I was on a phone call to my very good friend and writing mentor, Sylvia McClain, playing catch up since we have not talked in almost two years (I’ve been horrible with keeping up my literary connections, but that’s changng).  The topic of conversation turned to my natural hair book project and Sylvia, who has been natural  since waaaaaaay before I was born, brought up a concern of hers: hair loss.  As far as I have been aware, Sylvia has always had what we term “good” hair, the kind that softly waves and curls, and has always been conscious of her hair’s natural shedding process.  But lately, she expressed, it seemed the process had kicked up a notch.  In addition to the shedding, she noted that there were also changes in her hair’s texture and thickness, and that it was more brittle and prone to breakage than it had been before.  Sylvia attributed the changes in her hair as part and parcel of the change, but needed help finding possible solutions to restore her hair to it’ previous healthy state, because not even medical doctor’s had been able to find the real cause.

As we traded ideas I was hit with an “AHA” type realization that in all the information provided in books and message boards and Websites, I have never seen anyone discuss the changes a woman’s hair goes through as she ages!  I mean, it’s only common sense that as we grow and develop biochemically, our hair becomes affected, and so should the ways we maintain our hair.  But, because the change in hair’s make up is such a gradual process, very little attention seems to be paid to this important aspect of hair care, whether it be natural or chemically altered,  And even less is paid to it in the hair care resources I’ve come across.  Of course graying is the most obvious change, as melanin production in the hair decreases, but also as we age hair thins because the hair follicle diminishes in size, and sebum and keratin production slows resulting in drier, more brittle hair.  And this is probably most apparent during menopause, as Sylvia is discovering, but throughout life similar processes are set into motion which each change our bodies undergo.

But this is not just a topic to ponder once menopause creeps upon us.  Our hair constantly changes in correspondence to the different stages of our development.  From infanthood to puberty, through pregnancy, menses and various other emotional/chemical shifts we women endure, it is apparent that the texture of our hair changes, the density of the hair shaft either increases or decreases, and the moisture quality ebbs and flows.  But with life happening at the speed of blinks while we’re in our “prime”, those minute alterations in our hair  become something we take for granted in a sense.  We really never notice how our hair changes until those changes are drastic.  With this being the case, I had a grand idea to add a section in my book which covers some of the normal changes our hair undergoes during the life cycle.  Quite possibly, by understanding hair’s metamorphosis as we age, we might be able to better care for it in order prevent certain common hair problems that plague us when we get older… or at least change our hair care regimen to compliment the changes.

So wish me luck, because this is an enormous undertaking since there seems to be so little in-depth information on the topic itself, but I am excited about the prospects of shedding light on another faction of cultivating healthy hair, for a life time.  If you have any ideas, resource suggestions or any other information that might prove enlightening, feel free to pass it along.

Healthy Hair Wishes,