Is it just genes???

[shetara20]

Hello everyone. I was just wondering if it is possible for me not to have long hair because of my genes. I remember looking at my mother's hair before she had me and it really didnt get not that much longer (maybe a 1/2 inch to an inch) longer thanmine is right now.I am chin length. Any scientific reasoning behond this or is it just me???

 

[wheezy807]

Sometimes it is hereditery, but for the MOST part it is a lack of knowledge as far as black haircare is concerned. IMO.

 

[ladylibra]

but does your mother know, without a doubt, that her hair can't grow any longer than that?

it's hard to determine when you actually reach your terminal length, or if there is another culprit. as with everything, it's part nature (genes) and part nurture (care).

 

[locabouthair]

Sometimes it is hereditery, but for the MOST part it is a lack of knowledge as far as black haircare is concerned. IMO.

exactly.

I don't think you can judge your hairs potential based on your family, because for example, even though no one in your family has long hair and they werent taking care of it anyway, you can't judge your hair based on that.

 

[shetara20]

but does your mother know, without a doubt, that her hair can't grow any longer than that?

it's hard to determine when you actually reach your terminal length, or if there is another culprit. as with everything, it's part nature (genes) and part nurture (care).

How can u really tell when u have reached terminal length?? I know lack of hair growth but what else????

 

[Foxglove]

If you are getting new growth and needing retouches then your hair is growing. Retention is the problem a lot of people have

 

[cmw45]

Sometimes it is hereditery, but for the MOST part it is a lack of knowledge as far as black haircare is concerned. IMO.

ITA! My hair is currently the longest it has ever been. Whenever my mother looks at my hair she always says, "Your hair was never this soft when you were younger. Your hair was never this long." I really believe that it has more to do with good hair care practices than hereditery for gaining a decent length.

 

[lilsparkle825]

nah its more than that.

 

[vestaluv1]

OK, so the "average person" grows hair at a rate of 1/2 inch per month for a period of 4 to 6 years until the termination of the growth cycle which IS genetically prediposed. As with differences in peoples height for example some people will fall short of this growth rate or far exceed it.

You can maximize your genetic growth cycle (assuming that you are in good health) through taking certain supplements such as Vitamin B Complex, amino acids and MSM.

However, you say you are chin length and in my strong opinion, you have the ability to grow longer hair and your issue is probably more than likely to be retention.
How many Caucasian or Asian people do you see that cannot grow hair past chin length or even shoulder length?
Your answer is probably NONE!
African hair is very brittle and adds to the misconception that it cannot grow long.
With tight, coily hair, stress is placed at every kink in the hair fibre. Hence, tight, coily, kinky hair is weak, fragile and prone to breakage.
It appears not to grow, however as fast as the hair IS growing, length is being lost through breakage.

In my opinion, healthy hair practises are the key to growing longer, stronger hair.

In the last two months that have been on my hair journry, I have witnessed considerable hair growth and retention simply by changing my hair practises and I have never been much past shoulder length.
I now believe that I have the ability to grow my hair longer than this and I am well on my way to APL.

Happy Hair Growing Sista!

 

[Kurlee]

ITA! My hair is currently the longest it has ever been. Whenever my mother looks at my hair she always says, "Your hair was never this soft when you were younger. Your hair was never this long." I really believe that it has more to do with good hair care practices than hereditery for gaining a decent length.

i agree most people can grow 18 inches of hair before terminal length. I have read this over and over. Retention is most likely the problem

 

[Miss*Tress]

My Mom has type 4 hair that has never grown past her shoulders. I have type 3 hair that never grew past APL. Since joining the board, my hair has reached MBL. All that to say hair care techniques play an important role in the growth we retain.

 

[shetara20]

If you are getting new growth and needing retouches then your hair is growing. Retention is the problem a lot of people have

retension means??? and how do i improve it???

 

[ladylibra]

www.loreal.com states that Asian hair grows at a rate of 1.3 cm per month... Caucasian hair grows at a rate of 1.2 cm a month... and African hair grows at a rate of 0.9 cm a month.

yes, you read that right... on average, we have a slower growth rate.

let's assume that 3 "average" subjects from each of the 3 races shaved their heads and retained every inch of growth in a year. the Asian would have 15.6 cm, the Caucasian 14.4 cm and the African 10.8 cm. in inches, that is 6.1 inches, 5.7 inches and 4.3 inches respectively.

if all 3 of them had the "average" anagen phase of 3 years, the Asian would be able to achieve 18.3 inches, the Caucasian 17.1 inches and the African 12.9 inches.

now obviously there are people who fall outside of "average." very few people will be at an extreme of very short hair or very long hair. most of us will fall in the middle. just to give you a visual example...

my hair is 13 inches here (layers):

(keep in mind that i am 5' 9" so for women who are the "average" height of 5' 5", 13 inches will probably look longer on them.)

as long as you are doing things to prevent your ends from breaking off or needing to be cut off (which is what we mean by rentention), i believe most of us should be able to grow at least 12.9 inches of hair within 3-year span.

