Read - Stages of Hair Growth

      If you have noticed your hair loss more and more everyday you may want to stop it before it gets worse. There are several different factors that cause hair loss. Hair growth is something that we take for granted until we start noticing a tremendous difference in our appearance. Maybe it is a little thinning or maybe it is a bald spot but we don't pay any attention until it is brought to our attention that something needs to be done.

      Understanding hair loss starts with understanding the hair growth cycle. Hair growth starts while the baby is still in the mother's womb and continues until death. But in between that time a lot can happen and hair growth can stop for several different reasons including:

- shampoo/conditioner used
- blow dryer
- too much sun and wind exposure
- perm, bleach, highlights, and hot oil treatments
- poor nutrition
- illness, condition, or disease

      Hair grows everywhere on the human body except on the palms of our hands and the soles of our feet, but many hairs are so fine they're virtually invisible. Hair is made up of a protein called keratin (the same protein in nails) produced in hair follicles in the outer layer of skin; as follicles produce new hair cells, old cells are being pushed out through the surface of the skin at the rate of about six inches a year.

      Hair has two separate parts: the root and the hair shaft. The root is the part of the hair located just under the skin surface. The hair follicle houses the entire hair root. The follicle lies below the scalp and produces the hair strand that you see growing out of your head. The follicle is alive.

      At the root, the papilla is where all of the action takes place; it is a rich blood and nerve supply that nourishes the hair shaft and produces hair cells. The bulb is a white sack located on the lower part of the hair that covers the papilla.

      The hair shaft is what is grows out of the hair follicle and is what we consider to be hair. It has three parts; the cuticle, cortex and medulla. The inner layer is called the medulla and may not be present. The next layer is the cortex and the outer layer is the cuticle. The cortex makes up the majority of the hair shaft. There are pigment cells that are distributed throughout the cortex and medulla giving the hair its characteristic color. The cuticle makes up the largest section of your hair and protects the cortex. The cuticle is formed by tightly packed scales in an overlapping structure similar to roof shingles, which holds your hair together. The cuticle is made of long, molecular chains of amino acids (protein).

      The hair strand is simply made up of fragile, dead keratin cells that have no regenerative properties. Hair grows from the follicle at an average rate of half an inch per month. Each hair grows for about four to seven years, after which it enters a "resting phase" and then falls out. A new hair begins growing in its place anywhere between three weeks and three months later. At any one time, about 90% of the hair on a person's scalp is growing. Each follicle has its own life cycle that can be influenced by age, disease, and a wide variety of other factors. This life cycle is divided into three phases that each strand of hair must go through during its cycle.

      The first stage is the growing stage. The professional name for this stage is the Anagen Stage. The growing stage can last up to 1000 days or more before this stage is complete. This is the first stage and each strand must come from a hair bulb that lies deep inside the scalp. Over time as the hair grows out it grows up and later through the scalp and continues to grow. This particular phase can last betweeen two to six years.

      Next stage is the Catagen stage where the hair has grown out of the scalp and continues to grow long. Also known as the transitional phase, 1-2% of scalp hairs are in this phase which lasts about two to three weeks as it takes at least 10 days to move from the base of the bulb to the surface of the scalp.

      The Telogen stage lasts for 100 days. This is the new hair stage where you can notice new growth on your hair. This stage pushes the old hair out so the new hair can grow to its fullest potential.This stage is also considered the resting phase and 10-15% of scalp hairs are in this phase.

      Each stage of hair growth is important to each strand of hair. This cycle can be stopped when the follicle becomes blocked or hair growth is not promoted in some way. At any given time about 85 percent of hair is growing and 15 percent is resting, but as people age, their rate of hair growth slows. The average adult head has about 100,000 to 150,000 hairs and loses up to 100 of them a day; so finding a few stray hairs on your hairbrush is not necessarily cause for alarm.