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2 Head of Class
ОглавлениеYOU Test: Mane Squeeze
Grab a group of hairs on your head (aim for about 60—or the amount that would fit through a straw). Starting at the base, gently tug at the hairs, pulling up and out.*
Result: If more than a tenth of the hairs that you clumped together at the beginning come out when you pull, it’s a sign that you may be experiencing some accelerated hair loss.
When it comes to appearances, some of us may be predominantly defined by our faces, some by our bodies, and some by our addiction to tattoo ink (nice skull, Grandma!). Many others, of course, are largely judged by their hair. And for good reason. Your hair—on your scalp, face, or back—is your body’s fashion statement. While you’re born with a natural color, shape, and style of hair, you also have the power to control how good (or bad) it looks, how long (or short) it is, and whether it’s black or blond (or blue). With a few snips or tricks, you can tell the world you’re wacky (Britney’s shave job and Sanjaya’s famous faux-hawk). You can say you’re sexy (pick your favorite celeb). You can let it grow (Rapunzel) or hack it off (Kojak). You can be the inspiration for millions (thank you, Ms. Aniston) or the proud butt of jokes (sorry, Mr. Trump).
Sure, hair is great for running your fingers through and growing make-a-statement goatees, but hair used to be more purposeful than simply serving as bodily ornamentation. Today, the hair on our scalps protects us against the sun, and our eyelashes act as our first defense against bugs, dust, and other irritating objects. But back when clothes were as scarce as skyscrapers, the hair in our nether regions camouflaged our reproductive parts from generation-threatening spears. And by lining our armpits (we docs call them the axillae) and groins, our dry hair actually acts as a lubricant, allowing our arms and legs to move without chafing. Then and now, our body hair serves as a protector against malaria (see more on body hair in Chapter 2). The anopheles mosquito—a low-flying bug that likes the legs—hates hair, in part because hair warns its victim to start swatting. While their bite is painless, our hair signals their presence before they bite (it’s why kids are at greater risk—they have less hair on their legs). That’s most likely the original purpose of hair: It served as an early-warning system of bodily threats. We seem to ignore the armor function of our hair today, removing it every chance we get, except on our heads and eyes.
FACTOID
In the poker game of stench, shampoo trumps smoke. Ever wonder why you can’t shake the cigarette smell from a night at the bar? Your hair acts like a paper towel—it’s absorbent. And it also often has a mild electric charge, particularly in very low humidity, and this can attract charged pollutant particles. This is a time to lather up, as the toxins in smoke are more harmful to your hair than shampoo.
Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow
In one of life’s injustices, many of us have the frustrating experience of losing hair in the places we want to keep it (the scalp) and growing it in the places where we want to lose it (perhaps the back and shoulders for men and the chin and around the belly button for women). Though there are plenty of remedies that can eliminate unwanted hair, such as Nair and other hair dissolvers, waxing, and shaving, the latest hair zapper is laser therapy. Here’s how it works: The brown pigment in the hair soaks up the laser light, acting like a firecracker fuse leading to the follicle 2 millimeters under the skin. The laser’s heat travels down through the hair to zap the follicle so it can never grow hair again. It doesn’t work with blond, red, or silver hair because there’s not enough brown pigment to fry. It takes several treatments to remove lots of hair in one area (it removes about 20 to 40 percent each time). The coolest thing is that the laser works like military weapons, seeking out and frying hairs, even ingrown hairs, diving beneath the surface of the skin (as long as part is above the skin). They can grow, but they can’t hide.
Now, growing a mustache may very well be a rite of passage for teenage boys,* but it can also be one for menopausal women, because of hormonal changes. About 30 percent of women report unwanted hair on the face. The cause? A predominance of male hormone, often caused by polycystic ovarian syndrome or menopause, which accelerates hair growth. This excess hair is generally a harmless condition, but you can treat it a number of ways, including bleaching, plucking, laser therapy, or electrolysis (an electric current damages follicles so hairs don’t grow back). Electrolysis (as long as it’s done by someone who’s trained to do it) can work well for those with unwanted blond or white hair, since lasers aren’t as effective for them. If you’re going to wax any part of your body, ask to have room-temperature wax, not hot wax; the cooler kind will generally do less damage as the wax rips the hair and follicle from your skin. Wait a year after stopping Accutane or steroids before considering waxing. If you don’t, you might be not only hairless but skinless. Another remedy: losing weight. Weight loss (works in women and men to decrease unwanted hair and increase wanted hair) can decrease male hormone levels and slow down the growth of unwanted mustaches.
