What Is The Difference Between Thin / Fine Hair and Thick Hair

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When people talk about thin hair, technically they are referring to the thickness of each strand of hair rather than the number of hairs on your head.

Thin hair actually has a different structure to thick hair. This is the science; the diameter (width) of:

• Very fine hair is under 40 micrometers
• Fine hair is 40 to 60 micrometers
• Average hair is 60 to 80 micrometers
• Thick hair is more than 80 micrometers

In thin hair the cuticle (top layer of hair) can make up c.40% of the strand and the cortex up to 60%. Those with very thin hair don't even have a medulla.

In thick hair the cuticle will normally make up only about 10% of the strand and the cortex upto 90%.

What does this mean for you if you have thin hair?

The finer your hair more prone it is to breakage, tangles, split ends and damage.

Side note, the problem of a straight haired person with thin hair are slightly different than for us kinky-curlies:

1. Fly-away hair (a problem so Caucasian that I had to look up what it actually was!) is a big problem
2. For those with thin and straight hair greasiness is also a major issue. The double-edged sword: frequent washing is wanted to remove the grease but all the handling will lead to excessive levels of tangling and a lot of damage. So people with thin straight hair need to handle the delicate balance.

If you have thin kinky or curly hair minimizing hair handling really helps to avoid damage and tangling. Protective styles or even growing dreadlocks / locs will really help you to gain and see your length.

If you manipulate your kinky/curly hair too often you may find that you are finding it harder to retain length than someone with courser hair just because you have a higher propensity for breakage.

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