Articles about the science of hair

[bumblebums]

Inspired by Igor's recent thread (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=59870) and associated article (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=75), I thought I'd start a thread with links to scientific journal articles studying various questions about hair that would be of interest to this community. Members often lament the lack of information about terminal length, average thickness, "normal" shedding rates, and so on. Those of you who are pretty savvy with Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.com/) and research databases, please share what you've found!

My only rule for this thread is that the links have to be to primary research articles as opposed to popular news outlet reports. The reason is that popular press often distorts scientific findings or report them in misleading ways, and they almost never include references to original sources. Some of us here actually like to look at the Methods section.

Okay, I'll start.

The cross–sectional size and shape of human terminal scalp hair (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1046/j.1365-2133.1997.d01-1161.x/abstract)
P.E. HUTCHINSON, J.R. THOMPSON, British Journal of Dermatology, Volume 136, Issue 2, pages 159–165, February 1997.

Seasonal changes in human hair growth (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2133.1991.tb00423.x/abstract)
VALERIE A. RANDALL, F. J. G. EBLING. British Journal of Dermatology, Volume 124, Issue 2, pages 146–151, February 1991

Scalp hair diameter increases during pregnancy (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1046/j.1365-2230.2003.01331.x/full)
J. Nissimov, U. Elchalal. Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, Volume 28, Issue 5, pages 525–530, September 2003

[Marjolein]

What a GREAT idea Bumblebums!! Sorry, I don't have an article to add at the moment, but yeah, I'm one of those "methods section" people as well :D.

[MinderMutsig]

Oooooh great idea!

*subscribes to thread*

[Igor]

Oho, very interesting :thumbsup:
I used to have a cool website on my favourite-list and it had a lot of microscopic images of hair showing damage types, unfortunately it seems to have been down or gone for a while

[Anje]

Swift, J.A. The mechanics of fracture of human hair. Int J Cosmet Sci 21, 227-39 (1999).

Piérard-Franchimont, C., De Doncker, P., Cauwenbergh, G. & Piérard, G.E. Ketoconazole shampoo: effect of long-term use in androgenic alopecia. Dermatology (Basel) 196, 474-7 (1998).

Kyle, D.J. & Mahler, H.I.M. The effects of hair color and cosmetic use on perceptions of a female's ability. Psychol Women Q 20, 447 (1996).

If people want copies of these, contact me. It took some doing to get ahold of a few of them, since my university doesn't have subscriptions to some of these.

[littlenvy]

Seasonal changes in human hair growth (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2133.1991.tb00423.x/abstract)
VALERIE A. RANDALL, F. J. G. EBLING. British Journal of Dermatology, Volume 124, Issue 2, pages 146–151, February 1991

This is very cool bumblebums!! :)

And the above on has the same seasonal growth/shed as me. ( HEAD hair shed, that is, not the beard or the toe hair :p LOL)

[luxepiggy]

This is SUCH a good idea. I actually have a bunch bookmarked that I refer to a lot! (^(oo)^)v

Mechanical extension of human hair and the movement of the cuticle (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2001/cc052n03/p00185-p00193.pdf)
M. Feughelman , B. K. Willis. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 52, No. 3, 185-193

A new approach to the bending properties of hair fibers (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2001/cc052n06/p00355-p00368.pdf)
F. Baltenneck , A. Franbourg , F. Leroy , M. Mandon , C. Vayssié. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 52, No. 6, 355-368

Influence of internal structures of hair fiber on hair appearance. I. Light scattering from the porous structure of the medulla of human hair (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2002/cc053n02/p00089-p00100.pdf)
Shinobu Nagase , Satoshi Shibuichi , Kenichi Ando , Emiko Kariya , Naoki Satoh. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 53, No. 2, 89-100

Influence of internal structure of hair fiber on hair appearance. II. Consideration of the visual perception mechanism of hair appearance (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2002/cc053n06/p00387-p00402.pdf)
Shinobu Nagase , Naoki Satoh , Koichi Nakamura. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 53, No. 6, 387-402

The role of cationic conditioning compounds in reinforcement of the cuticula (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2003/cc054n01/p00063-p00083.pdf)
Sigrid B. Ruetsch , Y. K. Kamath , H.-D. Weigmann. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 54, No. 1, 63-83

Effect of mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil on prevention of hair damage (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2003/cc054n02/p00175-p00192.pdf)
Aarti S. Rele , R. B. Mohile. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 54, No. 2, 175-192

Optical properties of hair: Effect of treatments on luster as quantified by image analysis (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2003/cc054n04/p00335-p00351.pdf)
R. McMullen , J. Jachowicz. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 54, No. 4, 335-351

*phew* time for a break! More later, after the server backup is done (^(oo)^)

ETA: More below, as promised!

