Hypertrichosis is a genetic disorder that triggers uncontrolled hair growth due to physical defects like non-functioning of endocrine gland, infections, mutation, malnutrition, drugs or hereditary factors. Also called werewolf syndrome, it leads to hair formation in unwanted areas generally exempting the hands, feet and eyes. Werewolf syndrome is a rare condition which affects only one person among ten billions. Hypertrichosis either originates during birth or develops after a person grows up especially on the verge of puberty. A person affected by hypertrichosis is often devastated since he is physically abnormal and cruel people taunt them.

In ancient times, werewolves mostly thought of as evil spirits were often sacrificed and they were not allowed to lead a normal life. The hair that is normally affected due to werewolf syndrome is the vellus hair, which is hazily present all over the body. These hairs due to hormonal changes or genetic mutations start growing uncontrollably with individual distinctions in growth variations. It is common for people with hypertrichosis to have imperfect teeth and erratic growth of gums, a reason why people identify them with names like ape man, werewolf or wolf man.

Werewolf syndrome is being researched and still no cure has been sought for the disease. Since the symptoms rarely occur in people, medical treatments have not evolved properly to treat people who are affected. Bleaching, waxing, electrolysis or laser treatments used in cosmetic treatments lighten the problems faced by hypertrichosis affected persons temporarily or permanently. Regular shaving controls the disheveled appearance of a hypertrichosiatic. Bleaching and laser procedures during hair removal for werewolf syndrome affected people must be professionally done with the help of a cosmetician. People often were and still are terrified of werewolves since it is an uncommon phenomenon.

Werewolves lead an isolated life because very few people identify hypertrichosis as an ailment. Hypertrichosis is often associated with amazing mythological stories. The common conviction is that human beings transform into werewolves especially on full moon days. Even today, werewolves are normally employed in circuses or as beggars as they are not allowed to lead a natural life.

Therianthropy is a term referring to the metamorphosis of humans into beasts. One of the most common talked about therianthropy or human shape shifter is the werewolf. Werewolves and other half man, half beast creatures have always been a part of popular mythology. There are several different types of Therianthropy. In many cultures there is talk of people being inhabited by animals’ souls. These creatures are generally thought to keep the outside appearance of human beings but they are controlled by the soul of animals. In Native American mythology there are many references to animal spirits.

As a young man reaches the age of maturity he receives his animal spirit; depending on the tribe these animals were sometimes killed by the man. He would then keep the skin and bones to make his ‘medicine.’ This ‘medicine’ would be kept with him forever. Another kind of Therianthropy is the werewolf of popular culture. There are several movies as well as hundreds of books on the subject, each having their own mythology. In some versions the werewolf is a hybrid creature that transforms physically once a month. These transformations are thought to happen when the moon is full. It is thought that one becomes a werewolf when you have been bitten by another werewolf. In most mythology’s werewolves can only be killed by a silver bullet.

There are others that believe any silver weapon can kill a werewolf. In some versions werewolves are very solitary creatures. In other myths werewolves live in communities called clans. These clans generally are not friendly to one another. The biggest enemy of werewolves in popular culture is vampires. In some myths, there has been a war for centuries of werewolves vs. vampires. Werewolves, whether they are real or not, are a continuing part of our culture. There is no doubt that we will continue to see both films and literature created about werewolves and other therianthropes.

Vampires and werewolves are familiar monsters to most of us. They star in movies and are popular Halloween costume choices. However, these mystical creatures also share deeper similarities. Both vampires and werewolves are shape-shifting creatures. They are thought to change form from a human to an animal. In the case of a vampire, an undead human can change into a bat at will, especially on a dark and spooky night.

Werewolves, on the other hand, do not have any control over their transformation. They shift shape from human form to wolf-like form whenever they are in the presence of a full moon. Perhaps because vampires are thought to have control over their form, while werewolves do not, each creature has a distinctive set of personality characteristics when stereotyped in film and literature. Vampires are seen as cold, both figuratively and literally.

