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View Full Version : Do you think different ethnicities grow faster/slower?



bakertwins2004
June 16th, 2009, 10:41 AM
My dd has African friends and I got to thinking....Is it the curl that makes growth seem slower or does it grow slower? Then we were at a Asian restaurant and I notice most of the woman there have GORGEOUS long shiny hair.

So do you think your ethnic background plays a part in your growth? Or is it maybe the way it curls? Possibly what we eat in different regions and what we use on our hair?

Longlocks3
June 16th, 2009, 02:28 PM
I think it possibly may have something to do with it.....

My mother is of German/Polish descent and that side of the family can grow massive, thick hair. My mother has the thickest coarsest straight hair ever.

But on the other hand my father is part Native American, which is a ethnicity you would like grows fabulous hair, but his family has thinner hair.

I ended up in the middle. But I sure can grow it. I do believe that diet has a hand in hair growth as well.

HappyHair87
June 16th, 2009, 02:41 PM
I think its the curl pattern that makes it seem like its growing slower...because when we....(i'm Black)....straighten our hair....its actually way longer than it looks when its curly. Like i'm relaxed...but when my newgrowth gets crazy...my hair seems to shrink at the roots making my hair look a little shorter...but when i relax it....then that shows the entire length.

My sister has natural hair and her afro barely reaches her ears...but when she tugs on it to show her length it touches her neck! So cool!!

Neddy
June 16th, 2009, 03:41 PM
I agree on the curl comment. I have 3a/b hair, and when curly it is about an inch below BSL, but if I don't encourage the curl, it is mid-back. This makes it seem like my hair *never* grows. I love my curls and encourage them all I can, but in turn my hair looks shorter then it is.

I am mostly of Greek descent, with a touch of Scottish somewhere along the line, and Greek hair is known for it's body, thickness, luster, etc. However, I partially think this is due to the fact that Greeks in history, and still today, consumed lots of olive oil, which helps hair health.

demitasse
June 16th, 2009, 03:48 PM
But on the other hand my father is part Native American, which is a ethnicity you would like grows fabulous hair, but his family has thinner hair.

I've found that Native American hair definitely differs by tribe and region. I grew up on a reservation with people who tended to have a lot more texture and coarseness in our hair but I've met people from other tribes who have smooth straight hair. From my experiences growing up and spending time with people outside my tribe, I've found that our does tend to grow faster (on average; everyone is different) but I'm sure there are plenty of people outside of my own race who can out-grow me. :)

Certain tribes (not mine) have been using jojoba oil for centuries to encourage hair growth so it's something they were obviously concerned about.

watermelon
June 16th, 2009, 03:56 PM
Ethnicity certain plays a role in what type of hair you have, but I am unsure about its influence on growth rate. I definitely think that the vitamins and minerals in the foods we eat play the biggest role. Silica, sulfur, zinc, biotin, choline, etc. are all absolutely necessary to great hair growth and health...reminds me I need to buy more supplements.

Jae6
June 16th, 2009, 05:18 PM
I don't think it does.

Example: I'm asian and my hair grows really fast. My friend is also asian and her hair takes FOREVER to grow. Granted we're different in terms of what type of asian we are (I'm islander, she's mainland though I think she's got some islander in her somewhere because of what she looks like), but it takes her an entire year to get the same growth I get in a few months, possibly even longer.

bahannas
June 16th, 2009, 05:21 PM
I've heard that asian hair grows quite fast, and that their individual hair strands are 30% thicker than that of americans.

teela1978
June 16th, 2009, 05:28 PM
My understanding is that there is far more genetic variation present within each ethnicity than there is between different ethnicities. I think there is a genetic component to hair growth rates, but I would guess that the average growth rate for each ethnicity is probably 1/2 inch per month, just like it is for the whole population. Growth would of course appear slower on curlier hair, I think that's what accounts for most of it.

lora410
June 16th, 2009, 05:43 PM
I am not sure but younger pict's of my mom she has nice thick hair. And my dads is more on the thin side and I am in between. However, My hair grows really fast from June until October, and then goes slow. I have no idea if any of my parent grow like this.

