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Hair Information
Recognize your hair
Hair Root
Hair Type and Color
The Origins of Hair
Hair Growth Cycle
Hair and Diet
Cause of Hair Loss
Types of Hair Loss
Men’s Hair Loss
Women’s Hair Loss
Children’s Hair Loss
Traditional
Chinese Medical Theory
Medical Journals
Recognize your hair
Hair Root
Each hair begin to from invisible part of the hair buried 4 mm under the
scalp inside a small tube which is called a follicle.
As the hair begins to grow, it pushes up from the root and out of the
follicle, through the skin where it can be seen. The part we see which goes
to make up the hair fibre (shaft), is in fact biologically dead. Hair shaft
is a complex structure consisting of an inner core structure (called cortex)
and a series of protective outer layers (cuticle).
Cuticle is the external part of the hair fibre. It is the cuticle which need
basic hair care and subjected to attacks which the hair suffers and your
hair conditions depending on it.
Wind, rain, sunlight, pool and saltwater, harsh chemicals, excessive perms,
bleaching or coloring your hair, and mechanical injury caused by harsh
brushing can result in damaged hair.
Blood vessels at the base of each follicle which is called papilla will feed
your hair root with nutrition and amino acids and are responsible for your
hair growth. This part of your hair also requires hair care that comes from
within a good diet with essential vitamins and minerals.
Vitamin deficiency or abnormal protein levels due to unbalanced diet or
hormonal changes can disturb hair growth by weakening the structure and
function of hair root. These problems can lead to hair loss and thinning
hair problems.
Every follicle has a sebaceous gland, which are responsible in maintaining
your hairs condition. And Sebum is the Greasy material produced by the
sebaceous glands which naturally lubricates the hair.
Hair type and hair color.
Hair Type and Color
The structure of your hair follicle will determine the type of your hair. If
that tube is small, then you will have a fine hair and if its large then you
will have thick hair. A person's hair will be straight if this tube is round
and will be curly if the tube is flattened.
Hair color comes from melanin, the substance that gives hair and skin its
pigment. There are two types of melanin one type is responsible for darke
shades (eumelanin) and the other is responsible for light shades like blonde
and red (phaeomelanin). The mixture and amount of these pigments determine
the natural color of hair. So in a way it is also true to say that the
lighter someone's hair, the less melanin there is. A person with black hair
has much more melanin than someone with blond or red hair.
The Origins of Hair
Hair is far more complex than it appears on the surface. We all know that it
not only plays a vital role in the appearance of both men and women, but it
also helps to transmit sensory information as well as create gender
identification.
By week 22, a developing fetus has all of its hair follicles formed. At this
stage of life there are about 5 million hair follicles on the body. There
are a total of one million on the head, with one hundred thousand of those
follicles residing on the scalp. This is the largest number of hair
follicles a human will ever have, since we do not generate new hair
follicles anytime during the course of our lives. Most people will notice
that the density of scalp hair is reduced as they grow from childhood to
adulthood. The reason: Our scalps expand as we grow.
Hair Follicles
Hair has two distinct structures - first, the follicle itself, which resides
in the skin, and second, the shaft, which is visible above the scalp.
The hair follicle is a tunnel-like segment of the epidermis that extends
down into the dermis. The structure contains several layers that all have
separate functions. At the base of the follicle is the papilla, which
contains capillaries, or tiny blood vessels that nourish the cells. The
living part of the hair is the very bottom part surrounding the papilla,
called the bulb. The cells of the bulb divide every 23 to 72 hours,
remarkably faster than any other cell in the body.
Two sheaths, an inner and outer sheath, surround the follicle. These
structures protect and form the growing hair shaft. The inner sheath follows
the hair shaft and ends below the opening of a sebaceous (oil) gland, and
sometimes an apocrine (scent) gland. The outer sheath continues all the way
up to the gland. A muscle called an erector pili muscle attaches below the
gland to a fibrous layer around the outer sheath. When this muscle
contracts, it causes the hair to stand up which also causes the sebaceous
gland to secrete oil.
The sebaceous gland is vital because it produces sebum, which conditions the
hair and skin. After puberty our body produces more sebum but as we age we
begin to make less sebum. Women have far less sebum production than men do
as they age.
