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Long hair may look sexy and luxurious on someone who is in their 20s or 30s, but after the age of 40 not many women look good with long hair. It is a generally accepted fact that as women get older, their hair should be lighter and shorter. When we think of a woman of 65 with charcoal black hair down to her waist, the image strikes us as being unnatural and unusual. However, it is much easier to imagine an older woman with soft blonde hair cut above her shoulders.

One reason why older women should have shorter hair is because of the fact that the aging process not only affects the skin, but also the hair. As we age, our hair becomes less shiny, more coarse, and more prone to breakage. Older hair is not as pliable as younger hair, and is therefore more fragile. Because of this fact, long hair on an older woman seldom looks healthy, and more often than not makes the woman look bedraggled and ragged.

Shorter hair also makes people look younger than they really are because long hair gives the illusion of elongating facial features. If an older woman with a sagging chin and drooping eyelids were to wear her hair long, she risks the chance of looking like a bloodhound.

Shorter hair is also preferred by older women because it gives the illusion of fullness. As we age, our hair loses volume, and long hair will look flat and lifeless on an older woman. Cutting the hair short provides many more styling opportunities for the older woman, since the hair can be set in rollers or a curling iron, it can be permed, and it can be teased. All of these things will make hair look thicker and fuller, and will therefore make the woman look younger.

Of course, as with every rule there are exceptions. I have seen a few older women with long hair who were able to pull off the look. But they all had one thing in common: their hair was unnaturally thick and still maintained its youthful luster and shine. Had these women been cursed with thin hair that was dull in appearance, they would have looked much older than they really were.

Even though long flowing hair is the dream of nearly every woman, women must be realistic and accept their limitations. Getting older is an undeniable fact of life. Women who try too hard to defy Father Time just end up looking desperate and ridiculous. In an ideal world, women of 65 would have the same hair they had when they were teenagers, but in real life things just don't work out that way.

Learn more about this author, Marlin Bressi.
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