5 Facts About Human Hair That Might Surprise You
Miscellaneous / / December 09, 2023
Let's find out how durable they are and what happens if you don't wash or comb them for a long time.
1. Hair is almost as strong as Kevlar
It may seem that hair is a very fragile thing because it is thin. But in fact, they are made of keratin, a protein that has enormous strength. From it consist nails, claws of predatory mammals, rhinoceros horns, feathers and horny sheaths on the beak birds, scales in the shell of turtles and hooves of horses.
Keratin is strong due to its special structure: it is formed from chains of amino acids called cysteine, glycine and arginine, which are connected by many disulfide bonds. Because of this, keratin fibers can stretch up to 40% of their original length without breaking.
Hair have extremely high tensile strength - approximately 150–270 MPa.
This is quite comparable to aluminum and Kevlar, asserts bioengineer Frederick Leroy from the Natural History Museum in London. Five hundred hairs are enough to weave a rope that can lift a person. A braid Of all the hairs on the head - there are more than 100,000 of them - it can easily withstand 12 tons. This is a couple of elephants.
2. Record hair length - almost 8 meters
Different people have hair grow at different rates depending on genetics, ethnicity, diet and geographic location. For example, in Africans they grow by 5 mm per month, while in Asians they grow by as much as 20 mm. And the last on this matter record holders. On average, most people have healthy hair. lengthen by 0.35 mm per day.
At the same time, there are people who are in no hurry to cut their hair. So, in 2004, Chinese woman Xie Qiuping was marked in the Guinness Book of Records as the owner of the most long hair - 5.627 meters. Xie has been growing them for 31 years—since she was 13 years old. The man had the longest hair measured in 1949 in India by a man named Swami Pandarasannadi. He was the abbot of Thirudathurai monastery. His hair grew to 7.93 meters.
The Sikh Guru did not cut his hair or shave his beard out of religious convictions. Hair is God's gift, you know, and only blasphemers refuse it.
3. Almost your entire body is covered with hair
Perhaps you believe that a person does not have that much hair and most of it is concentrated on the head. However, scientists from the University of Sheffield in the UK provedthat our hair density is approximately the same as that of our distant relatives - gorillas and chimpanzees. There are about 5 million hair follicles in both great apes and humans.
They cover 95% of the total skin area, with the exception of mucous membranes, palms, soles and lips.
Human hair follicles are similar to monkeys, but our hair is not dark, but thin and colorless, like fluff. People got rid of from thick wool during evolution for more efficient heat dissipation and sweating. Compared to monkeys, we run faster. And, therefore, we need more effective protection against overheating. But they still retained the fluff on the skin - it helps It’s better to feel the parasites crawling around the body and get rid of them in time get rid.
4. Hair stands on end not only from cold and fear
Don't believe you're so hairy? Here's simple proof: when you're cold or scared, goosebumps appear on your body. This called pilomotor reflex. The smooth muscles of the hair follicles contract due to stimulation of sensitive peripheral nerves.
Many people have a similar mechanism. mammals, and it is needed for several reasons. Firstly, hair that stands on end is better able to retain heat at the surface of the skin. And secondly, a fluffy animal with raised fur visually appears larger and more menacing and can drive away the enemy with just its appearance.
For modern people who do not have fur, this is not particularly relevant, but for all kinds of gorillas, cats and porcupines, it is quite true.
But there's another one situation, in which you may get goosebumps and your hair will stand on end, is sexual arousal. Fluffy fur helped our animal ancestors to please members of the opposite sex. Perhaps this is why girls with thick hair seem especially attractive to us.
5. If you don't take care of your hair, it becomes felt.
Felt is a material usually made from sheep's wool. A similar textile product made from the down of rabbits and goats is called felt. But, just so you know, felt can also be made from human hair.
If you do not wash or comb your hair for a very long time, under the influence of sweat and oil, your hair will begin to get lost into balls and knots, forming a woven dense mass. Dirt and dust will accumulate in it, often accompanied by lice and inflammation of the sebaceous glands.
This is called a tangle, “Scythian hairstyle” or “Polish braid”.
Tangles were understandably a particularly popular hairstyle among medieval peasants, especially in Eastern Europe. However, the “Polish braid” was also found among non-poor segments of the population - For example, y king Denmark and Norway by Christian IV (1577–1648). His tangle was in the form of a braid that hung down the left side of his head and was decorated with a red ribbon. His Majesty's courtiers imitated him, not combing their hair and growing the same “hairstyles” to please the king.
British writer Esther Tralee writes about her travels as follows: described mat, which she saw in 1786 in collections Elector of Saxony in Dresden: “Its size and weight were enormous, and its length was four and a half yards (about 4.1 m). This mat belonged to a noble Polish lady, well known at the court of King Augustus, who was eventually killed by its height.”
And in the 17th century there even existed beliefthat such a “hairstyle” collects all diseases. Therefore, it was under no circumstances possible to cut off the tangle - otherwise where would the illnesses go?
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