Buddaphlyy
June 16th, 2009, 07:48 PM
My understanding is that there is far more genetic variation present within each ethnicity than there is between different ethnicities. I think there is a genetic component to hair growth rates, but I would guess that the average growth rate for each ethnicity is probably 1/2 inch per month, just like it is for the whole population. Growth would of course appear slower on curlier hair, I think that's what accounts for most of it.

I agree. Every individual has an equal chance of having "slow" growing hair or "fast" growing hair regardless of their ethnicity. I consider myself a slow grower, getting only about 1/3 inch per month. However my oldest brother, who is probably the family member with the closest number of the same genes as me, has hair that grows faster than some of our Caucasian and biracial family members.

I also think some people confuse shrinkage with lack of or slow growth. My shrunken fro looks like it has grown all of 1 inch since I first did my BC 2 years ago. It shrinks well up past my ears. But when I straighten it out, it's almost to my shoulders. You can take a peak at my profile pic to get a gist of what I mean.

GlassEyes
June 16th, 2009, 08:10 PM
I've heard that asian hair grows quite fast, and that their individual hair strands are 30% thicker than that of americans.

...uhhhh, 'cause Americans can't be Asian? :eek:

I think it has something to do with genetics, but on a more individual level than race. Then again, Hairtype is directly related to race at times, so I suppose it could be possible.

flapjack
June 16th, 2009, 08:19 PM
There is no difference in growth rate between ethnicities. This is supported by biological data and the research is available through pubmed. There are fast and slow growers in every group on the planet. Curly or kinky hair might look like it grows slower than wavy or straight hair, but that is false. The hair growth rate is just as strong, it simply looks shorter because it doesn't grow straight out of the scalp. And Teela is right, there's more variation in a "race" than between "races".


End of story.

bakertwins2004
June 16th, 2009, 08:20 PM
Interesting! My dd's friends hair is very pretty and has a very pretty curl pattern to it. I was thinking about her hair care and thought about it.

It's funny tho, my dd has Classic length hair with loose curls. Her friend has shoulder length with tight curls. Each of them is in love with the other's hair. It' sweet really.

82exoticbeauty
July 25th, 2009, 01:58 AM
In my opinion, I haven't heard any about different ethnicities of whose hair grow faster or slower! It depends on their ethnicy/genes on how they portray themselves! We are different people,:agree: but I think all ethnicities have a way of their hair growing faster since others want faster hair growth and others to want it to make it slower growth because of their root touch ups all the time! I don't basically have a disagreement on those, so I don't blame on anything!

Since I'm Filipina as Asian, some of them consider Filipinos as Pacific Islander, but I call myself a Filipina or Asian because my hair grows fast with or without vitamins (except the part of over bleaching my hair since 2007 to make it half blonde and dark brown-that made my hair stall and slow down)!

ladylibra
July 25th, 2009, 08:35 AM
There is no difference in growth rate between ethnicities. This is supported by biological data and the research is available through pubmed. There are fast and slow growers in every group on the planet. Curly or kinky hair might look like it grows slower than wavy or straight hair, but that is false. The hair growth rate is just as strong, it simply looks shorter because it doesn't grow straight out of the scalp. And Teela is right, there's more variation in a "race" than between "races".


End of story.

Can you find it and post the link? I am searching but don't see anything related to hair growth rates... :confused:

Quote taken from http://www.hair-science.com/_int/_en/topic/topic_sousrub.aspx?tc=ROOT-HAIR-SCIENCE%5ELIVING-AND-RELIVING%5EELSEWHERE-IN-WORLD&cur=ELSEWHERE-IN-WORLD



Asian hairhttp://www.hair-science.com/img/db/topic/2-5_J2postrasage_asiatique.jpg
http://www.hair-science.com/img/identical/identical/dot.gif
Phototrichogram of asian hair, 2 days after shaving

For example, Asian hair holds the speed record for growth with 1.3 cm a month. On the other hand, it has lower density than any of the other ethnic groups. The way its follicle is implanted causes the hair to grow straight, perpendicular to the scalp.


