Is hair a protein?

Hair refers to the hair that grows on the head. It is different from the hair on other parts of the body. Hair is longer, straighter, and grows the fastest. People attach great importance to hair because it is the basis for image shaping. People use various styles to change their hair, making hair an important part of their image. Hair is composed of many components. Let’s take a look at whether hair is protein?

Hair refers to the hair that grows on the head. Hair is not an organ, so it does not contain nerves and blood vessels, but it does contain cells. In addition to making people more beautiful, hair is mainly used to protect the head. Soft and fluffy hair is elastic, can withstand lighter collisions, and can also help the evaporation of sweat on the head. The average person has about 100,000 hairs. Among all the hairs, head hair is the longest, especially on women with long hair. Some can grow to 90-100cm, or even 150cm, but generally do not exceed 200cm.

Chemical properties

1. The main component of hair is keratin, accounting for about 97%. Keratin is composed of amino acids.

2. Oriental hair is characterized by being coarse, black, hard and heavy. Because it contains larger and more carbon and hydrogen particles, its color is dark. The characteristics of Western people's hair are soft and fine, and because it contains less carbon and hydrogen, its color is lighter.

3. The keratin protein that makes up the hair cuticle is composed of 20 kinds of amino acids arranged longitudinally.

4. Structure of hair: Each hair is composed of epidermal scale layer, cortex layer and medulla layer. The epidermal scale layer is the outermost layer of the hair and is usually composed of 2 to 4 layers of scales. The cuticle is usually translucent or colorless, so it allows the natural hair color to show through; the cortex accounts for 80% of the hair, where natural pigments are deposited, and the natural hair color is due to it; the medulla is located in the center of the head and is composed of many small bubbles.

Hair Physiology

A normal person loses 70 to 100 hairs every day, and an equal amount of hair regenerates. The length of hair in different parts of the body is related to the different lengths of the growth cycle. The growth cycle of eyebrows and eyelashes is only 2 months, so it is shorter. Hair growth is influenced by many factors including genetics, health, nutrition and hormone levels.