Hair Shafts
The hair shaft is made of a hard protein called keratin and is made in three
layers. This protein is actually dead, so the hair that you see is not a
living structure. The inner layer is the medulla. The second layer is the
cortex and the outer layer is the cuticle. The cortex makes up the majority
of the hair shaft. The cuticle is a tightly formed structure made of
shingle-like overlapping scales. It is both the cortex and the medulla that
holds the hair's pigment, giving it its color.
Hair Growth Cycle
Hair on the scalp grows about 0.3 to 0.4 mm/day or about 6 inches per year.
Unlike other mammals, human hair growth and shedding is random and not
seasonal or cyclical. At any given time, a random number of hairs will be in
one of three stages of growth and shedding: anagen, catagen, and telogen.
Anagen
Anagen is the active phase of the hair. The
cells in the root of the hair are dividing rapidly. A new hair is formed and
pushes the club hair (a hair that has stopped growing or is no longer in the
anagen phase) up the follicle and eventually out.
During this phase the hair grows about 1 cm every 28 days. Scalp hair stays
in this active phase of growth for two to six years.
Some people have difficulty growing their hair beyond a certain length
because they have a short active phase of growth. On the other hand, people
with very long hair have a long active phase of growth. The hair on the
arms, legs, eyelashes, and eyebrows have a very short active growth phase of
about 30 to 45 days, explaining why they are so much shorter than scalp
hair.
Catagen
The catagen phase is a transitional stage and about 3% of all hairs are in
this phase at any time. This phase lasts for about two to three weeks.
Growth stops and the outer root sheath shrinks and attaches to the root of
the hair. This is the formation of what is known as a club hair.
Telogen
Telogen is the resting phase and usually
accounts for 6% to 8% of all hairs. This phase lasts for about 100 days for
hairs on the scalp and longer for hairs on the eyebrow, eyelash, arm, and
leg. During this phase, the hair follicle is completely at rest and the club
hair is completely formed. Pulling out a hair in this phase will reveal a
solid, hard, dry, white material at the root. About 25 to 100 telogen hairs
are shed normally each day.
Hair and Diet
A wholesome diet, rich in silica, calcium and iron, will help reduce or
prevent hair loss. Green, leafy vegetables, especially sea vegetables, are
good mineral sources. Raw oats provide silica. Dried fruits and cherry juice
are rich sources of iron.
For women, thinning hair or hair loss can be a sign of a problem in the
gastrointestinal tract. It could be a sign of insufficient stomach acids; It
could also mean a deficiency of protein, zinc and other nutrients. Taking
two acidophilus tablets after or between meals (four to six tablets per day)
for two months will help.
For men, balding process can be slowed down by taking a low-fat diet. Some
scientists postulate that the male pattern baldness is tied to increased
testosterone levels during puberty. A high-fat, meat-based diet raises
testosterone levels, and that may adversely affect hair follicles. For
example, in Japan, male pattern baldness was very rare prior to World War II
when the diet was lean and healthy. The Japanese now consume a more fatty,
Westernized diet. Baldness is now increasing substantially among Japanese
men. Eating low-fat foods may not stop hair loss; but it might help slow
down the hair loss.
Anemia is one of the most frequent causes of hair loss. Eat plenty of
iron-rich foods, like liver (Avoid if you are pregnant) and other organ
meat, whole grain cereals, dark green leafy vegetables, eggs, dates, and
raisins.
The hair is comprised mostly of protein. To encourage hair growth, adhere to
a diet rich in protein. A recommended diet for this purpose includes calves
liver, brewer's yeast, wheat germ, and two tablespoons of granulated
lecithin. Along with protein, these foods are also high in B vitamins, an
important nutrient for hair.
Cause of Hair Loss
Types of Hair
Loss
The word "alopecia" is the medical term for hair loss. Alopecia does not
refer to one specific hair loss disease -- any form of hair loss is an
alopecia. The word alopecia is Latin, but can be traced to the Greek "alopekia,"
which itself comes from alopek, meaning "fox." Literally translated, the
word alopecia (alopekia) is the term for mange in foxes.
Hair loss can be caused by any number of conditions, reflected in a specific
diagnosis. Some diagnoses have alopecia in their title, such as alopecia
areata or scarring alopecia, but many do not, such as telogen effluvium.
