Why does hair stop growing after reaching a certain length?

You may be aspiring or know someone who does want to be Rapunzel and have long, beautiful hair. However, chances are it would remain a dream as each person’s hair is programmed to stop growing after reaching a certain length. A person’s genes dictate how quickly and how long their hair will grow. It’s like a specific hair extent is embedded in our system, which our body strictly follows.

However, there are ones who vanquished the normal and set incredible world records. Such cases are very rare, and most hair will cease to grow at a personal set point. That is because hair growth is brought by many factors, like genetics, care, health, and even changes in season.

After reaching a specific length, hair is genetically slated to halt growing. When it ceases growing, it will then be in a resting phase, fall out, and regrow as a new hair. Typically, the hair will grow for about two to seven years.

However, the actual length of the hair may vary depending on how slow or quick your hair grows. For most individuals, the average growth is around half an inch monthly. But, some people have longer growth cycles, allowing them to grow hair quicker over extended periods. That is why some people are able to grow their hair longer than usual.

While the length of the maximum length of hair a person can achieve traces down to genetics, there are also other factors that concern hair growth.

One is hair follicle health. Hair follicles are responsible for your hair growth, hair texture, hair color, hair moisture, and more. If they become damaged, your hair will cease growing and may not grow ever once the hair falls out. While you can repair them, not all hair follicles can be restored through regeneration. Often, it is a point of no return when you have extremely damaged hair follicles.

Scalp health is also a concern as frequent irritation, dryness, and infections can slow down hair growth. But, truth to be told, most of the visible hair you see is made of dead cells, this means that hair vitamins and other products don’t improve the overall health of the visible hair. They instead work on the hair follicle itself to instigate better hair growth.

Of course, your physiological well-being is also crucial as it can affect your hair follicles’ health. With that, it is vital that you maintain a healthy diet that is brimmed with nutrients and vitamins that promote follicle health. Such vitamins and nutrients include protein, zinc, selenium, iron, and biotin. Any deficit in the said nutritional elements can remarkably slow down hair growth.

Age also plays an essential role as hair growth tends to slow down gradually. That is typically in relation to the decline of a person’s physiological well-being. You might have noticed that your hair seems to be thinner or lighter than compared to what you have when you were younger. Hair tends to grow the fastest between the age of 15 to 30 before experiencing a downtrend in growth. As people age, some follicles will stop working, making some people go bald.

Lastly, seasonal changes may also affect hair growth. Hair grows quicker in warmer, humid climates, such as in the tropics. Meanwhile, cold weather causes the hair shaft to dry out, allowing breakage more easily and making it appear that hair is growing slower than usual.

More Readings:

Hair (Wikipedia)

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