iMATTER
HAIR-
RAISING!
Hair can be fun to play with
or it can be a pain when it
tangles and needs combing.
It’s also so different from
other parts of your body.
You can tie, snip and style it
and even change the colour.
But have you wondered
about why you grow hair?
The hair on our heads
provides warmth for cooler
seasons and as we lose
about 25 per cent of our
body heat through our
scalp (that’s the top part
of your head), the fact that
hair can be a heater is quite
a brilliant thing! In summer,
the hair on your head even
provides protection from
the sun’s harmful rays.
HAIR SNIPPETS
££There are
between 100,000
and 150,000 hairs
on your head.
4
SPARK
££Keratin is the
protein that forms
your hair. It’s also
in your nails.
££The scientist
Charles Darwin
thought that
humans used
their intelligence
to invent knives to
cut and tidy hair.
The very earliest people
were covered in hair. But
as they adapted better to
harsh temperatures their
extra hair disappeared.
These days hair is still
really useful. It offers
sun protection, and our
eyelashes protect us from
getting dust and other
nasties in our eyes.
££Human hair
might feel soft
but it’s one of the
strongest fibres
on the planet.
££How you “do”
your hair can
be seen as an
important sign of
your personality.