They are capable of regarding normal humans placidly, with icy sharp logic. The iconic image of a vampire is of a pale man in a cape laughing creepily or simply staring. In contrast, werewolves are seen as passionate and almost animalistic. The iconic image of a werewolf is of a man caught mid-transformation, ripping at his shirt as his body turns from human into fierce and bulky animal. These two creatures also differ in terms of the type of threat they present to humans.

Vampires actively seek humans to kill (or to turn into vampires, depending on the story). They require regular meals of fresh human blood in order to survive, and so they act as literal silent predators. The fear that we feel when watching a vampire movie is the fear of what unknown and alien force might wait hidden in the darkness. Werewolves are not typically described as actively stalking humans, and indeed are often shown as very loving to humans when the moon is new. However, they can hurt human beings when they are in wolf form. The fear evoked at a werewolf movie is the fear of betrayal, the fear of those we trust and care for transforming into something utterly different and destructive.

Mankind has been fascinated with werewolves for many centuries. A werewolf, which is also called as wolf man, is a person who changes into a wolf, typically when there is a full moon and returns to human form by day. In most folk tales, the werewolf was characterized as a demon, a part of Satan’s army of darkness. Werewolves are often gifted with extra-human strength and senses, far beyond those of both wolves and men.

According to legend, silver objects such as silver arrows and silver bullets can kill werewolves. When a werewolf dies he is returned to his human form. The idea of werewolves has always intrigued fiction writers and Filmmakers. Human beings have always been curious about werewolves. They have been one of the most intriguing subjects of literature, television shows, and movies. They have been romanticized, criticized, condemned, and vilified for hundreds of years. Filmmakers and writers have been using them to entertain and terrorize people for years. The werewolf genre is one of the most favorite and most famous genres for horror and monster films.

Thousand of movies have been made on werewolves over the years. Some of the famous werewolves movies are: - An American Werewolf in London (1981), Bad Moon (1996), The Boy Who Cried Werewolf (1973), The Howling (1981), Gingersnaps (2000), Underworld Evolution (2006) and there are thousands more. So, Hollywood has been making movies on this topic for years and I am quite sure Hollywood will soon be making more of these werewolves movies.

Recently, some of the television shows and movies have portrayed female werewolves. Yes, female werewolves do exist in art and literature, but they just aren’t as common as the male werewolf. I am quite sure Hollywood will soon be coming with many movies including female werewolves. With the Introduction of computer graphics in cinema the werewolves can be made look more interesting and fascinating.

The idea of the mythological, or mystical has always been a source of inspiration for literature. The reader is automatically drawn to something outside of their individual reality - we are attracted to the strange the obscene, the horrifying and the unknown. Throughout history legends have fed off of our fears - the subjects of which send children under their covers and weave themselves through folk culture.

One of the most well known and culturally pervasive of these legends is the werewolf. The idea of a half wolf half man creature is seen as early as classical Grecian literature, and continues up through today with authors like Stephanie Meyer. Although the characters range from horrifying beasts to friendly companions there is a general continuity among the creatures - they are all strong, powerful, and anamorphous. Traditionally they are also associated with a lunar cycle and only change during a full moon. Also most werewolf legends agree upon the idea that the condition is passed through the bite.

However, there are outliers that insist that it is contracted through drinking water out of the footprint of an animal, wearing a wolf skin belt, or drinking specially prepared beer. Because this is a mighty beast, dangerous to both friend and foe, it of course also has an element of weakness, most notably wolfsbane, but also silver (which burns the creature from the inside out). They are not, like vampires, effected by religions icons such as crucifixes or holy water.

Regardless of the historical traditions or cultural similarities, there is undoubtedly an interest in these creatures that spans centuries, if not thousands of years. It is something that is continually reinvented, and seems to if not directly, as least encourage sympathy from the reader. The werewolf does not seem to be as brutal as the vampire, it does not sleep in coffins and drink blood, it is more a misunderstood outcast. Someone who did not want to become what they are, and are now suffering for their condition. They do not necessarily prey on the weak and beautiful, but are instead cursed by the moon and forced into an unwilling state.

