which helps your hair grow healthier. Hair doesn’t really grow fast but I noticed that my bangs grow fast becuase they don’t touch my shoulders, where it usually breaks if i don’t get my ends trimmed.It’s best to keep your hair helthy,clean, and protect it from heat and it should grow well.Also have a healthy diet.
Ok well I am 14 years old and sort of handsome (haha). Well a year ago or so I accidentely shaved off half my eyebrows (it was very stupid). I am just wondering if they would grow back thicker, darker, or longer after that. BTW I have brown eyebrows and aren’t very thick at all they’re medium.