http://www.hair-science.com/img/identical/identical/carre_gdtitre.gifAfrican hairhttp://www.hair-science.com/img/db/topic/2-5_J2postrasage_africain.jpg
http://www.hair-science.com/img/identical/identical/dot.gif
Phototrichogram of african hair, 2 days after shaving

African hair, generally black hair, is the slowest growing of all, at less than 0.9 cm a month. On the other hand it is slightly more dense than Asian hair and grows almost parallel to the scalp, twisting around itself as it grows.


http://www.hair-science.com/img/identical/identical/carre_gdtitre.gifCaucasian hairhttp://www.hair-science.com/img/db/topic/2-5_J2postrasage_caucasien.jpg
http://www.hair-science.com/img/identical/identical/dot.gif
Phototrichogram of caucasian hair, 2 days after shaving

As far as rate of growth is concerned, Caucasian hair comes between the other two at 1.2 cm a month, but it has the highest density of all. It grows at an oblique angle to the scalp and is slightly curved.




Certainly, I think this is an "average." Not all people of Asian descent grow hair that fast, and not all people of African descent grow hair that slow. But, it was interesting to me...

PhillyGirl1978@
July 25th, 2009, 09:32 AM
I think it may, but not nearly as much as we think it does. I'm half black and when I was little growing up in a black neighborhood, I used to think that my hair wouldn't grow long because I was half black. None of the other girls had long hair and I didn't either. My white mother just didn't know how to do my hair and I think her constant manipulation of my curls made it break off. Then as I got older and it grew a little I thought it needed to be straight to be manageable and the relaxer caused a lot of breakage so it never got this long. Now that is is a lot longer...I get told that it's only this long because I am half white. I think the curls of AA hair don't show length as well, not to mention AA hair is very fragile...a lot of black women over-do their hair so I think it breaks. Not to mention they braid it too tight, and use lots of chemicals so it breaks more. So when they say it won't grow it really is only because they don't really know how to treat it so that it will grow.
I know a girl who is full black with hair down to her waist...she went once a week or two to a salon to get it washed and blow-dried straight, but she has no chemicals in it and she doesn't do much. So it is certainly possible. I think if all the girls who wanted long hair and it wouldn't grow, would come here and learn how to treat it...there would be a lot more long-hairs.

teela1978
July 25th, 2009, 01:06 PM
Hmmmm... Lady Libra seems to be correct. A quick pubmed search comes up with a paper documenting the speed of african hair growth (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11531795?ordinalpos=5&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsP anel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum) as being significantly slower than caucasian...

I do wonder to some degree about the validity of their experimental design though. It sounds like their caucasian volunteers were in 1st world countries while their african ones were in 3rd world. I would think that variable might cause a difference on its own.

Vermelha
July 31st, 2009, 09:55 AM
Can you find it and post the link? I am searching but don't see anything related to hair growth rates... :confused:

Quote taken from http://www.hair-science.com/_int/_en/topic/topic_sousrub.aspx?tc=ROOT-HAIR-SCIENCE%5ELIVING-AND-RELIVING%5EELSEWHERE-IN-WORLD&cur=ELSEWHERE-IN-WORLD



Certainly, I think this is an "average." Not all people of Asian descent grow hair that fast, and not all people of African descent grow hair that slow. But, it was interesting to me...

Awesome post! I do think that it's more on an individual basis than race though. My sister, who is full black, grows hair faster than I do, (I have mixed heritage). She has to get a hair cut monthly and she relaxes.

I think everyone can have long hair, but I do agree that some people do grow slower than others. I had a co-worker who was half-Japanese and we both cut our hair to SL about two years ago around the same time. Now, we both are sitting at past APL, and I've had a few trims in between. She may have too. Of course, my hair is curly and her's is straight, and I have to baby my hair a bit more than she does, but we both have the same hair length.

My point is that we all can get there, some sooner than others, but we all can get there in due time. It's hard to say that every single person grows at one rate. It's more genetics than race itself.