Where Does Hair Strength Come From?
Everyone dreams of having strong, healthy and luscious hair. However, where does hair strength come from? Learning about hair strength and the science behind it is key to hair growth. So, in this article, we will go over what you need to know about hair strength and how to build your dream hair.
Where Does Hair Strength Come From?
Strength and elasticity come from keratin building blocks. Hair is made up of the cuticle and the cortex. The cortex is responsible for strength and elasticity. It is also composed of keratin chain building blocks. These building blocks assemble to form larger structures. The strength of your hair’s structure is reinforced by disulfide bonds along its width and peptide bonds along its length. Damage breaks these bonds. Bond builders rebuild disulfide bonds alone.
What Makes Healthy Hair
Healthy hair comes from strength and elasticity. A good example of this is a rope – it is made of interwoven strings. On its own, one string isn’t very strong, but when many strings come together, they form a more stable structure. Human hair is similar. However, it’s strength comes from interwoven chains of the protein that we know as keratin.
The Structure of Hair
Keratin is a fibrous protein that forms long, cross-linked chains. It gives your hair its core strength and elasticity. Keratin proteins are the fundamental building blocks of hair. Human hair is more complex than you think. The hair strand is composed of separate layers – cuticle and cortex. The cuticle is composed of overlapping tile-like cells. These protect the inner layer (the cortex) from damage.
The cuticle protects your hair proteins from environmental and heat damage. However, studies have found that the cuticle does not impact the strength of hair. The real source of strength is in the cortex. This is composed of keratin chains that come together to form larger structures within the hair strand.
Keratin has the biggest role in the strength and elasticity of hair. It is responsible for up to 95% of your hair’s total weight.
The Role of Lipids in Hair
Beyond Keratin proteins, hair is also comprised of lipids. Lipids are fatty substances found on the surface of hair and inside the cortex. Keratin-associated proteins are also present in the hair strand. They work alongside keratin to add strength to hair.
Peptide Bonds
The Peptide Bonds give hair’s length strength. Keratin proteins are joined together by a type of chemical bond known as the peptide bond.
How Disulfide Bonds Stabilize Hair’s Structure
Think of hair as a hierarchal structure. Keratin chains create building blocks that come together to form large structures. Those structures come together to form larger structures. Then, those structures come together to form even larger structures.
The Keratin chains form a shape like a metal spring, and they interlock together to form immediate filaments. These filaments come together to form macro fibrils. These then come together to form the cortical cells that make up the larger cortex layer.
This hierarchical structure is stabilized by disulfide bonds. These cross-link the keratin chains in the cortex, providing your hair more strength along the width of the hair shaft. Disulfide bonds are the focus of bond building technology. These aim to restore hair’s strength and repair damage from chemical services on a singular level.
The Truth About “Hair Damage”
The truth is, everyone has some level of “hair damage”. It’s actually a myth that there is such thing as “virgin hair”. The UV rays from the sun and pollutants from the environment are constantly damaging your hair. Additionally, if you use heat tools frequently (dryers, straighteners, curling irons etc) these will cause damage. Additionally, chemical treatments like bleaching, perming, curling and chemical straightening will also hurt your hair.
When hair gets damaged, it’s actually chemical bonds that are breaking. Any type of damage can break down any of the bonds in your hair and weakens your hair’s core structure and strength as a result. The good news is that these bonds are replaceable.
How To Restore Hair Strength
Today, there are so many products and treatments that are good for restoring hair strength. There are many bond builders that offer damage repairing capabilities. However, bond builders only target one type of bond in your hair. This is the disulfide bonds. Bond builders strengthen just the width of your hair. It’s like the example with the frayed rope – you have to rejoin the broken strings and twist the strings back together.
Tips For Strengthening Hair
It can take a few weeks up to three months to see a noticeable difference in the hair’s strength. Even though our hair is constantly under a barrage of damaging elements, there are plenty of ways to strengthen it. These are just a few tips for strengthening your hair:
- Bonding treatments
- Hair slugging
- Add Vitamins A,C,E, D as well as zinc, iron and marine collagen into your diet (carrots, spinach, nuts, fruits, seeds, sweet potatoes and avocados
- Take supplements like Vitamin D3, and iron
- Take care of your scalp and massage it regularly
- Don’t skip shampoo too much
- Brush regularly
- Take a break from heat
- Sleep on satin pillowcases
Vinaccia Hair Studio, The Best Hair Salon In Winter Park, Florida
In the quest for the premier hair salon in Winter Park, Florida, Vinaccia Hair Studio emerges as the undisputed choice. Jenn’s deeply personalized approach, strategic acumen, unwavering commitment to quality, time-efficient service, and luxurious ambiance culminate to offer not just a stunning outward transformation but also a boost in professional and personal confidence.
Embark on a transformative journey at Vinaccia Hair Studio and unearth your very best self. Schedule your appointment today and embark on a path toward beautiful, healthy, and effortlessly manageable hair—a journey that will leave you embracing the finest version of yourself. Schedule your next appointment with Vinaccia Hair Studio.