Why does human hair seem to grow forever? Are there other animals like us?

[goodsamaritan]

Why does human hair seem to grow forever? Head, beard.
What is the evolutionary advantage of this trait?
Are there other animals like us humans whose hair seems to grow forever in length?

[TylerDurden]

I suspect it is a faulty mutation in us  humans that makes the hair grow on forever.

Just curious, do Filippinos easily get beards and moustaches? I thought(?) all East Asians, other than Manchus(ie East Asians with some Caucasian DNA) had extreme difficulty in growing any facial hair or body hair, with most not being able to do so at all. Must be cool never having to shave one's face for a man, not having to buy razors or shaving-cream. Shaving has been the bane of my life.

[nummi]

Considering it is possible to take conscious control of body's organs-processes and guide them. Hair might need this conscious control to stop or guide it.

Shaving beard and cutting hair when body is naturally supposed to have them, is detrimental to health. Have noticed it on myself, the longer they are the better I feel, subtle differences but still there. And I look much better with long hair and beard than without.
Hair also has sensory functions. The longer the hair the more subtle changes, that hair can receive, can be noticed. With more hair and longer hair will be naturally able to perceive more and more easily. Same can be achieved with less, but that requires a more refined mind and body in other ways. And there's more ways than one to have the same end effect/result.

Cutting hair when hair is natural is like fighting against oneself. Like suppressing who one is, forcing oneself to be in a smaller box than one can fit into. Lessening freedom, restricting and limiting. Forcing onto oneself what one is not, thus not being oneself.
But cutting hair can be used to improve other paths of perception with more ease or emphasis.

Men are raised to know that cutting hair and shaving is the right thing to do. They grow up never thinking whether they actually like it or not, how it really feels or not. They generally do it merely because they see others doing it, or because they were raised to do it. I did it, until I thought things through and found out I have never liked shaving or cutting hair. It's like following rules that have never really been accepted; going against own will and wishes, consciously or subconsciously.

I'm not a hairless guy and I like hair, so no point imitating being one without. I'd rather be myself than try to be someone I am not.

[TylerDurden]

If I never shaved or cut my hair, I would be forced to live in a cold, wet place like Tierra del Fuego or whatever. I could not stand a hot climate with a beard etc.

[dariorpl]

I started growing a full beard a few months into this primal/raw paleo diet (which I've been on for 8 months). By now it's pretty large, and reddish/light brown. I've noticed that just about all men dislike it and most make disparaging remarks about it, often in jest. Whereas women seem to be much more attracted to me than before, and many complement me on it.

I've been wondering if it's a sort of ancient roman cultural tradition where men are deprived of their manly looks for the benefit of other men, and at the detriment of women. It seems to me that most women find beards very attractive, whereas most men find it awkward, why that is, I don't know. Perhaps it makes them feel like less of a man, and like you're the alpha and fierce competition for them.

I used to think that women in general found beards unattractive, but it seems I was wrong. Or maybe they find them attractive now, but didn't in the past. I'm not sure.

The main problem I have with having a full beard is that it makes it harder to be in the finance world, where it's mostly all men in business suits, and a full beard is completely out of place.

Thoughts?

[dariorpl]

If I never shaved or cut my hair, I would be forced to live in a cold, wet place like Tierra del Fuego or whatever. I could not stand a hot climate with a beard etc.

I started growing it during the end of the summer here, but it didn't get large until the fall, so I guess I'll have to wait and see if I can make it through the hot summer with a full beard. I'll report on it.

[sabertooth]

My Hair is just now getting long again since I cut it short a couple of years ago.

I had a big beard growing , but cut it because my girlfriend likes to kiss, but lips on beard hair isn't the romantic Ideal.

I've long fathomed the purpose of beards and long head hair. Some theories have it that beards are for showing dominance, older  mature and robust males will have much larger more fully grown beards than juveniles or weaker males. This view of beards symbolizing dominance makes sense when you consider how many males are forced to shave in order to be subservient to the corporate slave masters.

Beards can also be used to identify sex from a distance. If you were a paleo person looking out into the distance and see a stranger, it would be easy to identify if it was a male or female. If a man on the prowl were to see a clean face then he would be compelled to get a little closer, while on the other hand if he saw a group of bearded men, he may think of going elsewhere.

Beards also trap male pheromone scent secretions... we have scent glands in our cheeks and the pheromones are secreted with skin oil and sweat that permeate beard hair, and the natural musk aroma that builds up is used to lure females.

I am equally convinced that the hair on our heads serves a biological function. A group of Long Haired American indian trackers are said to have lost their tracking ability when given military style hair cuts. Perhaps long strands of hair act like some sort of antenna which channel extra sensory signals into the nervous system. Why do you think our hairs raise on the back of our necks when we are nervous. the hairs are waiting to receive vital information from the environment.

Perhaps the cutting of our hair is a practice which was popularized by dominator cultures, whom no longer needed a population of highly sensitive individuals who possess extra sensory powers. Perhaps by cutting the hair short you can dull ones sensitivity to reading extra sensory information in the environment.

This could be also why wise men, and wizards are often portrayed with long flowing hair.

[goodsamaritan]

I understand the long hair function.

But when does the growing stop?

I have NOT come across text where most humans will have a certain limit to the growth of their head hair.

Tyler thinks it may be a faulty mutation.

I'm sure he will be pissed off if I hypothesize a genetic mistake by the genetic engineers who created humans. He he he.

But hey, we need to put our heads together why out of all animals in this world, we humans are unique with our hair forever growing.

[eveheart]

Hair length depends on the hair's shedding cycle. Other animals' hair or fur sheds and regrows, too.

[goodsamaritan]

Just curious, do Filippinos easily get beards and moustaches? I thought(?) all East Asians, other than Manchus(ie East Asians with some Caucasian DNA) had extreme difficulty in growing any facial hair or body hair, with most not being able to do so at all. Must be cool never having to shave one's face for a man, not having to buy razors or shaving-cream. Shaving has been the bane of my life.

My wife's brothers and her dad can hardly grow beards or moustaches. (Ilocano + Malay)
I have facial hair I shave regularly... my younger brother grows more and faster than I. (Malay + Chinese + Spanish + Cuban + Aeta)
There is no single Filipino "race" as we are a collection mixed up mongrel of different races.

[laterade]

Shedding and regenerating, normally it grows forever regardless. Sikhs told me the hair stops growing at a length that varies per person.

I'm currently growing my hair out. The last time I cut and shaved was December 3rd, 2014. The longest hairs are about four inches long now.

Aside from the fact that hairs provide a peripheral sensory system that does a variety of things, there's the idea the hair shaft stores nutrients. I've also heard someone say there's an emotional meridian under the chin, and that the beard helps provide stability to man. There are social effects, needless to say I look greatly different than before. Men act in various ways, one hiring manager wanted me to cut it and keep a "conservative look" but I decided that was dildos and took another job. Bearded men obviously don't have a problem. Women tend to respond favorably.

I'd say the beard adds to me. I absolutely prefer having a beard.

[goodsamaritan]

The Sikhs! Great thinking! Can you ask them the measured length of man hair really stops at? Of course it is different from one person to another. But give us actual measurements.

That info would be very interesting.

[TylerDurden]

Hair stores nutrients. Yes it does! I used to have awful problems with a beard as it would collect any sauces etc. from the food I ate, making me look ridiculous. I would have to look after my beard and waste lots of time. I am not a metrosexual so looking after body hair is a massive timewaster for me.

[goodsamaritan]

Q: Why don't Sikhs cut their hair?

A: Sikhs believe that people are created with long hair for a reason and they accept hair as a beautiful part of their bodies. However, Sikhs do not mind if others cut their hair.

Q: If Sikhs can't cut their hair, why isn't it always down to their ankles?

A: Most Sikhs do not have hair down to their ankles because older hair falls out and hair eventually stops growing.

Q: How often do Sikhs wash their hair?

A: It depends on how often it needs to be washed to maintain cleanliness. Girls who have their hair open may wash it daily; boys who have it tied in a turban may wash it once or twice a week or more.

Source: http://www.sikhnextdoor.org/teachers/faq.html

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Ah ha!  Now we know that most Sikh's head hair stops growing just before the ankles.  So that must be the natural length of human hair.

But then again, I know a woman who had wiry hair in a bunch that was 2kg heavy and she had to have it cut because that heavy load was straining her neck.

So again there is a limit not just to the length but the heavy burden hair has.

Hmmm.... hair still seems a mistake to grow too long.  But now we know from the Sikhs that it usually stops just before the ankles.

[Ioanna]

Hair length is an individual characteristic based on one's hair growth cycle. Some can grow very long hair, and some simply cannot. In the final phase, the hair is shed, no matter the length achieved.

[sabertooth]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcUFcz08KvM

[lb_on_the_cb]

if your hair grows forever count yourself lucky.  mine started falling out when i was 18 y.o.

[sabertooth]

My Father has full on Male pattern baldness, and began thinning in his late 20s. As he has gotten older he has lost nearly all the hair on the crown while at the same time has grown a thick coat of body hair. MY grandfather and most of the men on my mothers side have a receding hairline. Hormones regulate hair growth and there is suppose to be some kind of secondary effect of the accumulation of testosterone and other hormonal metabolites building up in the skin that suppresses growth of hair in individuals who are more sensitive to the hormones . At 32 I have noticed the beginning of a receding hair line, while at the same time my facial hair is sprouting whiskers which go all the way up to my eyes if I don't trim them.

[RawFoodist]

MPB or just losing hair in general goes back to digestion, body does not break down proteins into amino acids, so no aminos go to make hair... as a mater of fact, hair is sacrificed, broken down to supply aminos...

but why does the body not break down protein? it goes back to liver health.. if the liver is not flowing, digestion is impaired, different microbes now will overgrow(even to/on the scalp) which will cause extra toxemia on the already constipated liver

greying hair is again mineral deficiency/imbalance

interesting that mexicans DO NOT LOSE HAIR!!! being bald there is a weird thing, you will be considered a weirdo, it is THAT RARE... and they eat tons of legumes/beans

[norawnofun]

So do you know of any remedy regarding hair regrowth and reversing greying? I know of some, but what are your suggestions?

[kelpguy]

Why does human hair seem to grow forever? Head, beard.

i'm caucasian, european decent, with male pattern baldness living in the filipines.  i haven't shaved or cut my head hair in more than 50 years.  the end of my ponytail is 10'' from my scalp.  i never let my beard grow than 2 or 3'' from my chin becuz it gets in the way.

i occasionally see a filipino (male) with a beard and or long head hair, even dreadlocks, but that's not the custom here so it's hard to know how long their head hairs will grow.

it's not uncommon to see a filipina (female) with waist length hair and i occasionally see a filipina with knee length hair

[raw-al]

I've grown my hair almost to the shoulders and I let my beard grow but I cut it when it gets too long. Would not have been possible when working as pilots have to be ready to wear an O2 mask in case.

Nice to not shave every day. I don't find it warm in the summer.

[dariorpl]

I suspect it has a lot to do with sexual selection as well as keeping warm and other uses. For example, paleo people could've used spare hair as pillows / stuffing / baby coat. Also: long hair can somewhat be used as dental floss.

Notice that not all races have head hair that grows very long. In most races it's only female hair that grows very long, and in some races, neither sex has hair that grows very long. For beards it's mainly just european men that can grow very long and lush beards. Arabs, asians, hindus and australian aborigins can to an extent grow a long beard and moustache, but much less so. Africans, american indians and eskimos can't.

Finally, all mammalian hair really grows forever, including all human body hair. It's just that it tends to fall off before it gets too long.

One other example: Cats and rats and to an extent other animals use long whiskers that project far out of the body, to sense the location of objects. Cats can drastically change the direction of whiskers and point them forwards to sense prey while in the middle of a pounce.