Why Some People Have Longer Hair than Others

Hair normally grows at roughly half an inch each month. How quickly does hair grow daily? Most human hair grows at about 0.35 to 0.45 millimeters each day.

Hair follicles and evolution

There are about 5 million hair follicles on your body. Each hair follicle produces a hair shaft. It’s thought that our ancestors were covered in hair to keep them warm but as we’ve evolved we’ve become less hairy. Scientists believe that we started to grow less hair during evolution because our brains got bigger. As this happened we needed to control our body temperature and required less hair.

How hair grows

Hair grows from tiny skin pockets called follicles, from a root into a hair shaft. The root contains a lot of cell proteins which are fed from blood vessels. As more cells are created, hair starts to grow and passes an oil gland. Once the hair comes out through the skin it is already dead, so you can’t feel it when it’s cut.

The make-up of hair

Hair is made from a protein called keratin. A hair shaft has three layers, an inner layer called medulla, a second middle layer called the cortex and an outer layer known as the cuticle. The cortex and medulla hold the hair pigment which is its color.

Hair length

Hair only grows to a certain length because eventually the follicle can’t hold it any longer as it becomes too heavy. This is when the hair is shed. Once it is shed the follicle then grows another hair. Your DNA controls how long your hair will grow and stops hair growing beyond a certain length.

Follicle types

People with round follicles have longer hair because these follicles hold on to the hair better. Flat follicles drop the hairs much more easily which is why people with flat follicles have shorter hair. How quickly does hair grow in people with round follicles? Generally hair won’t grow any quicker, even if you have round follicles, it just has less chance of easily falling out.

 

Keep your hair growing longer

Hair growth can be accelerated by following these simple tips. Eating a diet that contains the correct proteins and vitamins will speed up your hair growth, as well as eating supplements if you can’t eat all of the correct foods regularly. It’s important to keep your scalp healthy by using a gentle shampoo and conditioner that moisturizes your hair and scalp. Trim your hair regularly to help it grow longer. By trimming it you can stop the hair from breaking which allows it more time to grow.

Some reasons why your hair doesn’t grow as well

If you use a silicone shampoo this can dry out your hair and damage it. If you swim in chlorine a lot this will dry out your hair and it may not grow as quickly. Dying your hair or getting a perm also causes a lot of damage that can stop it from growing to its full potential.
UV light can also damage your hair, if you’re out in the sun a lot wear a good hat or try to stay in more shady places. You’ll notice that your hair will become very dry if you’re in the sun a lot.