Welcome to the homepage of the South African
Hair Foundation. This website is dedicated to educate you,
the consumer, about aspects of hair. This is a non-profit
website, which will have advertising for-profit organisations.
The articles non-biased, but may have links
to for-profit organisations. Any funds collected from the
for-profit organisations will be used to keep the website
current and as up-to-date as possible.
We hope that the articles
and views expressed on the website help you, the consumer,
to be more educated about your
hair, and to be more proactive in keeping your hair healthy,
good-looking, and a continuing pleasure in your life. Feel
free to e-mail us questions, which we will answer
to the best of our abilities. Should the questions be beyond
our expertise, we will refer you to the relevant experts.
Why does hair grow on your scalp? The answer
is very simple: you inherit it from your mother and your
father.... that
is to say; it is in your genes. The genes involved in the
formation of your hair follicles are present when your mother's
egg is fertilised by your father's sperm.
The colour (pigmentation) of hair is produced
there by melanocytes, specialised cells that synthesise the
pigment
melanin. The
melanocytes that synthesise melanin for hair are located
in the hair follicle.
Hair can be damaged by physical injury, chemicals, heat,
and by disease. When not caused by various diseases, we are
left with types of damage that can be prevented and are under
our control.
Contact dermatitis represents an allergic reaction
to chemical substances which come into contact with the scalp.
The most common substances incriminated...
