Unit 2.5 – Hair growth cycle Copy
Hair Growth Cycle
The third aspect of hair that has a bearing on hair reduction treatments is the hair growth cycle. An understanding of the process of hair growth will help you to identify patterns of regrowth so you can recommend appointment schedules to your clients. The endocrine system influences the hair growth cycle which sometimes results in the growth of unwanted hair as well as baldness. The cycle is also influenced by general health, stage of development and age. Hair can also be affected by disease of the hair follicle.
Long hairs of the scalp last several years and short hairs of the body last up to nine months. Hair is continually being shed from the body. Average hair loss in an adult is approximately between 70 to 100 hairs per day. The number of hairs lost is equal to the number of hairs replaced except in old age.
Between starting to grow and falling out each hair passes through three, asynchronous stages
- Anagen – growth
- Catagen – regression
- Telogen – resting
- Some researchers recognise a fourth stage and call this exogen – shedding
Hairs have a predetermined cycle – hairs grow to different lengths in different parts of the body, such as eyelashes, arm and leg hairs and hair on the head. Prolonged growth cycles such as waist length hair, can only be attained by some people. The average growth rate is 1/2 centimetre per month. Waist length hair is many years old and has a spaced out replacement cycle. The different phases of the cycle take approximately the following times:
