Hair follicles start developing in the third month of pregnancy. By the time a child is born, on average 100,000 hair follicles have developed on its head, equivalent to 1,000 follicles per square centimetre of scalp. Follicle density declines from birth onwards, in line with the growth of a child's scull. As an adult, the total number of follicles declines to some 500 follicles per square centimetre by the time a person reaches the age of 25, to 150-250 between 30 and 50, further declining as we get even older. 

Hair follicles grow in random groups over the whole scalp. These groups are known as "follicular units" and consist of 1-5 hairs. On average, each follicular unit has 2-3 hairs. 

Lanugo hair is the fine, soft woolly kind of hair that grows all over the human foetus. In most cases, this is replaced shortly before birth by vellus hair, fine “peach fuzz” without pigment. During puberty, the increase in androgenic hormone levels causes the thinner and shorter vellus hair to be replaced with terminal hair in certain parts of the human body. Terminal hair is found not just on the head - beards, nostril and ear hairs, eyelashes, eyebrows, armpits and pubic hair as well the hair on our arms and legs all consist of terminal hair.

Click to learn more about

Our appearance is influenced to a great extent by our hair. It should be seen as strong and healthy, mirroring our success and vitality and making us look young. With this in mind, we invest a lot of time, money and energy in hair care and hairstyle. From a medical/biological perspective, hair is not something we actually need. Even so, hair plays a major role in our lives, especially from a social and psychological perspective - as witnessed by the amount of attention we pay to our hair. Clichés say that it is women who spend months, if not years, of their lives looking after their hair. This is not entirely true, as this also applies – at least to a certain extent - to men. For most people, having nice hair is important. Only very few - whether men or women - are happy with what they’ve got on their heads. All sorts of products are used to dye and tint hair or to curl it. Things don’t always work out the way we want or expect, and sometimes we start losing our hair - for genetic reasons. It is men who are most afraid of this (seen as a sign of waning virility), though women are also affected.

Whether our hair is straight or curled, long or short - we all want our hair to be healthy, thick, glossy and shiny. Our hair has an important role to play in the overall impression others have of us. Hair is a status symbol, mirroring our state of health, our success, our aura and our personality. Losing our hair makes us not just feel ill, it can often be the cause of major psychological problems.

There are different causes for hair loss, ranging from genetic, hormonal or environmental ones to the concrete effects of an accident or medical treatment such as chemotherapy or an operation leaving scars. It’s no use turning to alleged miracle cures. The only way to gain certainty about the causes of hair loss, thinning hair, baldness or bald spots and its possible solutions is to consult a doctor and have our hair/scalp checked. Please do not hesitate to fill in our free online consultation form.

Fear of losing one’s hair is nothing new. Back in ancient Egypt, tinctures and formulations to prevent baldness were being tried out. For centuries now, attempts - many of them ripe for the curiosity cabinet - have been made to come up with a cure for hair loss. Last but not least, one’s hair is a statement of one’s personality, indicating one’s background and social status and underlining one’s individuality.

Hair loss is unquestionably in most cases unpleasant, and in a number of cases associated with psychological problems and with possible negative consequences for one’s social and professional life. Men with a receding hairline, hair growing thin, a horseshoe-shaped fringe of hair or completely bald men are said to be prone to uncertainty, with fewer chances of success at work or with women - although this cannot be substantiated in any way. It is however understandable that men and women with hair growing thin are inhibited, for it is the psyche which suffers most from hair loss. Quality of life declines, and in many cases a person will feel less attractive and become hesitant.

Trichotillomania (from the Greek 'thrix': hair, 'tillein': to pull and 'mania': disturbed) is not a hair disease. It is cauded by an uncontrollable impulse to pull out one's own hair, eventually leading to patchy hair loss. In most cases psychological factors are the cause.