The quality of a person’s hair can be an indicator of their overall health. Hair is one of the first features we notice upon meeting another person, and it often helps shape our perception of that person. A recent survey conducted by Clairol revealed that when it comes to hair colors, blondes are considered “fun and flirty,” brunettes “smart and serious,” and redheads “strong.” What else can our hair tell us?

Similar to blood, hair is chock-full of information, including the minerals and drugs that move through our body. A single strand of hair can contain up to 14 different elements, including traces of gold. But there is one thing that hair cannot tell us, and that’s the gender of a person.

However, it can tell us what race or ethnicity a person is: people of Asian descent have round-shaped hair cross sections; people of African descent have flat-shaped hair cross sections; and people of European descent have oval-shaped hair cross sections.

One of hair’s most unique qualities is that it works as a natural sponge by absorbing oil from water. As a result, certain groups of eco-friendly volunteers use it to clean up oil spills. It can also be used to make an additive that is commonly found in the dough for pizza crusts and bagels. A Chinese soy sauce producer, Hongshuai Soy Sauce, even uses amino acids from human hair to make its product.