Mechanism of split-end formation in human head hair (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc1997/cc048n02/p00123-p00126.pdf)
J. Alan Swift. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 48, No. 2, 123-126


Hair breakage during combing. I. Pathways of breakage (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2006/cc057n03/p00233-p00243.pdf)
Clarence Robbins. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 57, No. 3, 233-243

Hair breakage during combing. II. Impact loading and hair breakage (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2006/cc057n03/p00245-p00257.pdf)
Clarence Robbins. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 57, No. 3, 245-257

Failure of intercellular adhesion in hair fibers with regard to hair condition and strain conditions (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2004/cc055n04/p00351-p00371.pdf)
Clarence Robbins , Hans-Dietrich Weigmann , Sigrid Ruetsch , Yash Kamath. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 55, No. 4, 351-371

Nanotribological effects of silicone type, silicone deposition level, and surfactant type on human hair using atomic force microscopy (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2006/cc057n01/p00037-p00056.pdf)
Carmen La Torre , Bharat Bhushan , Jian-Zhong Yang , Peter M. Torgerson. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 57, No. 1, 37-56

Hair and amino acids: The interactions and the effects (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2007/cc058n04/p00347-p00357.pdf)
Eiko Oshimura , Hiroshi Abe , Rina Oota. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 58, No. 4, 347-357

Investigation of penetration abilities of various oils into human hair fibers (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2005/cc056n05/p00283-p00295.pdf)
K. Keis , D. Persaud , Y. K. Kamath , A. S. Rele. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 56, No. 5, 283-295

Effect of oil films on moisture vapor absorption on human hair (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2007/cc058n02/p00135-p00145.pdf)
K. Keis , C. L. Huemmer , Y. K. Kamath. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 58, No. 2, 135-145

Effect of coconut oil on prevention of hair damage. Part I (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc1999/cc050n06/p00327-p00339.pdf)
Aarti S. Rele , R. B. Mohile. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 50, No. 6, 327-339

The porosity measurement of hair: a new way to study hair damage mechanisms (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2007/cc058n05/p00579-p00580.pdf)
Yin Z. Hessefort , Brian T. Holland , Richard W. Cloud. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 58, No. 4, 579-580

Review of the current understanding of the effect of ultraviolet and visible radiation on hair structure and options for photoprotection (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2004/cc055n01/p00095-p00113.pdf)
Vittoria Signori. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 55, No. 1, 95-113

Morphology and properties of Asian and Caucasian hair (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2006/cc057n04/p00327-p00338.pdf)
T. Takahashi , R. Hayashi , M. Okamoto , S. Inoue. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 57, No. 4, 327-338

[luxepiggy]

Also wanted to share a little trick I use to find research papers - if you go to "advanced search" in Google and select "File Type" so the search only returns PDFs, it will mostly return product/wholesale catalogs and research reports. A quick glance at the domain will tell you which links are worth clicking on (^(oo)^)v

[bumblebums]

This is very cool bumblebums!! :)

And the above on has the same seasonal growth/shed as me. ( HEAD hair shed, that is, not the beard or the toe hair :p LOL)

Hehe, yeah, I love how they report their results for thigh hair, too!


This is SUCH a good idea. I actually have a bunch bookmarked that I refer to a lot! (^(oo)^)v

Mechanical extension of human hair and the movement of the cuticle (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2001/cc052n03/p00185-p00193.pdf)
M. Feughelman , B. K. Willis. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 52, No. 3, 185-193

A new approach to the bending properties of hair fibers (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2001/cc052n06/p00355-p00368.pdf)
F. Baltenneck , A. Franbourg , F. Leroy , M. Mandon , C. Vayssié. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 52, No. 6, 355-368

Influence of internal structures of hair fiber on hair appearance. I. Light scattering from the porous structure of the medulla of human hair (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2002/cc053n02/p00089-p00100.pdf)
Shinobu Nagase , Satoshi Shibuichi , Kenichi Ando , Emiko Kariya , Naoki Satoh. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 53, No. 2, 89-100

Influence of internal structure of hair fiber on hair appearance. II. Consideration of the visual perception mechanism of hair appearance (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2002/cc053n06/p00387-p00402.pdf)
Shinobu Nagase , Naoki Satoh , Koichi Nakamura. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 53, No. 6, 387-402

The role of cationic conditioning compounds in reinforcement of the cuticula (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2003/cc054n01/p00063-p00083.pdf)
Sigrid B. Ruetsch , Y. K. Kamath , H.-D. Weigmann. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 54, No. 1, 63-83

Effect of mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil on prevention of hair damage (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2003/cc054n02/p00175-p00192.pdf)
Aarti S. Rele , R. B. Mohile. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 54, No. 2, 175-192

Optical properties of hair: Effect of treatments on luster as quantified by image analysis (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2003/cc054n04/p00335-p00351.pdf)
R. McMullen , J. Jachowicz. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 54, No. 4, 335-351

*phew* time for a break! More later, after the server backup is done (^(oo)^)

ETA: More below, as promised!

