On September 13, Russia celebrates the Day of the Hairdresser. Ekaterina Bankovskaya, candidate of pharmaceutical sciences, associate professor of the Department of Chemical Technology of the NPRPU, explained what affects the thickness of hair and what contributes to its loss.
WHAT’S INSIDE
“Hair is a hard, cone-shaped fiber consisting of tightly connected, keratinized epithelial cells,” says Ekaterina Bankovskaya. – The number of hairs is determined at birth and does not increase throughout life (on average, 100-150 thousand units are formed).
— In cross section, the hair shaft is a three-layered concentric structure. The cuticle is an outer protective layer, represented by transparent scales that are located in 8-10 layers. It looks like a tile: half of one scale covers the other. External influences, such as straightening and curling, thin the cuticle and break the barrier, explains the expert. — The cortex is the middle layer of the hair; it contains melanin, which is responsible for the color of the fibers. The layer itself is similar to a rope and determines elasticity and strength. The medulla is the inner layer of the hair, it looks like a thread. This is the core, which consists of non-keratinizing protein cells.
WHY LAMINATION CAN BE HARMFUL
Lamination is a method of restoring dyed, dry, dull, brittle, thermally damaged hair, hair with split ends, after perming or straightening. During the procedure, a special composition is applied to the hair. It glues the raised cuticle scales and forms a protective, breathable film around each fiber. Lamination compositions contain polymers, usually cellulose, vitamins and vegetable proteins of silk and wheat. In some cases, keratin, collagen and other components are added to improve the condition and appearance of the strands.
“But if the polymer composition is not heated enough, a full protective layer is not created,” explains Ekaterina Bankovskaya. – When drying for a long time without heating, the polymers in the composition spread through the hair under the force of gravity, lingering in damaged areas, near thickenings, etc. And when overheated, partial thermal welding of the polymer occurs. It melts on the hair, sticks together, and, firstly, lamination does not occur, and secondly, curls are difficult to style, they look dirty.
So it turns out that, despite the fact that lamination is designed to restore the quality of worn-out strands, this procedure can reduce the amount of hair. A polymer composition applied to the cuticle increases the load on the bulb by 10-15%, which can lead to its loss. The fact is that nature determines not only the structure and color of the hair, but also the maximum weight it can bear.
WHAT ELSE CAUSES LOSS?
Each hair has three life cycles:
* anagen – growth, approximately 88% of the hair’s life,
* catagen – growth arrest (1% of total time),
* telogen (11% of hair life): new hair begins to form, leading to loss of old hair.
-Men’s hair lives on average 3-5 years, women’s hair 4-6 years. Usually, 50-70 hairs fall out per day. If there are more, for example, 100 hairs per day, it is called alopecia. At the same time, the number of hair strands decreases in the growth phase and increases in the resting and transition phases, explains Ekaterina Bankovskaya.
Recently, the number of people suffering from hair loss has been increasing. There are many reasons:
1. Environmental pollution.
2. Bad eating habits, including excessive fast food products.
3. Frequent coloring, use of perms, inadequate scalp care.
4. Increased stress levels.
5. Human health status: genetic predisposition to baldness, metabolic disorders, infectious diseases, side effects of taking medications, hormonal pathologies, vitamin and microelement deficiencies. Pregnancy and childbirth also increase hair loss. Hair loss is also increased in certain dermatoses (in the head area) that are accompanied by inflammation, for example psoriasis or seborrheic dermatitis.
“Temporary hair loss usually occurs after intense physical or psychological stress,” explains the expert. – Hair loss is caused by the transition of some of the strands that have not passed the growth stage to the telogen phase.
WHAT WILL HELP WITH LOSS?
“There are now ways to stimulate hair growth or stop hair loss,” says Ekaterina Bankovskaya. – For example, various chemical and biological activators and stimulants that trigger the growth of a “dormant” bulb trigger a new phase of growth. The products can be based on synthetic or natural herbal products. Burdock oil, even mixed with pepper extract, has long been used to improve the growth of hair strands. The oil restores the structure of damaged fibers, normalizes metabolic processes in the scalp, and eliminates dryness and flaking. And the added pepper stimulates the first phase of growth, which promotes the appearance of new hair. At the same time, burdock oil is a fatty product and requires separate application to the skin for a long time, for example, in the form of a mask. But precisely because of its fat content, it is rather difficult to incorporate it into other products for easier application.
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