Article released on June 16, 2008 in the Archives of Dermatology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. A 60-second hair count is a reliable method when assessing hair shedding. Assessment of shedding, as opposed to baldness, is not standardized across medical profession. It is normal to shed 100 hairs each day which is based on assumption that the average scalp usually has 100,000 hairs, and 10% of these are in the resting phase. However the popular opinion has does not account for different rates based on age or gender and not even been validated scientifically.

Carina A. Wasko, M.D., of Baylo College of Medicine, Houston, and Colleagues investigated the shedding of hairs in 60 healthy men, half aged between 20 and 40 years, and half aged around 41 and 60 years, who showed no evidence of baldness, or alopecia. They were given identical combs and the guides to wash their hair with the same brand name of shampoo for three (3) consecutive mornings. On the next day or 4th days, they were asked to comb their hair forward for 60 seconds over a cloth of contrasting color before to use a shampoo, then ask them to count the number of hair that were shed. This process was repeated for three (3) consecutive days, then repeated in eligible participants six (6) months later.

The researchers were able to wrote and summarize the results between 0 and 43 hairs were shed, with an average loss of 10.3 hairs per 60 second test. These results were consistent from day to day for all participants. “When repeated six months later in both age groups, the hair counts did not change much. The hair counts were repeated and verified by a trained investigator, with results similar to those of subject hair counts”, the authors said in his wrote.

He conclude that this test is a reasonable standardized measure for hair loss. “In summary, the 60-second hair count is a simple, practical and objective tool for monitoring conditions associated with hair shedding. Low intrapatient variability demonstrates that dependable results over an extended period of time are obtainable. The similarity between investigator and subject hair counts indicates that patients can reliably count hairs.” They also indicate the need for further experimentation: “Studies of the 60-second hair count in normal women and in the setting of hair disease still need to be performed.”

Standardizing the 60-Second Hair Count
Carina A. Wasko, MD; Christine L. Mackley, MD; Leonard C. Sperling, MD; Dave Mauger, PhD; Jeffrey J. Miller, MD
Arch Dermatol. 2008;144(6):759-762.