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Hair
in good condition
In the end, the condition of hair depends on what is done to it. You
are your own hair's worst enemy!
By the time your hair reaches your shoulders,
it has probably been growing for three years or more. Hair that is level
with your waist is around five years old (at least at the tip). If you
are lucky enough to have hair long enough to sit on, that hair maybe as
much as a dozen years old. And throughout its growth it needs to be cared
for to keep its healthy look. A damaged cuticle cannot heal, because the
scales are 'dead', although much can be done to help its appearance.
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The
golden hair of the imprisoned fairy-tale princess Rapunzel was long
enough to allow her lover to climb it in order to reach her in her
tower - a demonstration not only of the length of anagen in Rapunzel,
but also of the inherent strength of hair
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This
man is head of a religious cult which requires its leader to be
able to grow his hair long enough to reach the ground: his anagen
period is probably around ten or twelve years. As he grows older
and the anagen period shortens, he may lose his job
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The straight blonde
hair of this tanned young woman is naturally sun-bleached, and reflects
light well
If you are sensible, you clean your hair frequently,
using good-quality products, and -most importantly - remember to condition
it well. You have the ends cut regularly by a skilled stylist, so as to
prevent weathering effects such as split ends. If you are thinking of
changing your hair color you get advice first from an experienced hair technician,
who can tell you how much color change your particular hair can stand,
and which hair coloring products would be suitable. If you are considering a perm you
ask for advice on whether your hair type can stand perming at the moment,
or if it would be safer to improve its condition first. And, once permed,
you pay even more attention to conditioning your hair, and you don't repeat
the perm too often.
With an understanding of the principles of good
hair care, and regularly putting those principles into practice, everyone
can aim to keep their hair in good condition.
Hair in poor
condition
The natural look of your hair depends on several inherited factors. Hair
that is in poor condition looks dull and dry. So how does it get that
way?
Dark hair, as we have seen, looks glossier than
blond hair. The presence or absence of natural oils makes a difference.
And very straight hair reflects light better than tousled hair does.
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