FACTOID
Some people have difficulty growing their hair beyond a certain length because they have a short active phase of growth. On the other hand, people with very long hair have a long active phase of growth. The hair on the arms, legs, eyelashes, and eyebrows has a very short active growth phase of about 30 to 45 days, which is why it is so much shorter than scalp hair. Transplanted hair doesn’t know it’s in a new location, so eyelash transplants from the scalp need to be trimmed every few weeks to avoid making you look like a tarantula.
In addition to its utilitarian functions, hair reflects a lot about our self-esteem, taste, gender, age, and attitude. It also plays a major role in how we’re attracted to and attractive to other people (more on this in chapter 10). It can even be a source of conflict. While men tend to prefer women with long hair (ever see a painting of Eve with a buzz cut?), women, especially as they age, seem to prefer wearing shorter hair. More important, our hair tells us a ton about our overall health status, as the growth or loss of hair can signal other malfunctions going on inside our bodies. Whatever the case, we all know why in the United States alone we spend $50 billion a year* on hair care: because we care about our hair.
We care about cleaning it. We care about beautifying it. We care about keeping it in some places and losing it in others. Just as skin can shine and glow, so can your locks—as long as you use the right tactics to maintain your mane.
Your Hair: Losing It and Abusing It
In today’s world, we don’t treat our hair all that well. In fact, if your hair knew what was going on, it would be pulling its hair out.
To show you how, let’s talk about the structure of hair—how it grows, how it can end up in your shower drain, and how it can end up looking about as lively and healthy as sun-scorched grass. The average person’s head has up to 150,000 hair follicles (the adult body has 5 million). That number is constant over a lifetime; it’s hereditary, so only thickness, condition, and whether you lose the actual strands that come from those follicles can change. Each one of those strands grows about six inches a year—women between the ages of 16 and 24 pump it out the fastest.
Gone Today, Hair Tomorrow?
If you lose a little grass in the yard, you just plant some new sod and let it grow. Seems like the perfect remedy, right? Well, that’s why many men have turned to hair replacement surgery as a way to deal with their male-pattern baldness. We have to say that we don’t think bald men need to hide their heads under hats or hairpieces. But many men do, and that’s why some have turned to this procedure in which hair is harvested from the back of the head and inserted in the front. These procedures have declined in popularity—not because the surgeries can’t be well done (they can be quite good if performed by a specialist, although nowadays many unqualified docs are getting in on the act). It’s because of genetics. After 20 years or so, the newly transplanted hair can thin as well—leaving very visible scarring. Isn’t a smooth, shiny scalp more attractive than one that looks like a connect-the-dots workbook?
While it may seem that your hair is as far removed from your internal organs as your clothes or jewelry, each strand of hair has its own blood supply. Because of that, hair is greatly influenced by health and diet. Hair is also under the delicate control of hormones, which is why men have beards and hair on their chests and male-pattern baldness on their heads, and women don’t.*
As you can see in Figure 2.1, your hair is made up of distinct structures: the follicle and the shaft. A tunnel-like segment in the epidermis portion of your skin, the follicle resides under the surface of the skin and extends down into the dermis. The base of the follicle contains little blood vessels that nourish the cells. The living part is the bulb at the base, while the shaft—the part of the hair that we see above the skin—is dead.
FACTOID
It’s a myth that wearing a hat causes baldness. As long as the hat is not tight enough to restrict circulation (therefore cutting off circulation to the follicles), a hat will not cause hair loss.
Figure 2.1 Hairy Situation While a hair follicle begins deep below the skin, what we do to the outside of hair can be criminal. Excess heat and other harsh treatments can make hair look frazzled, not dazzled.
