Did you know? If you're of East Asian descent, you probably have thicker strands of hair than your friends of African or European descent.
Asian hair is the thickest, with a larger diameter of about 70 µm. Caucasian hair has an average diameter of 65 µm, and African hair is the finest, with a diameter of 55 µm. The cross-section of Asian hair is the most round and uniform, Caucasian hair has an elliptical shape, and African hair has a flattened shape.
Asians (that includes East Asians) tend to have the thickest hair (the biggest diameter for each strand of hair), while whites tend to have higher hair density (more strands of hair per square inch of scalp).
Each ethnicity exhibits specific characteristics. Caucasians tend to have the greatest number of hair follicles. African-Americans tend to have the fewest hair follicles but have thicker hair strands. West Asians have thicker hairs with fewer follicles, and those from East Asia have thinner hair with more follicles.
While human populations in Africa and Europe had one, ancestral, version of the gene, most East Asians had a derived variant, EDARV370A, which studies had linked to thicker scalp hair and an altered tooth shape in humans.
The average diameter, or thickness, of Asian hair is from 80 to 120 µm, compared to 65 µm in Caucasian hair and 55 µm in Black hair. The average diameter of Hispanic/Latino hair tends to fall between that of Asian and Caucasian. Caucasians have the highest hair density among the ethnicities studied.
The thickest strand of human hair is 772 micrometres (0.03 inches) and was plucked from the beard of Muhammad Umair Khan (Pakistan), in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan, as verified on 3 March 2021. The hair was discovered on Muhammad's chin as part of his beard.
Mechanical properties vary among different ethnicities. Asian hair demonstrates the highest hardness and elastic modulus, followed by Caucasian and African hairs, respectively.
Hispanic hair tends to be next in terms of hair density, followed by those of a European background or Caucasian ethnicity – though the thickness of their hair strands may vary. People of Asian descent tend to have thicker hair strands than Caucasians.
There is no scientific basis to claim that any particular ethnicity or race has "more dominant" genes than others. Genetic diversity exists within and across all human populations. All humans belong to the same species, Homo sapiens, and share the vast majority of their DNA sequence.
But that's not all: The thickness of hair fibers changes, too," says Thomas. You start with "baby fine" hair that gets a lot thicker around puberty and continues to increase into your 30s; thickness then begins to decrease around your early 40s.
Accordingly, hair is a mirror of our health, which is why strong hair testifies to vitality and a healthy lifestyle. For women in particular, long, full hair stands for femininity. From a biological point of view, flowing hair is so attractive because it is associated with health and fertility.
Caucasian hair, or European hair as it is also referred to as, is much finer, meaning it falls downwards, covering the ears and neck, perfect for trapping and retaining heat in colder climates.
Anthropologist Joseph Deniker said in 1901 that the very hirsute peoples are the Ainus, Uyghurs, Iranians, Australian aborigines (Arnhem Land being less hairy), Toda, Dravidians and Melanesians, while the most glabrous peoples are the Indigenous Americans, San, and East Asians, who include Chinese, Koreans, Mongols, ...
Genetic factors appear to play a major role in determining hair texture—straight, wavy, or curly—and the thickness of individual strands of hair. Studies suggest that different genes influence hair texture and thickness in people of different ethnic backgrounds.
People who have type 3 hair have S shaped bouncy curls that are well defined, dry and slightly rough. This type has further three hair texture types for African-American hair: type 3a, 3b and 3c.
Asian hair is by far the thickest of all hair types – 80 - 120 µm in diameter. Because of its extra diameter, it is also the strongest, and most resistant to damage.
According to recent DNA studies, most Mexicans have a small amount of African, averaging to about 5% African DNA. Therefore, Afro-Mexican refers to those Mexicans with above-average levels of specifically West African ancestry that is noticeable in their appearance.
Chinese men were less likely than White men to experience balding in any pattern. Black participants also had lower odds for temporal, vertex, and severe balding but to a lesser extent than Chinese men.
Type 1A is the rarest hair type and is stick-straight without even a hint of a wave.
Skin barrier function is reportedly stronger in darker skin tones (the stratum corneum is the skin barrier). Asian skin is reported to have similarities with Caucasian skin in terms of water loss and has the weakest barrier function.
It has been reported that Asian hair is generally straight and is the thickest, while its cross-section is the most round-shaped among these three. Caucasian hair is generally straight or wavy and is the thinnest, while its cross-section is relatively elliptic.
Generally, the rule of thumb is the darker the hair the thicker it is. Individuals with black and brown hair typically have thicker hair strands but an overall lower density of hair. While blonde hair individuals usually have finer hair strands but a high density of those hairs.
More than 90% of Han Chinese, 70% of Japanese and Thai people, and 60% to 90% of Native Americans carry the "thick hair strand" version of the EDAR gene. Meanwhile, it's almost nonexistent in people of African and European descent.