Alopecia can be caused by many factors from genetics to the environment.
While androgenetic alopecia (male or female pattern baldness, AGA for short)
is by far the most common form of hair loss, dermatologists also see many
people with other forms of alopecia. Several hundred diseases have hair loss
as a primary symptom.
Probably the most common non-AGA alopecias a dermatologist will see are
telogen effluvium, alopecia areata, ringworm, scarring alopecia, and hair
loss due to cosmetic overprocessing. Other, more rare forms of hair loss may
be difficult to diagnose, and some patients may wait months, even years for
a correct diagnosis and undergo consultation with numerous dermatologists
until they find one with knowledge of their condition. Plus, with rare
diseases, there is little motivation for research to be conducted and for
treatments to be developed. Often, even when a correct diagnosis is made, a
dermatologist can offer no known treatment for the condition.
Research into hair biology and hair diseases is a very small field, and even
research on androgenetic alopecia is quite limited. Perhaps 20 years ago
there were fewer than 100 people worldwide who studied hair research in a
major way. In recent years, there may be five times as many. This is still a
small number compared to, say, diabetes research, but the expanding numbers
of researchers investigating hair biology is positive, and eventually should
lead to a better understanding and more help for those with rare alopecias.
Men’s Hair Loss
Androgenic alopecia or male pattern baldness (MPB) is responsible for the
vast majority of hair loss in men. While there are many possible reasons
people lose hair including serious disease, reaction to certain medications
and in rare cases extremely stressful events, most hair loss is men can be
blamed on heredity.
What male pattern baldness sufferers are actually inheriting are hair
follicles with a genetic sensitivity to Dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Hair
follicles that are sensitive to DHT begin to miniaturize, shortening the
lifespan of each hair follicle affected. Eventually, these affected
follicles stop producing cosmetically acceptable hair.
Male pattern baldness is generally characterized with the onset of a
receding hairline and thinning crown. Hair in these areas including the
temples and mid-anterior scalp appear to be the most sensitive to DHT. This
pattern eventually progresses into more apparent baldness throughout the
entire top of the scalp, leaving only a rim or "horseshoe" pattern of hair
remaining in the more advanced stages of MPB. For some men even this
remaining rim of hair can be affected by DHT.
Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is a derivative or by-product of testosterone.
Testosterone converts to DHT with the aid of the enzyme Type II
5-alpha-reductace, which is held in the hair follicle's oil glands. While
the entire genetic process of male pattern baldness is not completely
understood scientists do know that DHT shrinks hair follicles, and that when
DHT is suppressed, hair follicles continue to thrive. Hair follicles that
are sensitive to DHT must be exposed to the hormone for a prolonged period
of time in order for the effected follicle to complete the miniaturization
process. Today, with proper intervention this process can be slowed or even
stopped if caught early enough.
Women’s Hair Loss
Dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a derivative of the male hormone testosterone, is
the enemy of hair follicles on your head. Simply put, under certain
conditions DHT wants those follicles dead. This simple action is at the root
of many kinds of hair loss, so we'll address it first.
Androgenetic alopecia, commonly called male or female pattern baldness, was
only partially understood until the last few decades. For many years,
scientists thought that androgenetic alopecia was caused by the predominance
of the male sex hormone, testosterone, which women also have in trace
amounts under normal conditions. While testosterone is at the core of the
balding process, DHT is thought to be the main culprit.
Testosterone converts to DHT with the aid of the enzyme Type II 5-alpha
reductase, which is held in a hair follicle's oil glands. Scientists now
believe that it's not the amount of circulating testosterone that's the
problem but the level of DHT binding to receptors in scalp follicles. DHT
shrinks hair follicles, making it impossible for healthy hair to survive.
The hormonal process of testosterone converting to DHT, which then harms
hair follicles, happens in both men and women. Under normal conditions,
women have a minute fraction of the level of testosterone that men have, but
even a lower level can cause DHT- triggered hair loss in women. And
certainly when those levels rise, DHT is even more of a problem. Those
levels can rise and still be within what doctors consider "normal" on a
blood test, even though they are high enough to cause a problem. The levels
may not rise at all and still be a problem if you have the kind of body
chemistry that is overly sensitive to even its regular levels of chemicals,
including hormones.