That hair shaft is made up of a protein called keratin. The inner layer (the medulla) and the middle layer (the cortex) make up the majority of the shaft. Like the nail’s structure, the hair’s cuticle, which looks like a tile roof under the microscope, serves as the outer, protective layer that covers the medulla and cortex.
Now, to keep your hair shiny, it needs oil. Surrounding your hairs are tiny muscles that give you goose bumps, standing your hairs on end when you’re cold or during a scary movie. These muscles also squeeze the glands that lube up your hair, which produce sebum—your own natural vitamin E–rich hair and skin conditioner.
Safari Secrets:
Lessons from the animal kingdom
Monkeys of certain species have patches of hair on their heads very similar to humans’; they develop during puberty and are found only among the males. In evolutionist language this is called epigamic hair, which means that it is a sign of sexual dominance. The lion’s mane is an example of epigamic hair, because it’s used as a scare technique during sexual fighting.
How Hair Is Lost
When it comes to hairy situations, many of us can live with a bad haircut or a little graying or the occasional day when our hair looks like a haystack. But the most frustrating problem for many people—men especially—is what’s perceived to be the start of the downhill slide to death, or at least the impetus for wanting that Corvette: hair loss.
While we tend to say that baldness comes from the mother’s side, an individual’s genes from both parents influence that person’s predisposition to male-or female-pattern baldness. Of course, hair loss is far more visible in men (80 percent of whom experience some degree of baldness), but nearly 40 percent of women lose substantial amounts of hair after menopause, as well (women tend to thin out all over, rather than develop the signature spots that men do), making it a major appearance issue for both genders.
FACTOID
On average, you lose 50 to 200 hairs a day. Any guess as to when we have the most hair follicles? Bzzzz, try again. It’s when we’re in week 22 as a fetus; that’s the largest number we’ll ever have, since we don’t generate new follicles as we age.
Underwear Under Hair
As you may have noticed, pubic hair is quite different from hair on the head. Short, coarse, and curly, public hair never gets a chance to grow long because it has a short growth period. Within six months, the follicle dies and the hair falls out. Pubic hair—which acts as a buffer to reduce chafing and maybe to hide our genitals—provides a large surface area to disperse the naturally smelly sweat. Many animals use the odor of sweat from the groin and underarms (pheromones—see chapter 10 on sex and attraction) to attract the opposite gender. Today, it more often keeps people on the other side of the elevator.
To learn how you lose hair, you first have to understand how it grows. Hair goes through its own growth cycle that’s unrelated to seasons or hormones or anything else. It’s a random biological process that’s dictated largely by your genetic disposition. The two main phases:
Anagen (active): Cells in the root are dividing quickly and pushing the hair out. It averages two to three years.
Telogen (resting): This phase lasts for about 100 days on the scalp. Consider it hair hibernation—the follicle is completely at rest.
FACTOID
Some people may try to persuade you to have your hair examined for heavy metals such as mercury, but those tests (in which they take a quarter-size clump of your hair, including the follicles) are inconsistent. While there are some reliable results for drugs of abuse, the preferred method of testing should still be peeing in a cup.
Doctors don’t know why certain hair follicles are programmed to have a shorter growth period than others. One suspected factor for age-related male-pattern baldness is a person’s level of androgens—the “male” hormones that are actually produced by both men and women. Take a look at Figure 2.2. For many years, people believed that a predominance of testosterone was the root cause of baldness, but it’s not quite that simple. We do know that we lose hair especially fast if it is exposed to dihydrotestosterone (DHT, which comes from metabolism of testosterone). It’s believed that the exposure of follicles to levels of testosterone that are normal for adult males causes the hair follicles to go into a resting state. This DHT is formed in the testes, prostate, adrenals, and hair follicles themselves through an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase. The enzyme raises the levels of DHT, and that’s why there’s a link between higher levels of this enzyme and areas of baldness. DHT changes healthy follicles to follicles that grow thin dwarf hairs—hairs that resemble peach fuzz. Essentially, DHT shrinks hair follicles, making it impossible for healthy hair to survive. Drug companies have targeted this process by making antibaldness medication that inhibits 5-alpha reductase, the enzyme that makes DHT. (Some of the infrequent side effects of these meds include impotence, decreased libido, and breast enlargement.)
