Hair questions

[bryanl]

How many calories do animals expend to grow hair?

If animals could metabolize hair, how much nutrition would they gain from it?

Few animals seem able to use hair as food, but wouldn't that ability help them survive when food is scarce, either by eating their own hair or the hair of carcasses?

 

[Markbnj]

Whatever it costs to grow it I bet they get more back in heat retention. I think hair has about the same caloric content as fingernails. If an animal ate it they would again lose more to heat loss than they gained.

 

[Gibsons]

It's pretty much pure protein, so about 4cal/gram. You'd expect the same back if you could digest it.

 

[PlasmaBomb]

Hair is pretty much keratin, with some pigments. I'm not sure how easy it would be to digest though, think about cats coughing up hair balls. As such I don't think you could get any energy out of eating it.

Edit: from WIKI :

Since hair cannot be digested or passed by the human gastrointestinal system

Definately doesn't sound like a good idea to try eating hairs

 

[Ninjazx]

but if you cooked it.......

 

[bryanl]

I was wondering if people could consume an enzyme pill to make hair digestible because something like that was done in WWII to allow Allied soldiers digest grass or wood to prevent starvation.

 

[MrPickins]

Originally posted by: bryanl
I was wondering if people could consume an enzyme pill to make hair digestible because something like that was done in WWII to allow Allied soldiers digest grass or wood to prevent starvation.

:Q

Link?