Since hormones operate in the healthiest manner when they are in a delicate
balance, the androgens, as male hormones are called, do not need to be
raised to trigger a problem. Their counterpart female hormones, when
lowered, give an edge to these androgens, such as DHT. Such an imbalance can
also cause problems, including hair loss.
Hormones are cyclical. Testosterone levels in some men drop by 10 percent
each decade after thirty. Women's hormone levels decline as menopause
approaches and drop sharply during menopause and beyond. The cyclic nature
of both our hair and hormones is one reason hair loss can increase in the
short term even when you are experiencing a long-term slowdown of hair loss
(and a long-term increase in hair growth) while on a treatment that controls
hair loss.
The following are the most common causes of women’s hair loss:
Andogenetic Alopecia
The majority of women with androgenic alopecia have diffuse thinning on all
areas of the scalp. Men on the other hand, rarely have diffuse thinning but
instead have more distinct patterns of baldness. Some women may have a
combination of two pattern types. Androgenic alopecia in women is due to the
action of androgens, male hormones that are typically present in only small
amounts. Androgenic alopecia can be caused by a variety of factors tied to
the actions of hormones, including, ovarian cysts, the taking of high
androgen index birth control pills, pregnancy, and menopause. Just like in
men the hormone DHT appears to be at least partially to blame for the
miniaturization of hair follicles in women suffering with female pattern
baldness. Heredity plays a major factor in the disease.
Telogen Effluvium
When your body goes through something traumatic like child birth,
malnutrition, a severe infection, major surgery, or extreme stress, many of
the 90 percent or so of the hair in the anagen (growing) phase or catagen
(resting) phase can shift all at once into the shedding (telogen) phase.
About 6 weeks to three month after the stressful event is usually when the
phenomenon called telogen effluvium can begin. It is possible to lose
handful of hair at time when in full-blown telogen effluvium. For most who
suffer with TE complete remission is probable as long as severely stressful
events can be avoided. For some women however, telogen effluvium is a
mysterious chronic disorder and can persist for months or even years without
any true understanding of any triggering factors or stressors.
Anagen Effluvium
Anagen effluvium occurs after any insult to the hair follicle that impairs
its mitotic or metabolic activity. This hair loss is commonly associated
with chemotherapy. Since chemotherapy targets your body’s rapidly dividing
cancer cells, your body’s other rapidly dividing cells such as hair
follicles in the growing (anagen) phase, are also greatly affected. Soon
after chemotherapy begins approximately 90 percent or more of the hairs can
fall out while still in the anagen phase.
The characteristic finding in anagen effluvium is the tapered fracture of
the hair shafts. The hair shaft narrows as a result of damage to the matrix.
Eventually, the shaft fractures at the site of narrowing and causes the loss
of hair.
Traction alopecia
This condition is caused by localized trauma to the hair follicles from
tight hairstyles that pull at hair over time. If the condition is detected
early enough, the hair will regrow. Braiding, cornrows, tight ponytails, and
extensions are the most common styling causes.
Children’s Hair Loss
Hair loss in children is a more prevalent occurrence than most people
imagine. Currently children's hair loss is responsible for approximately 3%
of all pediatric office visits in this country.
The American Hair loss Association recognizes that children's hair loss can
be an extremely devastating issue, however, you can take solace in knowing
that most pediatric alopecia patients can be successfully treated with the
proper diagnosis. The ALHA recommends seeking the advice of your
pediatrician as soon as you notice the onset of even the smallest amount of
hair loss.
The vast majority of children suffering with hair loss do so because of the
following conditions. All of these conditions should be easily diagnosed by
your pediatrician or by a pediatric dermatologist.
1. Tinea capitis (ringworm of the scalp) is a disease caused by a
superficial fungal infection of the skin of the scalp, eyebrows, and
eyelashes, with a propensity for attacking hair shafts and follicles. The
disease is considered to be a form of superficial mycosis or dermatophytosis.
Several other names are used when referring to this infection, including
ringworm of the scalp and tinea tonsurans. In the US and other regions of
the world, the incidence of tinea capitis is increasing.
The tinea capitis infection is the most common cause of hair loss in
children. Children with tinea capitis usually have patchy hair loss with
some broken-off hairs visible just above the surface of the scalp. The
patches of hair loss are usually round or oval, but sometimes irregular.
