How does hair grow, if it is a dead cell?

Its a known fact that hair outside the skin is a group of dead cells. Then how does it grow?

To make the answer simple, look at the above diagram. It shows the basic structure of hair. Beneath the skin, the hair has hair follicle,sebaceous gland, hair bulb and papilla.The hair shaft lies external to the skin.

The hair receives nutrients (Vitamins A, B,C and D) and proteins from the blood stream through the papilla. New cells are generated and gradually they move  towards the upper surface beneath the skin. In this process, the cells lose their nucleus i.e., they die and form a conical shaped structure as they come out of the skin, which we see as visible external hair.  The hair which we see outside is merely dead cells made through a this process called Keratinization.

So when we see hair grow, it is the growth from inside the scalp, not at the tip of the hair.

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