 

[Miss*Tress]

Deleted post.

 

[Foxglove]

retension means??? and how do i improve it???

I suck at explaining but here goes. Retention is keeping the hair that grows. For instance if your hair grows half an inch a month (1 inch in 8 weeks) and you blow dry and flat iron everyday and find yourself getting split ends by the time you go to the stylist after 8 weeks to get a trim and she may have to cut all the progress off bc of dry, crunchy ends. If you have to get an inch cut off every 8 weeks it may look like your hair isn't growing when really it is but you keep having to cut it off bc of damage. When people talk about protective styling they are trying to decrease the things that could cause damage to the ends by tucking them away, moisturizing them frequently, cutting down the amount of direct heat, etc

 

[MiWay]

I think genes can play a part, but not a huge part. My mother had WL hair, and no matter what she did to her hair (curling iron every day, relaxing every 6 weeks, etc), it stayed healthy and kept growing. She has gone from long to short to natural to dreds to relaxed with no problems. Me, on the other hand, I've never had hair longer than APL, and if I did to my hair half of what she did to hers, I wouldn't have any. But with the help of LHCF, I am BSL with a goal of WL, and now my mother is asking me for haircare advice.

 

[Kurlee]

www.loreal.com states that Asian hair grows at a rate of 1.3 cm per month... Caucasian hair grows at a rate of 1.2 cm a month... and African hair grows at a rate of 0.9 cm a month.

yes, you read that right... on average, we have a slower growth rate.

let's assume that 3 "average" subjects from each of the 3 races shaved their heads and retained every inch of growth in a year. the Asian would have 15.6 cm, the Caucasian 14.4 cm and the African 10.8 cm. in inches, that is 6.1 inches, 5.7 inches and 4.3 inches respectively.

I dunno how accurate this is. 4 inches a year? What is the scientific rationale for this. my hair has never grown that slow

 

[gymfreak336]

Heres the deal..........

Genetics play a part in everything. We, humans, have a little over 23,000 genes and they deal you your cards in everything concerning your body.

The thing is that Genetics load the gun, but the environment pulls the trigger.
Our genes give us various advantages or disadvantages to every illness, condition, physical attribute etc..... BUT how we treat ourselves and what we do afters "pulls the trigger". While your hair might come out of your scalp super strong and thick due to your genetics, you can still do but only so much abuse to it before it looks dry and damaged. Everyones hair is different but everyone has an allowance of what they can take. If you go over your personal allowance, you will still have jacked up hair. Don't eat right....it will show, don't get enough sleep....it will show, stressed out.....it will show. All of those things are critcal for a healthy hair growing environment.

Also, I believe many of us don't have a clue to what we can really do genetically because bad hair care habits have been passed down throughout the generations. You don't know what you can do until you do things the right way and give yourself time. When I say time, I mean atleast 3 years. This hair thing is a process and a journey. It isn't instant success with you going to get an instant weave But seriously though, you got to keep a positive attitude and you have to be consistent. You can't do the right things once a week and think you are going anywhere. You can't hold on to visbly damaged hair and think you are going anywhere. Learn the basics, understand what they do, why it is important, how it applies to you and what your hair likes and then do it. Wait.....wait......wait some more and Voila!!!

 

[Gracie]

Genetics is part of it and hair care is the other part. Proper hair care will help you to retain allowing your hair to reach longer lengths

 

[MD_Lady]

www.loreal.com states that Asian hair grows at a rate of 1.3 cm per month... Caucasian hair grows at a rate of 1.2 cm a month... and African hair grows at a rate of 0.9 cm a month.

yes, you read that right... on average, we have a slower growth rate.

let's assume that 3 "average" subjects from each of the 3 races shaved their heads and retained every inch of growth in a year. the Asian would have 15.6 cm, the Caucasian 14.4 cm and the African 10.8 cm. in inches, that is 6.1 inches, 5.7 inches and 4.3 inches respectively.

if all 3 of them had the "average" anagen phase of 3 years, the Asian would be able to achieve 18.3 inches, the Caucasian 17.1 inches and the African 12.9 inches.

now obviously there are people who fall outside of "average." very few people will be at an extreme of very short hair or very long hair. most of us will fall in the middle. just to give you a visual example...

my hair is 13 inches here (layers):

(keep in mind that i am 5' 9" so for women who are the "average" height of 5' 5", 13 inches will probably look longer on them.)

as long as you are doing things to prevent your ends from breaking off or needing to be cut off (which is what we mean by rentention), i believe most of us should be able to grow at least 12.9 inches of hair within 3-year span.