Figure 2.2 Shiny Scalp The reason we go bald isn’t because of our mother’s father. It’s because of DHT (a product of testosterone), which first makes hair turn thin and fuzzy and then makes it fall out from our head to the shower drain. The distinguished graying around the temples (and elsewhere) occurs as we lose melanocytes.
The Future of Hair Loss Treatments
Anybody who’s lost a lot of hair probably knows why the race to find a cure for baldness is a competitive one—there are a lot of willing customers ready to try and buy. Many different therapies are being tested as we speak, including gene therapy (in which genes involved in hair growth would be delivered directly to the follicle) and chemicals that increase hair’s growth cycle. One of the more interesting ones involves cloning—a process in which scientists would clone your hair so you could donate to yourself all the hair you’d ever need or want.
Now, age-related baldness isn’t the only reason why clumps of hair start falling from the head like raindrops from the sky. Other causes, especially for women, include low iron levels and anemia (low blood count), recent anesthesia for surgery (it’s the stress of the surgery and the pressure on one area of the head, not the anesthesia), menopause or being postpartum, autoimmune diseases such as lupus, thyroid disease, and polycystic ovarian disease (PCOS).
FACTOID
People who constantly pull their hair out aren’t overcrazed parents; they’re more likely suffering from a form of obsessive-compulsive disorder. This habit—called trichotillomania—keeps happening because the puller is always searching for the perfect “pull” (so they keep on pulling when it’s not). The treatment: Follow the addiction principles in Chapter 8, or just make it harder to do, by wearing gloves at night or keeping a rubber band handy so you can play with that rather than fiddling with your follicles.
Rapid hair loss is often a strong sign that you ought to have a battery of tests to evaluate your nutrition, health, and hormone levels. And that makes an important point: Hair loss isn’t just an appearance issue; it can be a sign that something wacky is going on elsewhere in your body. Inflammation in the scalp, from an overdose of sun or from seborrheic dermatitis, can speed up hair loss. More often than not, it’s a hormone issue—especially one involving your thyroid gland. In women especially, it’s common to experience a decline in thyroid hormone (that’s called hypothyroidism), where some of your bodily systems slow down. Scalp hair loss or facial hair growth is a sign that you should have your hormone levels checked. We recommend having your thyroid-stimulating hormone checked every other year if you’re losing hair, or, for all others, once at age 20, then at age 35, and every other year after age 50 (TSH is the trigger from the brain that tells your thyroid gland to make thyroid hormone). If your level of thyroid hormone is low or if it’s normal but you are experiencing thyroid-related symptoms, you can be (and usually need to be) treated with a synthetic (sometimes bioidentical) hormone. You’ll need to be rechecked six weeks later to see if the supplemented dose is enough. For a man, a decline in the need to shave signals a decrease in testosterone (for a woman, it’s the same clue if she needs to shave her legs less often).
Hairloom
We all know people have varying degrees of body hair: Some men have chests and backs that double as winter coats, while others have torsos that are slicker than an ice patch. That begs the question of why we even have body hair in the first place. Of course, for early humans, hair kept them warm, protected them from cuts and scrapes, provided camouflage, and even served as a nice handhold for the young. The reason why we lost a lot of body hair over time isn’t because we invented heaters and parkas. More likely, our ancestors started having to hunt in hot, tropical areas—and bare skin adds to the efficiency of our cooling system. The reason why we kept the tuft at the top? Many experts agree that it had to do with a mating ritual that went a little something like this: The male with the most impressive hair—or he who could make it look that way—frightened away his rivals, got his girl, and fathered the next generation. Hence, head hair played a major role in obtaining a partner and successfully producing offspring.
FACTOID
The hair you have in your ears comes to life only as you age. As one of the pleasures of growing older, this hair protects you from insects that find the ear canal interesting. Also, like sheep, you recruit dormant follicles so you can grow more hair to keep yourself warm in the winter.
