Hair, physiologically speaking, is dead — well arbitrarily at least the portion visible above the scalp is. It grows from a follicle, an indentation in the skin, which sinks to deeper levels.

The number of follicles we are born with is genetically determined and therefore does not change throughout our lifetimes. Changes in both wanted and unwanted hair can cause huge differences in our appearances which we constantly endeavour to refine. This struggle has engendered a mishmash of myths, obscuring the marvel of hair care.

Here, we can only address one of the most common one for now, which can also elude doctors — shaving hair makes it grow stronger, thicker, and darker and increase in number.

To begin, if that were true, balding men would have been shaving their heads round the clock and sprouting a thicket of tresses. Firstly, when you shave off hair they come out at a slightly different angle than usual. The end of cut hair is blunted, and lacks the natural taper to fine end and does not magically thicken along its entire length. Secondly, shorter hair is springier. The trichologist (hair expert), Philip Kingsley, cited the example of a bamboo, a longer one is easier to flex as opposed to a long one. Thirdly, once hair is shaved, they may seem darker when they grow since usually they have sun streaked with time. And lastly, as said earlier, the number of follicles is fixed and shaving cannot change that. When we get our locks shortened they may give the illusion of having multiplied given that our hair is not naturally the same length or growing at the same pace and the ends have more volume than at the scalp.

 
Studies, as early as 1928, have shown this myth to be fabricated. The day we are born, our mothers begin shaving their babies' little heads. It is no surprise that, this has been ingrained in our mind and all us women especially are martyrs to our invention. Shaving unwanted hair is an easy alternative to its popular alternative in our part of the world — waxing. It can be done anywhere independent of assistance — protecting our privacy, is cheap and time saving. Though, it provides a shorter hair free period of that silken touch in view of that fact that it does not remove hair from the root. Another drawback of shaving is that it can cause razor bumps and burns.

Razor burns is skin irritation which happens while using a blunt blade or an improper technique (e.g. applying too much pressure, shaving multiple times and too closely etc.) often on dealing with coarse hair on sensitive areas like the face, underarms etc. In more severe settings, razor bumps can form, which is colloquial for psuedofolliculitis barbae, in short PFB. Shaved hair has blunt ends, which can re-enter the skin or can never pop up from the skin i.e. a case of inflammation and ingrown hair. However, this situation can be easily be prevented or treated with proper technique and products bought from the market or other home remedies.

For a quick fix before a party, ladies feel free to slip those safeties over your skin.