The Science Behind Hair Growth: Unlocking the Secret to Long and Luscious Locks

By Maria Eliza Pineda

Hair is an important part of self-confidence, grooming, fashion, and presentation. It has always been a form of self-expression and culture even dating back to ancient times. In modern day, this is still true and it has become a part of showing someone’s personality, style and making an impression.

People can spend thousands of dollars just to keep their hair looking its best. It’s always the standard to have thick, voluminous, and shiny hair. There is more material to play around with and it’s an indication that your hair is healthy and you take time to care for it.

Hair loss or thinning hair can be frustrating especially if you love incorporating your hair into your style. But fear not! Hair growth issues are common and almost everyone will deal with it in their lives. 

To unlock the secret to maintaining and getting back healthy hair growth, it’s important to know the different factors that go into it. We are here to tell you everything you need to know to help you get luscious hair growth.

Hair Growth Cycle

Hair goes through a regular growth cycle. It grows, lingers for a while, and naturally falls out as the growth cycle begins again. So don’t get too bothered if you see hair fall, it’s all a part of the hair circle of life. 

To go into it a bit more, here are the different stages of the hair growth cycle:

Anagen

Anagen is the very first stage and it is also the growth stage. This is the stage that lasts the longest. Hair can keep growing for up to 6 years. However, the time varies from person to person. For some, the hair growth period may be shorter and for the luckier ones, the hair growth phase may even last longer than 6 years.

In this phase, the hair follicles will continue to push out material that will make up your strands until the growth phase comes to an end.

Catagen

Catagen is the transition phase. This is when the hair follicles shrink and detach from the actual hairs. The strands will stop growing but won’t fall out just yet. This phase lasts the shortest amount of time: only 10 days. It’s called the transition phase because it is getting the hair ready for the next phase.

Telogen

Telogen is the resting phase of the hair. This is when the hair is fully detached from the follicle and starts to die out. Some scientists have divided the stage into two phases: telogen (resting phase) and exogen (hair fall phase). However, telogen is still widely known as the hair fall phase. Hair strands in the telogen phase will typically be in it for three months. For some, this period may last longer and for some, it can last for a shorter amount of time.

Because of this, you can lose around 50 to 100 hairs a day. It is estimated that around 10 to 15% of your hair is in the telogen stage.

What causes hair fall?

As established, a certain amount of hair fall is normal. However, if you notice that you are losing a lot more hair than 50 to 100 strands a day, then you might be experiencing excessive hair fall.

Here are some causes as to why your hair may be falling out more than usual:

Damage

People put their hair through a lot of things, and that includes a lot of damaging practices. This includes hair coloring, bleaching, chemically straightening or curling, relaxing, etc. This also includes daily styling practices such as heat styling.

If you do these damaging practices regularly and you notice excessive hair fall, it may be time that you give your hair a break. Forego the chemical processing for a while and try out some heatless hairstyles.

Medical issues

Hair loss could be caused by underlying medical issues or stressful events on the body, such as childbirth, or a major illness. If you are suffering from any medical issues or have recently been through a stressful event, then it may be the reason for excessive hair fall.

Nutritional deficiencies

Hair needs a lot of nutrients to grow healthy. It still gets the majority of its nourishment from your diet. When hair is not nourished properly or if it’s lacking certain nutrients and vitamins, it can cause hair loss.

Genetics

Genetics also plays a huge part when it comes to thinning, balding, and hair loss. If you noticed that a lot of your family has thin hair or has thinning hair as they grow older, there may be a chance that you will also share that gene.

Stress

Stress is a notorious cause of hair fall. Stressful events don’t only have to be medical ones, they can also come from stressful situations in your life or poor stress management.

How to have healthy hair growth

The good news is that you can incorporate a few simple and easy practices into your routine and it can help with hair growth immensely. 

Here are some ways you can help create a good environment for your hair to grow:

Maintain a nutritious diet

Although choosing the right hair care products is also very important, your diet still plays the biggest part when it comes to hair health and growth. To ensure that your hair is getting all the nutrients that it needs, maintain a nutritious diet with healthy whole foods, such as vegetables, protein, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. You can also consult with a medical professional to include some supplements of nutrients that you may not be getting enough of in your diet. 

Use the right hair care products

Secondary to your diet, using the right hair care products is essential to keeping your hair healthy. Avoid products with harmful chemicals and always choose products with lots of nourishing ingredients.

Avoid damaging practices

Of course, it is fun and sometimes essential to color or style your hair. However, it can only take so much before the damage starts to show. To avoid this, give your hair breaks in between coloring, styling, or chemical processing so that it has a chance to heal. If possible, avoid doing this too often. However, if unavoidable, make sure to regularly get repairing treatments or use hair masks regularly at home.

Address any medical issues

Any hair fall that comes with medical issues will not be resolved if the underlying issue is not addressed. If you are suffering from any kind of medical issue, make sure to consult a professional about it and keep yourself healthy so that your hair will also be healthy. Use hair growth products

Tons of hair growth products have been developed because of the overwhelming demand for them. If you need a boost, you can try to use a hair growth serum. This is a concentrated treatment that can help stimulate the hair follicles and wake up dormant cells.

Your Hair Growth Journey

Hair growth is where it all starts. Before you can explore other avenues when it comes to hair, making sure that hair growth is all good should be the top priority. While there are many factors that go into hair growth, there can be a few simple and easy steps you can take to improve your hair’s overall health and create a good environment for your hair to grow.