Sometimes the hairs are broken right at the surface, and look like little
black dots on the scalp. Sometimes gray flakes or scales are seen.
2. Alopecia Areata is the sudden appearance of round or oval patches of hair
loss. These patches are completely slick bald or smooth without any signs of
inflammation, scaling, or broken hairs. They appear literally overnight, or
sometimes over a few days.
Alopecia areata is thought to be caused by the body's immune system
attacking the hair follicles. At any given moment about 1 per 1,000 children
has alopecia areata. About 25% of these children will also have pitting or
ridging of the nails.
With appropriate treatment, a large percentage of patients will have all of
their hair back within one year -- many will have it sooner. Children with
alopecia areata should be under the care of a dermatologist. About 5% of
children with alopecia areata will go on to develop alopecia totalis -- the
loss of all the hair on the scalp. Some of these will develop alopecia
universalis -- the complete loss of body hair.
3. Trauma to the hair shaft is another common cause of hair loss in
children. Often the trauma is caused by traction (consistently worn tight
braids, pony-tails, etc.) or by friction rubbing against a bed or wheelchair
for example). It can also be caused by chemicals burns
Another misunderstood cause of trauma hair loss is called trichotillomania
the habit of twirling or plucking the hair.
Trichotillomania is thought to be an obsessive-compulsive disorder that can
be extremely difficult to treat since the patient usually feels compelled to
pluck their hair. The hair loss is patchy, and characterized by broken hairs
of varying length. Within the patches, hair loss is not complete. (Some
children with trichotillomania also have trichophagy -- the habit of eating
the hair they pluck. They develop abdominal masses consisting of balls of
undigested hair.) As long as the hair trauma was not severe or chronic
enough to cause scarring, the hair will re-grow when the trauma is stopped.
4. Telogen effluvium, Another common cause of hair loss in children. To
understand telogen effluvium, one must understand a hair's normal life
cycle. An individual hair follicle has a long growth phase, producing
steadily growing hair for 2 to 6 years (on average 3 years). This is
followed by a brief transitional phase (about 3 weeks) when the hair
follicle degenerates. This in turn is followed by a resting phase (about 3
months) when the hair follicle lies dormant. This last phase is called the
telogen phase. Following the telogen phase, the growth phase begins again --
new hairs grow and push out the old hair shafts. The whole cycle repeats.
For most people, 80% to 90% of the follicles are in the growth phase, 5% are
in the brief transition phase, and 10% to 15% are in the telogen phase. Each
day about 50-150 hairs are shed and replaced by new hairs. In telogen
effluvium, something happens to interrupt this normal life cycle and to
throw many or all of the hairs into the telogen phase. Between 6 and 16
weeks later, partial or complete baldness appears. Many different events can
cause telogen effluvium, including, extremely high fevers, surgery under
general anesthesia, excess vitamin A, severe prolonged emotional stress such
as a death of a loved one, severe injuries and the use of certain
prescription medication such as accutane for acne.
Traditional Chinese Medical Theory
The Cognition of the Mysterious Oriental Medical Science toward Hair Loss
In terms of the Chinese medical science, the dissertation regarding haircan
be found in The YellowEmperor’s Internal Classic (PlainQuestions) at very
early time. The book describes the relations between hair and growth in male
and female respectively, revealing the ties between the appearance, growth,
decline and fall of hair and physical condition of whole body, especially
the physiological ties with main and collateral channels in human body. The
Yellow Emperor’s Internal Classic chapter of Generating of Five Viscera
gives the related information on the physiological pathology of hair,
emphasizing the relations between hair and internal organs and blood. For
instance, “lung governs skin and hair”; “liver stores blood, and hair is the
remains of blood”; “kidney is connected with the bone, its luxuriance is the
hair. Therefore, … bone will ache and hair will fall off if the sweet food
is overeaten.”
There were relatively systematic descriptions on hair loss in the ancient
documents of traditional Chinese medicine. Chao Yuanfang, a noted doctor in
the Sui Dynasty, gave a further explanation on the physiology of hair and
the cause, mechanism and name of the hair loss disease in General Treatise
on the Cause and Symptoms of Diseases. For example “When wind evil existed
on head, if there was partial insufficiency, the hair lost, muscle withered
as big as a coin or a finger. Hair would neither grow nor itch. So it is
called ‘a head licked by ghost’”.