Good points! Thanks for the info.

 

[crazydaze911]

www.loreal.com states that Asian hair grows at a rate of 1.3 cm per month... Caucasian hair grows at a rate of 1.2 cm a month... and African hair grows at a rate of 0.9 cm a month.

yes, you read that right... on average, we have a slower growth rate.

let's assume that 3 "average" subjects from each of the 3 races shaved their heads and retained every inch of growth in a year. the Asian would have 15.6 cm, the Caucasian 14.4 cm and the African 10.8 cm. in inches, that is 6.1 inches, 5.7 inches and 4.3 inches respectively.

if all 3 of them had the "average" anagen phase of 3 years, the Asian would be able to achieve 18.3 inches, the Caucasian 17.1 inches and the African 12.9 inches.

now obviously there are people who fall outside of "average." very few people will be at an extreme of very short hair or very long hair. most of us will fall in the middle. just to give you a visual example...

my hair is 13 inches here (layers):

(keep in mind that i am 5' 9" so for women who are the "average" height of 5' 5", 13 inches will probably look longer on them.)

as long as you are doing things to prevent your ends from breaking off or needing to be cut off (which is what we mean by rentention), i believe most of us should be able to grow at least 12.9 inches of hair within 3-year span.

i know other people think its too little growth, but 4 inches a year sounds about right to me. I think i may have reached my terminal length. my hair has been between APL and BSL (mostly APL) forever regardless of how careful i am with it. I will be adding a June or July pic to my siggy soon but i'm pretty sure there will be no change. from the first to the second pic - i had a trim, so it got shorter. from the second to the third pic i got BKT done so it looks a tiny winy bit longer if you REALLY REALLY look at it. Meanwhile, my sis in law has gone from shoulder to midback in the same time. it is both nature and nurture but genes are very important, if you grow more, you can retain more. if your hair grows slower, the growth may be more likely offset by needed trims. this month makes six months since my last trim. And i can tell from my siggy pic that my hair has not even gotten back to the length it was before the last trim, so how can i expect it to grow longer? but if i wait more than 6 months, it may be too long and damage my hair... c the dilemma? If my hair grew faster, a trim wouldnt be such an issue......anyone else feel this way?

 

[locabouthair]

i know other people think its too little growth, but 4 inches a year sounds about right to me. I think i may have reached my terminal length. my hair has been between APL and BSL (mostly APL) forever regardless of how careful i am with it. I will be adding a June or July pic to my siggy soon but i'm pretty sure there will be no change. from the first to the second pic - i had a trim, so it got shorter. from the second to the third pic i got BKT done so it looks a tiny winy bit longer if you REALLY REALLY look at it. Meanwhile, my sis in law has gone from shoulder to midback in the same time. it is both nature and nurture but genes are very important, if you grow more, you can retain more. if your hair grows slower, the growth may be more likely offset by needed trims. this month makes six months since my last trim. And i can tell from my siggy pic that my hair has not even gotten back to the length it was before the last trim, so how can i expect it to grow longer? but if i wait more than 6 months, it may be too long and damage my hair... c the dilemma? If my hair grew faster, a trim wouldnt be such an issue......anyone else feel this way?

I feel the same way. My hair barely grows 1/4 an inch per month. By the time I get a relaxer I have maybe 1/2 an inch or 3/4 inch of new growth. And I was trimming every relaxer cuz I like the feel of freshly cut ends but of course I neve rgained any length. So I decided to up my water, vitamins, change my diet to get more growth and to stop trimming so much. I figure even if I trim every relaxer if I am growing more I will gain length.

I know a lot of us on the board focus a lot on retaining but like you said, if youre not growing much, then you cant retain much. This has been the case with me.

 

[d-rock]

Hello everyone. I was just wondering if it is possible for me not to have long hair because of my genes. I remember looking at my mother's hair before she had me and it really didnt get not that much longer (maybe a 1/2 inch to an inch) longer thanmine is right now.I am chin length. Any scientific reasoning behond this or is it just me???

DNA is the blueprint for how you will look and it, no matter how nice you are to your hair, determines the longest your hair is capable of growing. Topical ointments and pills can't override genetics to force your hair longer or fuller than your DNA calls for. Now what you do to your hair will determine how healthy the individual strands will become.

