Almost every day in the salon I'm faced with the task of trying to
overcome many of the common myths about mens' hair. Guys think they can
train their hair to go back when it grows forward or they won't let me
trim their eyebrows because they think it will make them grow back
faster. I'm here to set the record straight on the top ten common men's
hair myths and facts.
Myth: I can train my hair to do something.
Fact: Your hair's growth patterns are determined by the hair follicle.
No amount of blowdrying, combing, or styling can "train" your hair to
grow differently. Certainly, you can use a dryer and/or styling
products to
temporarily change your growth pattern, but permanent
change is not possible. If your hair has a natural cowlick or part,
there's not much you can do about it.
Myth: Shaving will make my beard grow thicker or faster.
Fact: Hair is basically protein and keratin and has no blood supply or
nervous system. Your body does not know that your beard is shaved (or
two inches long for that matter) because it has no way of communicating
this information to your body. People often believe that shaving causes
the beard to grow faster or thicker, but facial hair typically grows
thicker and faster as you age so it's only a coincidence.
Myth: Trimming my eyebrows will make them grow faster.
Fact: See the answer to the myth above. Same rules apply.
Myth: Plucking gray hairs will make more grow back in in their place.
Fact: Hair has color because cells in our hair follicles called
melanocytes
create pigment (color) in the hair. When these cells stop producing
the pigment, the hair loses its color. Plucking out one gray hair will
not affect the melanocytes in the other hair follicles, so other hairs
will not turn gray as a result. Gray hair can occur as a result of age
or a medical condition.
Here are a few more interesting facts: Your "gray" hair is actually
transparent, but appears gray due to the dead cells that make up the
strand. Also, smokers are four times more likely to have gray hair and
premature hair loss -- another good reason to quit.
Myth: Hair can turn gray over night.
Fact: If you've read the answer to the above myth, you should already
be able to figure out the answer to this one. Only chemically bleaching
the hair can make an entire strand lose its color overnight -- and not
even that can do it completely.
Myth: Growing my hair longer will hide my baldness.
Fact: Actually, in almost every circumstance, growing hair longer makes
the thinning and baldness appear much more noticeable. When the sides
and back are worn fuller, it makes the top appear thinner. The rule of
thumb: If you can see scalp on the top, cut the sides short enough so
you can see an equal amount of scalp. This will give an overall uniform
appearance and take the emphasis off of the thinning areas. Guys with
comb-overs are only fooling themselves.
Myth: Shampoo will make my hair grow faster.
Fact: Any shampoo which claims to make hair grow faster is making a
false claim. Hair will grow at a fairly consistent rate -- about half
an inch per month -- no matter what you do. There are certainly
shampoos that will make the hair appear thicker by swelling the follicle
and shampoos that will deeply condition the hair and help prevent
breakage, but none that can actually increase the growth rate. Some say
that doing things like taking vitamins and massaging the scalp can help
your hair grow faster, but I've found no scientific proof to support
such claims.
Myth: Baldness comes from my mother's side of the family.
Fact: Complete myth. Hair loss can be inherited from either side of
the family and it may (or may not) skip many generations. It is
entirely genetic and can come from either side of the family.
Myth: Wearing tight hats causes hair loss.
Fact: In order for that to happen, the hat would have to be so tight as
to cut off circulation to the follicles. If that were the case, the
hat would likely be much too tight for you to wear comfortably, so it's
not likely. Wearing a tight hat can, however, cause hair breakage and
damage.
Myth: Dandruff is caused by dry scalp.
Fact: Dandruff
is actually thought to be caused by a fungus called malassezia, which
can sometimes grow out of control and begin feeding on the oil on your
scalp. This can cause an increased number of dead cells which, when
combined with dirt and oil from your scalp, form flaky white scales.
Dry scalp has nothing to do with it.
Now that you know the facts behind the common men's hair myths, please trim those eyebrows!
By Dave Alexander