How Hair Is Destroyed
Our hair occasionally needs lubrication the way other parts of our bodies do.* But with hair, the things many of us do to help it are actually hurting it. Most of us treat shampoo as if it’s toothpaste for our head—we’ve got to use it every day. But that doesn’t have to be the case. Some people find that their hair has just as much body and shine without shampooing every day (and they like the fact that they can take a break from putting additional chemicals on their head). On the other hand, if shampooing is a Zen experience for you, its calming benefits may well do more for you than its hair-stripping effects, so we can’t argue with daily shampoos (you can also use conditioner alone). See below for our specific recommendations for hair washing.
Now, here’s some information that’s going to make your hair stand up. Artificial coloring on your head—whether you’re bleaching it or coloring it—is the equivalent of artificial coloring in food: It may make it look as pretty as can be, but it’s not always the healthiest thing you can do to your head. There is some suspicion that permanent black hair dye can cause leukemia and lymphomas and some chemicals that are no longer used caused bladder cancer. So the purple Mohawk you’re considering? It’s probably fine for your health (temporary hair dyes are safer than permanent dyes), though probably not for your next job interview. Bleaching, on the other hand, will really run up your hair bill as you try to salvage permanent damage.
FACTOID
Big hair is a competitive enterprise from the highlands of New Guinea to the shopping malls of the United States. In the highlands of New Guinea, tribesmen think that the ghosts of ancestors lodge in the hair and that baldness is a sign that the ancestors have abandoned a man. When they court women, tribesmen build large wigs made of hair mixed with clay and then sewn onto a frame of cane, hardened with dipped wax, painted, and adorned with vines, beetles, side ringlets, and fur.
Here’s why: The pigment of your hair comes from the inner two layers. When you bleach your hair, you damage the shingles that create the covering of the hair shaft. The dye, which slips through the gaps in the outer layers, swells to give your hair a different color. But the prior or current damage the bleach caused allows the dye to slowly slip out of the hair, so you end up losing the full body of the hair faster than if you just left it alone.
FACTOID
As tempting as it is to pull nose hairs out as if you’re pulling weeds from your garden, don’t yank. Besides being painful, pulling can lead to infections from traumatized hair follicles in the nose. The area from the bridge of the nose to the corner of the mouth is called the “triangle of death” because infections here drain into the brain and can cause a clot in the cavernous sinus (that’s a bad thing). We recommend using a specialized nose-hair clipper that works like a weed whacker inside your nostril. Or watching the puffs of smoke coming from your nostrils during laser hair removal.
YOU Tips!
Most people tend to think that the only things you can do to protect your hair are to give it a good wash and watch out for clipper-toting frat boys. The reality is that there are many things you can do to make sure you make the most of what hair you have and save the hair you want to keep.
PRACTICE GOOD HAIR HYGIENE. Most of what we do to hair is hairicidal: We blast it with hot air, bleach it, and then dye it. High hair-dryer heat (and that from curling irons) causes the water under the cuticles (the outermost layer of the hair) to form bubbles that stress and break the hair. The tiles that cover the hair dislodge, and your hair handles water like an unroofed house. You’ll get those dreaded split ends and your collie’s hair will outshine yours. It’s best to blot hair dry with a towel and then use low heat if you use a dryer. Your hair is actually most vulnerable when it’s wet, and you should treat your hair almost as you would a silk blouse—don’t iron it or heat it up to extremes. Also, it’s smart to use a brush with smooth or rounded teeth or bristles, which will massage the hair and scalp without damaging them. And you know that we’re going to quote Billy Joel when it comes to bleaching, dying, and adding hot-pink highlights: We like you just the way you are. Still, we also know that changing hair color can be an appearance advantage if it makes you feel better and healthier. Here’s an example of what we call biological budgeting—traditionally, you may have needed the cleanliness of your hair (for mating purposes), but you also run the risk of taking it to the extreme by overcleaning or overcoloring, which can damage your hair in the process.
