Hair is not found on the surface of the skin only, it goes deeper than that. In order to understand how to take better care of our hair, we also need to understand what hair consists of, its growth stages and rates, and what affects it. Hair plant roots are an important part of the hair and play an essential role in growth. If the hair roots somehow disintegrate, then there will be no hair growth.

Hair strands are made up of keratin, which is a scleroprotein. Each hair has a root that is contained in the hair follicle. A hair follicle is a component of the skin that is responsible for growing hair. The follicle is connected to the sebaceous gland that is responsible for producing sebum or oil. Sweat glands and hair muscles also form part of the structure of the follicle. Hair muscles calledarrector piliwhich makes the hair stand at a perpendicular angle. Found at the foundation of the hair follicle is a papilla which consists of connective tissue. The papilla is encased in the matrix of the hair. This is the part of the hair responsible for cell divisions. It consists of epithelial cells which are an integral part of the plant roots and hair fibers. The matrix also contains melanocytes, cells responsible for the production of hair pigment.

The hair begins to grow after the formation of the follicle. This often begins during the embryo stage. This is why babies are born with hair. As they grow, they lose the silky hair termed the lanugo, and begin to grow coarser hair. At the puberty stage, there is hair growth on the pubic area, in the armpits and on the face for males.

Hair grows in stages. The rate of growth tends to vary with age. The growth stage is termed the anagen stage. This stage is active for different periods of time for the different sites of hair growth. During this stage, the plant root cells rapidly divides in a process called mitosis. After every 56 days, the hair would have grown about an inch long. The length of this stage depends on the site of hair growth. On the head, it can last up to seven years whilst on the face it can last up to seven months. After the anagen stage, the hair goes into a stage called the catagen stage. In this stage, the hair will either regress or curl forming a club hair. This stage is very short, lasting up to a month. After this stage, there is the telogen stage when the hair follicle goes into resting. The club hair here has fully developed.

It is rather important to keep the hair follicle as healthy as possible. In this way, there will be no loss of plant roots and subsequent loss of hair. It is best to avoid using chemical products on a frequent basis as well as shampoos that contain alcohol.