Mechanism of split-end formation in human head hair (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2007/cc058n05/p00579-p00580.pdf)
J. Alan Swift. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 48, No. 2, 123-126


Hair breakage during combing. I. Pathways of breakage (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2006/cc057n03/p00233-p00243.pdf)
Clarence Robbins. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 57, No. 3, 233-243

Hair breakage during combing. II. Impact loading and hair breakage (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2006/cc057n03/p00245-p00257.pdf)
Clarence Robbins. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 57, No. 3, 245-257

Failure of intercellular adhesion in hair fibers with regard to hair condition and strain conditions (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2004/cc055n04/p00351-p00371.pdf)
Clarence Robbins , Hans-Dietrich Weigmann , Sigrid Ruetsch , Yash Kamath. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 55, No. 4, 351-371

Nanotribological effects of silicone type, silicone deposition level, and surfactant type on human hair using atomic force microscopy (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2006/cc057n01/p00037-p00056.pdf)
Carmen La Torre , Bharat Bhushan , Jian-Zhong Yang , Peter M. Torgerson. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 57, No. 1, 37-56

Hair and amino acids: The interactions and the effects (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2007/cc058n04/p00347-p00357.pdf)
Eiko Oshimura , Hiroshi Abe , Rina Oota. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 58, No. 4, 347-357

Investigation of penetration abilities of various oils into human hair fibers (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2005/cc056n05/p00283-p00295.pdf)
K. Keis , D. Persaud , Y. K. Kamath , A. S. Rele. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 56, No. 5, 283-295

Effect of oil films on moisture vapor absorption on human hair (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2007/cc058n02/p00135-p00145.pdf)
K. Keis , C. L. Huemmer , Y. K. Kamath. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 58, No. 2, 135-145

Effect of coconut oil on prevention of hair damage. Part I (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc1999/cc050n06/p00327-p00339.pdf)
Aarti S. Rele , R. B. Mohile. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 50, No. 6, 327-339

The porosity measurement of hair: a new way to study hair damage mechanisms (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2007/cc058n05/p00579-p00580.pdf)
Yin Z. Hessefort , Brian T. Holland , Richard W. Cloud. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 58, No. 4, 579-580

Review of the current understanding of the effect of ultraviolet and visible radiation on hair structure and options for photoprotection (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2004/cc055n01/p00095-p00113.pdf)
Vittoria Signori. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 55, No. 1, 95-113

Morphology and properties of Asian and Caucasian hair (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2006/cc057n04/p00327-p00338.pdf)
T. Takahashi , R. Hayashi , M. Okamoto , S. Inoue. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 57, No. 4, 327-338

Wow, luxepiggy--that will keep me busy for some time :) There are some fascinating titles here, thanks!

[bumblebums]

Oho, very interesting :thumbsup:
I used to have a cool website on my favourite-list and it had a lot of microscopic images of hair showing damage types, unfortunately it seems to have been down or gone for a while

I remember seeing those images a while ago, too, but they seem to have vanished. It would be great to get them into this thread.




Swift, J.A. The mechanics of fracture of human hair. Int J Cosmet Sci 21, 227-39 (1999).

Piérard-Franchimont, C., De Doncker, P., Cauwenbergh, G. & Piérard, G.E. Ketoconazole shampoo: effect of long-term use in androgenic alopecia. Dermatology (Basel) 196, 474-7 (1998).

Kyle, D.J. & Mahler, H.I.M. The effects of hair color and cosmetic use on perceptions of a female's ability. Psychol Women Q 20, 447 (1996).


I've actually read that last one. It was pretty enlightening.

[Hiriel]

I remember seeing those images a while ago, too, but they seem to have vanished. It would be great to get them into this thread.


There are quite a few good images like that in Nightshade's article about damaged hair (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=79). Not entirely sure the article is peer reviewed, but it's still very good ;)

[luxepiggy]

Oho, very interesting :thumbsup:
I used to have a cool website on my favourite-list and it had a lot of microscopic images of hair showing damage types, unfortunately it seems to have been down or gone for a while

I remember seeing those images a while ago, too, but they seem to have vanished. It would be great to get them into this thread.

I've actually read that last one. It was pretty enlightening.

This report has a lot of images like that (^(oo)^)v



Failure of intercellular adhesion in hair fibers with regard to hair condition and strain conditions (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2004/cc055n04/p00351-p00371.pdf)
Clarence Robbins , Hans-Dietrich Weigmann , Sigrid Ruetsch , Yash Kamath. Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, Vol. 55, No. 4, 351-371

[bumblebums]

Okay, here's another one:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10233263?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsP anel.Pubmed_SingleItemSupl.Pubmed_Discovery_RA&linkpos=4&log$=relatedarticles&logdbfrom=pubmed

[bumblebums]

This is not exactly an article, but a hair science project asking for hair samples.

http://hairproject.wheatleyempire.com/