EXAMINE YOUR SHAMPOO. Not that we’ve got webcams in your bathroom, but we pretty much know your in-the-shower routine: Rinse yourself, shampoo your hair, rinse your hair, add conditioner, wash body, shave legs (or face), rinse, dry off. Sounds great, but it’s not ideal for you in at least one way. There isn’t one “right” answer to the question of how often to wash your hair. Your physical activities, your use of styling products, and your hair type will usually determine how often you wash your hair. If washing every day makes your hair too dry, try every other day or every third day. Or you may have very oily hair that needs washing more than once a day. If you condition when you shampoo, it could be that you need to shampoo daily but need to adjust the level of conditioning. However, if you have dandruff, it is advisable to wash your hair daily. More frequent washing has been shown to reduce the food source (sebaceous lipids) for the organism—Malassezia—that causes dandruff. Less frequent removal of these lipids by shampooing leads to overgrowth of Malassezia and increased dandruff. Conditioners, on the other hand, do seal in moisture, so they can be helpful. Apply conditioner daily and don’t bother washing it out if you don’t want to. Ideally, use an all-natural pH-balanced shampoo that’s gentle; remember, just because it’s natural doesn’t mean it’s always the best (cyanide is natural). We love shampoos from these makers: Aubrey Organics, Quinessence, So Organic, Avalon Organics, and Organic Excellence.
STAY PURE. Drinking water isn’t the only water that should be free of toxins. You should also shower and especially bathe with toxin-free H2O. Instead of squirting yourself with Evian, remove chlorine by adding a charcoal filter to your shower or bath. Chlorine—which isn’t just in swimming pools but also in tap water—dries out the hair (as well as the skin). It’s especially important if you take ten-minute showers or baths rather than a quick rinse. The problem isn’t the straight chlorine but what it turns into—stronger toxins called trichloromethanes.
CHECK YOUR DIET. We’re not recommending you scrub your scalp with salmon (though the thought has crossed our minds), but the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish, distilled fish oils, or DHA supplements from algae are the primary nutritional component that makes hair shinier. Other recommended foods: walnuts, flaxseed, avocados, sardines, eggs, milk (skim), and green tea. There’s also a connection between balding and eating animal fat—particularly red meat—because high-fat diets lead to more DHT production and more damage to hair follicles. Instead, make caffeine your vice, which has been shown over time and through a series of reactions to decrease DHT levels. Get yours via green tea, which also has been shown to help slow baldness by slowing down DHT production. There’s not much in the way of hard science that shows a direct link between these foods and pedestrian-stopping hair, but anyone who has pets knows that the better you feed your pets, the better their coats look: They feel softer, and their sheen is brighter.
CHECK HORMONE LEVELS. If you experience sudden hair loss or lose hair in clumps, it may be a sign of a hormone imbalance or condition. It’s worth seeing a doctor to get a blood test that will measure your thyroid-stimulating and thyroid hormone levels. You’ll have better results trying to treat the cause if it is thyroid disease (and practically any other disease), rather than the symptom.
SLOW BALDING. If you want to treat male-pattern baldness, you can try the medications minoxidil (Rogaine) and finasteride (Propecia). Minoxidil works by increasing the anagen growth phase and enlarging the hair follicle, while finasteride inhibits the conversion of testosterone to DHT (by blocking that enzyme we mentioned earlier), which causes hair loss. Research shows that two-thirds of men who use finasteride slow down hair loss. And the earlier this drug is used after noticing hair loss, the more effective it will be. But this drug has that pesky little side effect of occasionally (rarely, actually) leading to decreased sexual desire and difficulty in achieving an erection. Interestingly, minoxidil was originally used to treat blood pressure, but researchers noted that it had a strange side effect: It grew hair on the backs of hands, cheeks, and fingers, and that’s how it was developed as a hair-loss treatment. When it comes to other products or procedures that claim to grow hair—everything from the HairMax LaserComb to Scalp Med—you should be wary of a wallet transplant. Yours to theirs. No potions or lotions other than minoxidil and finasteride have been shown to predictably increase hair growth or prevent its destruction.