Before the Jin Dynasty, the hair loss is said to have the relations with the
feebleness of kidney, vigor, qi and blood. In the Jin and Yuan dynasties,
Zhang Zihe, one of the four eminent doctors at that time, pointed out “if
hairs become white and fall off at young age or there is a lot of scurf, it
means the blood is too hot.” The theory on hot blood leading to sparseness
of hair, which was first put forward, enriched the theory of hair loss on
the diagnosis and treatment based on an overall analysis of the illness and
the patient’s condition, which has great significance to the cognition and
recovery of hair loss.
The Glittery Slabstone — Chinese Traditional Medical Science
After the rational cooperation of therapeutic theory, the overall concept of
Chinese traditional medical science, the theory on the diagnosis and
treatment based on an overall analysis of the illness and the patient’s
condition, and the use of natural Chinese herbal plants display the
wonderful effect in the treatment of many chronic diseases, and play an
important role in protecting the health of people together with modern
biomedicine, especially in hair shedding proof.
On the basis of cognition of traditional medical science to hair loss,
according to the theory on the diagnosis and treatment based on an overall
analysis of the illness and the patient’s condition, Zhangguang 101,
employing the modern science & technology and modern technique, selects the
pure natural Chinese herbal plants that are in favor of the growth of hair
as materials, and has developed the products with the functions of hair
nourishing, hair shedding proof, hair regrowth, hair cleaning and hair care.
In the meantime, Zhangguang 101 adopts the overall concept of traditional
medicine, forming a complete set of plan to cure hair loss.
Medical Journals
Seven years of clinical trials were capped with a year-long, double-blind,
placebo-based study which dramatic findings - published in
the highly-respected peer-reviewed medical journals - documented a 189%
average increase in mature hair count among subjects using this treatment!
And the results are long-term. 101 Hair Tonic provides remedies to
androgenetic alopecia - classic "male pattern baldness" that, surprisingly,
is the most common cause of hair thinning among women too!
Several articles published in the highly-respected peer-reviewed medical
journals conclude that 101 Hair Tonic is more effective for hair loss
treatment than other options.
Double Blind Study Results: the mature hair count (non-vellus, melanized,
terminal hair) after 101D treatment increased an average of 189%, versus a
19% increase for placebo-treated subjects.
The following is a partial listing of scientific reports on 101 Hair Tonic
Successful Treatment with 101 Hair Tonic
Europa:
A. G. H. Kessels, R. L. L. M. Cardynaals R. L. L. Borger, M. J. T. H. Go, J.
C. C. A. Lambers, J. A. Knottnerus and P. G. Knipschild, University of
Limburg, Maastricht, The Netherlands Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, Vol.
44, No. 4/5, pp 439-447,1991
Alopecia areata totalis
Japan:
Takashi Anzai
Report. Tokyo: Japan Red Cross Medical Center; 1988 (This study was cited in
the study by Kessels' article)
Advanced stage of alopecia areata
Tokio:
medizinisches Zentrum des japanischen Roten Kreuzes; 1988 (diese Studie
wurde in dem Artikel über Kessels Studie zitiert)
Female pattern baldness
China:
B. C. Qian, J. Chen and H. J. Xu
Pharmacological Action of 101 Hair Regeneration Extract On Skin and Hair In
Experimental Animals. Journal of Traditional and Modern Medicine, Vol. 14,
No. 4, pp 227-229, 1994.
Male pattern baldness
Conclusions of the Main Findings from the above Studies:
Alopecia-patients who have not achieved any results from other hair growth
treatments, are remedied by using 101 Hair Tonic.
More than 93% of the patients showed an obvious improvement of the structure
of their hair by using 101 Hair Tonic once a day after a duration of 2
months. Almost 70% of the patients achieved new hair growth after the same
treatment duration.
91% of the patients who underwent a 4-months-treatment showed a tremendous
increase of new hair.
101 Hair Tonic stops excessive hair loss.
101 Hair Tonic works for those patients suffering from receding hairlines
and frontal baldness.
101 Hair Tonic promotes new hair growth too for those men, who suffered from
baldness more than 10 years ago.
95% of female who use 101 Hair Tonic attain new hair growth or improvement
of hair quality which shows a higher percentage than male.