Hair color and structure

The color and shape of the hair.

Understand the different types of hair, to better care for your own.

If the color of a hair depends on the pigments of its shaft, its diameter and its structure, several parameters result: the position of the bulb in the hair follicle, ethnic origin, etc.

Chestnut, blond, brown ...

• The natural color of the hair is due to the presence of melanin. These are pigments located in the hair shaft. There are seven natural hair shades distributed in France in the following proportions: 50% brown hair, 20% gray hair, 10% blonde and black hair, 5% red hair and 2.5% of brown and white hair.
• Color variability is related to the existence of two main types of pigments. Black-colored eumelanin and brown-red phaeomelanin produced in varying proportions depending on the individual. Melanin is produced by cells located at the base of the hair root under the dependence of hereditary nutritional hormonal factors, etc.
• Over the years, the activity of cells making melanin decreases. This causes a gradual drop in production and therefore bleaching of the hair. Electron microscopy studies have, moreover, demonstrated a reduction or even a disappearance of the melanin "factories" that are the melanocytes.
• It is estimated that at the age of 50, 50% individuals with white skin are 50% of gray hair. Bleaching usually begins at the temples and then extends to the crown. However, hereditary factors are involved in the precocity, speed and location of more or less marked bleaching of the hair.

Smooth or curly?

• Hair diameter and structure vary greatly from individual to individual and are largely genetically pre-programmed. The most important characteristics of the hair are the position of the bulb in the hair follicle, the shape of the hair follicle itself, the size and number of turns of the hair shaft.
• So, the more or less curly character of the hair depends on the curvature of the root, the shape of the shaft and the configuration of the keratin fibers (flat in curly hair, it is almost round in straight hair). There is no difference in the biochemical composition of hair from one individual to another. On the other hand, hair and scalp present structural, anatomical and physiological peculiarities that vary according to ethnic origin. In our eyes, it is important to understand these different hair structures in order to know how to care for them correctly. You can find this out in Géomer hair care.
• A distinction is thus made between Caucasian (European and Indian), Asian, African and certain European and African-American populations, in particular exhibiting a high degree of polymorphism.
• Asians' hair, which is mostly round in section, is typically black and straight. European hair, on the other hand, shows great variability in shape and structure and has an oval hair shaft.
• African hair which is predominantly black and flattened in cross section, shows up to twelve times more waves than Caucasian type hair. The cuticle, which is then strongly flexed at the level of the waves, is particularly sensitive to hair care such as heat or chemical attacks.

And you, your hair, what type is it?

We help you choose the products you need to better care for your hair, by completing our questionnaire:

Take good care of yourself and your hair

Alain Ledroit,

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