ADD REINFORCEMENTS. These are the vitamins and supplements that have been most favorably linked with good hair health.
Vitamins. The most important vitamins for hair loss are the B group (B6, biotin, and folate for slowing loss and pantothenic acid and niacin for promoting hair growth). You can get B vitamins through diet, as well, by eating such foods as beans, peas, carrots, cauliflower, soybeans, bran, nuts, and eggs. See www.realage.com for our vitamin dosing recommendations.
Supplements. The extract of the berries of the saw palmetto shrub and the oil in avocados may slow hair loss and promote hair growth by preventing follicle-killing DHT from binding to receptor sites at the hair follicles. These supplements are controversial, however, and there are few studies that show their effectiveness. There is also some evidence that the amino acid L-lysine (at 500 to 1,000 mg) can help hair grow thicker (it hasn’t been tested in humans, but the coats of sheep grew thicker after being given L-lysine). And expect a new generation of shampoos containing pepper. Pepper has recently been shown in animals to knock out that evil enzyme that leads to hair loss.
KNOW HOW TO DYE. Surely you’ve read about links between hair dye and lymphoma. After a somewhat checkered history, hair dyeing today is considered safe and effective. Some dye ingredients that were a potential health concern in the past were removed many decades ago and are no longer used in the United States, although some ingredients may still represent a concern in other countries (like lead-containing products, which may represent a neurological risk). It will take several more decades to know if hair dyes currently in use have subtle side effects. Because of extensive lobbying in the 1930s, hair dye manufacturers have to put warnings on the labels only for skin and eye irritation. But in the late 1970s, the FDA proposed a warning linked to products that used two coal tar ingredients—4-methoxy-m-phenylenediamine (4-MMPD) or its sulfate cousin (it never was implemented). Professional colorists can decrease your exposure to potential toxins, but if you’re going to dye your hair yourself (though we think you look just fine), follow this advice:
Don’t leave the dye on your head any longer than necessary. Rinse your scalp thoroughly with water after use.
Wear gloves when applying hair dye (nitrile gloves are the best when dealing with chemicals), and carefully follow the directions.
Never be a home chemist and mix different hair dye products—you never know what you might create!
DEFROST THE FLAKES. The only flakes we tend to enjoy are the ones that cancel school and the ones we put in our cereal bowl. If white ones are falling from our head, we want no part of them. Dandruff results from inflammation of the scalp as well as from a fungus called Malassezia furfur, formerly called Pityrosporum ovale (stellar work by the ad agency that changed that name). The fungus loves the dark, warm jungle you call your hair.
The way to treat it: frequent washing with a medicated shampoo that helps control the scaling. This works by stopping your immune system from overreacting so your scalp doesn’t itch and you don’t scratch off the epidermis. Look for antimicrobial and antifungal shampoos that contain ingredients such as tar, selenium sulfide, zinc pyrithione, ketoconazole, or ciclopirox. Don’t use these if you’re pregnant, nursing, or trying to conceive. Home remedies, herbals, and nontraditional medicines can have side effects, particularly when combined with traditional medicines and even foods. You should check with your doc and pharmacist about these raw medicines, especially if you’re pregnant or nursing. One solution: Green tea applied to your scalp. Green tea contains a polyphenol (called EGCG) that’s been shown to help. Unfortunately, green tea doesn’t work when it’s mixed with other chemicals, so shampoos with EGCG might not offer long-term answers. Just make a strong cup of green tea and apply it directly to your scalp. Cool it first—you do not want to burn the fungus if your scalp is attached. Like so many herbal remedies, however, the studies just haven’t been done showing that tea shampoos make a difference. (If psoriasis is the source of scalp flaking, you’ll want to limit washing so you don’t dry the scalp out further.)
It’s no secret that your hair—be it on your head, chin, or back—goes a long way toward determining how you feel and how you’re perceived by the outside world. So that warrants some further discussion on making the most of your hair and minimizing damage to it. We’ll leave the goatee braids to you and concentrate on helping you make those strands on your scalp shine through.
