WEBVTT - How hair length works

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff from how stuff works dot com

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<v Speaker 1>where smart Happens. Hi Am Marshall Brain with today's question,

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<v Speaker 1>why does the hair on your arms stay short while

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<v Speaker 1>the hair on your head can grow very long? Each

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<v Speaker 1>hair on your body grows from its own individual hair follicle.

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<v Speaker 1>Inside the follicle, new hair cells form at the root

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<v Speaker 1>of the hair shaft. As the cells form, they push

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<v Speaker 1>older cells out of the follicle. As they're pushed out,

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<v Speaker 1>the cells die and they become the hair that we see.

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<v Speaker 1>A follicle will produce new cells for a certain period

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<v Speaker 1>of time depending on where it's located on your body,

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<v Speaker 1>this period is called the growth phase. For the hair

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<v Speaker 1>that it will stop growing for a period of time,

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<v Speaker 1>this is called the rest phase, and then start the

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<v Speaker 1>growth phase again. When a hair follicle enters the rest phase,

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<v Speaker 1>the hair shaft breaks off, so the existing hair falls

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<v Speaker 1>out and a new hair takes its place. Therefore, the

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<v Speaker 1>link of time that a hair is able to spend

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<v Speaker 1>growing during the growth phase controls the maximum length of

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<v Speaker 1>that hair. The cells that make the hairs on your

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<v Speaker 1>arms are programmed to stop growing every couple of months,

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<v Speaker 1>so the hair on your arms stays short. The hair

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<v Speaker 1>follicles on your head, on the other hand, are programmed

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<v Speaker 1>to let the hair grow for years at a time,

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<v Speaker 1>so the hair can grow very long. Animals that shed

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<v Speaker 1>have hair follicles that synchronize their rest phase, so all

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<v Speaker 1>the follicles enter the rest phase at once. This way,

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<v Speaker 1>all the hair falls out at the same time. A

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<v Speaker 1>dog that sheds will lose its hair in large clumps.

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<v Speaker 1>Some animals can also switch the coloring agent in the

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<v Speaker 1>hair follicle audit off, so in the summer of the

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<v Speaker 1>hair is pigmented brown with melanin, but in the winter

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<v Speaker 1>it's not pigmented, leaving the hair white. Do you have

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<v Speaker 1>any ideas or suggestions for this podcast? If so, please

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<v Speaker 1>send me an email at podcast at how stuff works

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<v Speaker 1>dot com. For more on this and thousands of other topics,

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<v Speaker 1>go to how stuff Work dot com.