All about your hair: the basics – pt.2

There is a lot of ground to cover when trying to understand what hair is, what it is made of, how it grows and what causes female hair loss conditions. We have already looked at a number of key facts, but there is still some way to go.

The following are a few more facts and snippets of information about human hair.

• One of the main functions of hair is to regulate the temperature of the body, helping with heat insulation and cooling

• Hair also protects the skin from the dangers of exposure to UV radiation from the sun

• Hair also has a sensory function, helping the skin to sense touch by other objects and movements of air
• The function of eyelash and eyebrow hair is to protect the eyes from dust, dirt, sweat and any other forms of moisture (i.e. rain)

• The most common causes of female hair loss are conditions such as alopecia areata, telogen effluvium and androgenic alopecia (pattern baldness). Chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment for cancer can also cause hair loss

• Other hair loss conditions include trichotillomania (the compulsive pulling out of one’s own hair) and traction alopecia (where excessive tension on the scalp causes hair to fall out)