Date: September 16th 2006 Hair loss is experienced by all of us
at one or the other time. To know the causes of hair fall, it is
very essential to know the structure of hair and its normal
growth cycle. Structure of hair The hair on our scalp can be
divided into two parts, the root and shaft. The root part of
hair is in the skin (epidermis) of scalp. The hair root is
surrounded by a pouch like structure called follicle. The base
of hair root is in the shape of a bulb. This bulb is indented by
capillaries and nerve fibers. The cells in the center of bulb
divide. The newly divided hair cells push the previous cells up.
The cells which move upwards die slowly forming hard hair shaft.
The hair shaft has three layers the cuticle, medulla and
cortex.Cuticle is the outer layers and protects the inner
layers. It is transparent. Healthy cuticle gives a shiny
appearance for hair and unhealthy cuticle gives lifeless look.
The medulla is the innermost layer composed of large cells. The
cortex is the layer between cuticle