PERFECT HAIR MAINTENANCE
Step 1: SHAMPOO
Before getting into the shower, gently brush or finger-comb your hair to loosen up tangles and residue. When washing your hair, treat it as if it were fine silk—delicately. Leave hair hanging down and gently massage in shampoo starting at the roots and working down. Never pile shampoo on top of your head.
Step 2: CONDITION
Conditioner creates shine and preserves hair health by giving it smoothness and protecting against damage. For volume, condition only the middle and ends of your hair, where it’s most susceptible to damage. For shine, condition the entire strand. Do it every time you use shampoo and more often if you want.
Step 3: DRY
Don’t rub your hair with a towel or twist it tightly into a turban. Wet hair is delicate and breaks easily. Pat it gently and squeeze it with your towel or use a superabsorbent towel sold at salons. A wide-toothed comb is the best way to detangle and distribute styling products when hair is wet. And keep any dryers at low-heat settings.
SOLVING THE MANE PROBLEMS
Issue: Damage
Many people damage their hair during the maintenance and styling process—often without even knowing it. Here are the major damagers:
Excessive combing. Over time, excessive combing and brushing, especially of wet hair, can cause the delicate cuticle scales to lift and, in extreme cases, peel away. Forget those 100 strokes a night. The idea was to move oil from scalp into hair to give it shine. But if you comb aggressively when hair is wet, it will be damaged.
The wrong tools. Using the wrong combs and brushes (a wide-toothed comb is best), especially on fragile, chemically treated hair, can remove the cuticle layer in large portions, creating porous and dull hair strands.
Back-combing and teasing. Back-combing and teasing are extremely harmful, since they tug in the opposite direction of the cuticle scales, which can eventually rip them off, leaving the inner cortex exposed.
Heated appliances. When too hot or used on wet hair, heated appliances can actually cause hair to boil, creating permanent welts that weaken and dull the hair shaft and set the stage for breakage. Never use ceramic appliances on wet hair. If possible, do not blow-dry hair.
Issue: Split Ends
A split end develops when the hair’s cuticle layer is severely weathered or missing, causing the exposed shaft to fray like a piece of yarn. Wind can cause hair to tangle and make it hard to comb, which can eventually lead to split ends.
Solution: Give your hair a dose of protection and intense moisture by using conditioner daily. Regular trims help, too.
Issue: Lackluster Locks
Daily environmental wear and tear and a buildup of styling products both contribute to hair’s looking dry and dull.
Solution: A mild shampoo will remove residue. But be careful you don’t overdo it and strip the hair of all its natural oils. A deep conditioning (conditioner on for 10 minutes) will give you softness as well as shine.
FACTOID
Many drugs may cause hair loss, including acne drugs like Accutane, blood thinners like Coumadin, antidepressants like Paxil and Prozac, some blood pressure drugs, and antifungals, as well as hormonal drugs. If you’re possibly experiencing bothersome hair loss as a side effect of medication, check with your pharmacist and/or doc about alternatives.
Issue: Oily Hair
When hair follicles release an excessive amount of the natural protein sebum, hair can look flat, oily, and greasy.
Solution: An oily scalp needs consistent care. When you shampoo, massage into the roots and down the hair shaft. Another habit that may increase the appearance of oily hair is frequent grooming. Combing, brushing, and running your fingers through your hair aid in the movement of sebum from the scalp down the hair shaft, so try to handle your hair as little as possible.
Issue: Lackluster Hair Color
No matter how permanent your chemical hair color claims to be, all dyes will fade with time. The sun, air, and harsh shampoos all contribute to a lackluster shade.
Solution: When coloring, use a semipermanent rather than a permanent hair color system. Semipermanents are far gentler than permanent dyes and are designed to fade over time, allowing you to replenish your color sooner without causing as much damage. Use shampoos and conditioners designed for the maintenance of hair color.
FACTOID
Women’s hair is considered so sexually provocative that in many cultures it is concealed after marriage for fear of inciting uncontrollable desires. In the first century, a married Roman woman could be divorced for uncovering her head. To this day, Muslim women and Orthodox Jewish women, once married, cover their hair with a kerchief or scarf or wear a wig.