 

[d-rock]

www.loreal.com states that Asian hair grows at a rate of 1.3 cm per month... Caucasian hair grows at a rate of 1.2 cm a month... and African hair grows at a rate of 0.9 cm a month.

yes, you read that right... on average, we have a slower growth rate.

let's assume that 3 "average" subjects from each of the 3 races shaved their heads and retained every inch of growth in a year. the Asian would have 15.6 cm, the Caucasian 14.4 cm and the African 10.8 cm. in inches, that is 6.1 inches, 5.7 inches and 4.3 inches respectively.

if all 3 of them had the "average" anagen phase of 3 years, the Asian would be able to achieve 18.3 inches, the Caucasian 17.1 inches and the African 12.9 inches.

now obviously there are people who fall outside of "average." very few people will be at an extreme of very short hair or very long hair. most of us will fall in the middle. just to give you a visual example...

my hair is 13 inches here (layers):

(keep in mind that i am 5' 9" so for women who are the "average" height of 5' 5", 13 inches will probably look longer on them.)

as long as you are doing things to prevent your ends from breaking off or needing to be cut off (which is what we mean by rentention), i believe most of us should be able to grow at least 12.9 inches of hair within 3-year span.

You also need to remember that a majority of brown skinned people are of very mixed ancestry including some Asian, White, Native American, et cetera, so I don't trust sources that overlook the fact that dark skinned people are rarely purebred Africans. Especially brown people in America, doesn't matter how dark your skin is, pigment doesn't determine hair length, fullness, or texture, DNA and ancestry do and very few of us are completely African.

 

[GoingNatural]

Hello everyone. I was just wondering if it is possible for me not to have long hair because of my genes. I remember looking at my mother's hair before she had me and it really didnt get not that much longer (maybe a 1/2 inch to an inch) longer thanmine is right now.I am chin length. Any scientific reasoning behond this or is it just me???

nope. just lack of hair care knowledge passed down through the ages

 

[ladylibra]

I dunno how accurate this is. 4 inches a year? What is the scientific rationale for this. my hair has never grown that slow

You also need to remember that a majority of brown skinned people are of very mixed ancestry including some Asian, White, Native American, et cetera, so I don't trust sources that overlook the fact that dark skinned people are rarely purebred Africans. Especially brown people in America, doesn't matter how dark your skin is, pigment doesn't determine hair length, fullness, or texture, DNA and ancestry do and very few of us are completely African.

it says AVERAGE ladies. not "definitive for everyone in the African diaspora." there are Africans who have faster growth rates than this, just like there are people of non-African descent who have slower growth rates.

i posted that because there are many women i've met on these hair boards who only get 4 inches a year. i don't want them to be discouraged, it isn't abnormal and if this is indeed your growth rate AND you only have a 3-year anagen you can still achieve a decent length of hair... you are not stuck at chin or barely brushing the shoulders as many women feel they are.

 

[cocoberry10]

I definitely don't think it's genes b/c why can people with locks grow their hair to their butts in like 2 years?

No, I think it's the texture and how we care for our hair that makes the difference!

I don't necessarily think we can all have butt length or even waistlength hair, but I do think just about everyone can have BSL or longer

 

[locabouthair]

I definitely don't think it's genes b/c why can people with locks grow their hair to their butts in like 2 years?

No, I think it's the texture and how we care for our hair that makes the difference!

I don't necessarily think we can all have butt length or even waistlength hair, but I do think just about everyone can have BSL or longer

they can because the locks is all the shed hair and hair that woulf have broke off. the hair can't go anywhere so they retain any hair they would have lost. But thats not to say, their hair couldnt grow if they were taking care of it.

I've seen some 4b's on the board with MBL.

I really dont buy the genetics thing. Maybe I just never really cared because all I wanted was a medium length like APL. I never wanted BSL,MBL, etc..I think when people want those really long lengths then the doubt and the question about genetics comes in. Maybe genetics does play a part in getting WSL, tail bone, but I never pondered about it because I never wanted those lengths.

If all of the women in your family, treated their hair like crap, can you really look at their hair as an example of how yours will be, expecially if you are taking care of it right?

 

[dannie]

www.loreal.com states that Asian hair grows at a rate of 1.3 cm per month... Caucasian hair grows at a rate of 1.2 cm a month... and African hair grows at a rate of 0.9 cm a month.

yes, you read that right... on average, we have a slower growth rate.

let's assume that 3 "average" subjects from each of the 3 races shaved their heads and retained every inch of growth in a year. the Asian would have 15.6 cm, the Caucasian 14.4 cm and the African 10.8 cm. in inches, that is 6.1 inches, 5.7 inches and 4.3 inches respectively.

if all 3 of them had the "average" anagen phase of 3 years, the Asian would be able to achieve 18.3 inches, the Caucasian 17.1 inches and the African 12.9 inches.

I think Ive reached my terminal length because for the past 2 years or so my hair has not moved past BSL and I know its in good condition because my breakage is minimal.

A few times I've measured my shed hairs and they are all about 12 inches no matter what part of my head they come from.

If this is true it explains a lot of things and I can let my dreams of MBL go and stop wondering what Im doing wrong and just know its not for me.

 

[chicacanella]

I dunno how accurate this is. 4 inches a year? What is the scientific rationale for this. my hair has never grown that slow

Me either. i usually get more than 1/2 inch per month.