We spend hours at salons and barbers,
but there's more to a haircut
than meets the eye.
This is What If,
and here's what would happen
Let's start at the root of this.
You have about 5 million hair follicles
all over your body.
Our visible hair is the hair shaft
sticking out from the skin,
with the root sunk in a follicle
under the surface of the skin.
Except for a small number of
growing cells at the root base,
human hair is dead tissue
comprised of keratin and other proteins.
Cells rapidly divide at the base of the follicle.
They push upward, harden,
undergo pigmentation,
and then you have hair.
So, why do we cut our hair?
Cutting our hair
can be about self-expression,
but some people will cut their hair
if they suffer trauma,
like the loss of a loved one,
a relationship,
or even failing health.
According to psychologists,
making changes to your appearance
provides a soothing feeling
because the results
are obvious and immediate.
It can mark a beginning
of significant life changes.
In the 1920s,
when women started
chopping their hair short,
the societal reactions were mixed.
Before this,
long hair was considered feminine.
Families were embarrassed
by their daughters
who decided to get the stylish 'bob' haircut,
and some men started shunning
these 'boyish' women.
But what if we all stopped cutting our hair?
Would this new world have social cliques
like growers and non-growers?
Would we make comparisons to other
people based on how long their hair is?
Would having beautiful,
long flowing hair
be associated with fertility
and good health?
"Oh my God!"
The popularity of long hair
contests would explode.
What about strong hair competitions?
And we will all be tuning in to
the International Hair Freezing Competition.
What would it mean for people
who are losing their hair?
Those not able to grow lengthy hair
would likely become more self-conscious
and feel inadequate.
Hair loss might be a sign of mortality,
and that would be very distressing.
And what about people who are already
bald and shave their heads?
In this crazy new world of hair growers,
this isn't an option anymore,
so you're stuck with
whatever patches of hair you have,
or don't have.
Salons would now focus on hairstyling,
coloring, and other hair related services.
The upkeep would be phenomenal.
Hair accessories would become even
more popular because people will look for
creative ways to express themselves.
"Is that hair gel?"
Gels,
sculpting creams, and other
products would help you deal with this
ever-growing mound of hair.
And there may be hope for
our balding friends after all.
"You're bald!"
Wigs.
The wig industry could step up
and help them out
offering artificial hair solutions.
Now everyone's included.
Or, would 'wig wearers'
be considered imposters?
"No!"
those with super-curly hair
could run into some dangerous situations,
getting their hair caught in
anything and everything.
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Okay,
let's do some quick math.
Hair grows an average of
So, over the span of six years
and a meter of hair,
can you imagine the unlimited range
of hairstyle options?
Whether you like it or not,
you would have to deal with it
being a part of you.
I suppose you could always
tie it back into a ponytail.
Perhaps this would be another social class?
The laid-back ponytail people?
Who knows?
New medical practices could
grow in popularity,
like hair analysis.
During that time, your hair shaft
absorbs chemicals from any drugs you take.
It also contains sweat,
your body's natural oils,
and any toxins around you.
A single strand of hair
can give a lot of information.
Hair analysis uses special techniques
to look at your hair under a microscope.
The results can show details about
your health and habits
and help you pinpoint
needed lifestyle changes.
We would also encounter
a series of new problems.
On average, people lose between
50 to 100 hairs a day,
so that hair will be everywhere.
Imagine what our shower drains
would look like.
We could start new clothing
or carpet making companies
with all this surplus hair.
Hair as a form of expression
is very important,
and there's no denying the amount
of creativity we would see with hairstyles.
We are so focused on appearance,
especially on social media.
Would there eventually be a
haircutting revolution?
Somewhere on the dark web,
an underground community of people
who have short hair?
What if they had to spend their
whole life underground?
Well, that's a story for another WHAT IF.