This idea is especially encouraged by modern fiction, especially teenage focused novels such as Harry Potter, and the Twilight series. Where these mythical monsters are also friends and mentors. The werewolf draws the attention of the reader. It provides a humanitarian aspect that we sympathize with, but at the same time repels us with its destructive tendencies. We are sucked in and spit back out, and really.. What else could you want out of a legend?

Werewolves or lycanthropes are mythical man-beast hybrid creatures that exist in the legends of many different cultures throughout the world. The transformation has been said to occur for many different reasons and in many different ways, but the most common form of the myth in horror stories today is the man who changes into a wolf or wolf-like beast on every full moon and who can turn others into werewolves by biting them.

A werewolf traditionally possesses supernatural strength and augmented senses as well as the natural hunting instincts and weapons of the wolf, like menacing jaws and claws. Therefore, they are formidable monsters and very hard to kill. One of the most ancient talismans against lycanthropy is the herb wolfsbane (said to have grown from the saliva of Cerberus, the three-headed dog guardian of the Greek underworld, when Hercules brought him up to the surface world). Other herbs that legends say are effective as werewolf repellents include rye, mistletoe, and mountain ash (rowan).

Werewolves are not affected by religious symbols like crucifixes and holy water (unlike their counterpart monsters, vampires), but in modern fiction, they are vulnerable to weapons containing silver, such as silver bullets or silver blades. The silver bullet is the most iconic anti-werewolf weapon, but in many stories, anything silver causes agonizing pain if it touches the beast. Therefore, to be most certain of killing the monster, a werewolf hunter should carry good quantities of wolfsbane, rye grains, mistletoe, and mountain ash leaves or wood, and be armed with a variety of well-made silver weapons.

Since it is likely that a werewolf will overpower a human in close combat, it is essential to have a gun or two custom-designed to shoot silver bullets at a long range; once disabled by the gun, the werewolf can be finished off if necessary using a sword or axe with a silver-plated blade.

Werewolves have been a part of the folklore of many different cultures since ancient times. Images of European werewolves in dark forests usually come to mind when the beasts are mentioned. However, stories of lycanthropes and shape changers have permeated the mythos of cultures as diverse and aged as Ancient Greece to Native American folklore. Modern countries all over the world from Latvia to Argentina have their own stories about werewolves. Famous among the Ancient Greeks and classical literature was the story of Lycaon from which lycanthropy likely gets its name. Lycaon is said to have been a cannibal, and turned into a wolf as a result of his crime.

Even Herodotus, the father of History, wrote of a people called the Neuri would turn into wolves every nine years. Ancient Rome also has many tales of werewolves with the pages of Ovid’s Metamorphoses to Gaius Petronius’ Satyricon. Both works feature stories about men who turned into wolves with Metamorphoses emphasizing that there were many, and not solitary. Werewolves in European lore are very prevalent with the belief that most werewolves were in league with Satan, and cursed. The medieval French poem, Bisclavret tells of a man who turned into a wolf every week.

But this is still a poem reflecting the people’s fears of the werewolf in literature. There are documented cases of werewolves. One of the more interesting stories is of the Gandillon family, which is detailed in Boguet’s Discours de Sorciers. The story begins with a girl Pernette Gandillon that one day walked around on all fours like a wolf and attacked another girl. The attacked girl’s brother helped her only to get his throat torn out by Pernette. The townsfolk quickly killed Pernette on the spot without trial. The story does not stop there, however. Pernette’s brother was also accused to have been a werewolf, and there were accusations that he used a salve given to him by Satan so that he could transform into a wolf.

His son, Georges also claimed to be a werewolf, and as well as his sister, Antoinette. The three ended up being arrested and then hung and burned to death. Historical figures as well have been accused of being a werewolf, such as King Harold I of Norway simply because his hair was wolf-like to more serious assertions that a prince from Belarus named Usiaslau was said to travel at night in the form of a wolf moving at incredible speed. Even more mysterious is the documented case of the Beast of Gevaudan where over 80 people in France were attacked and killed by what was described as a large wolf. The attacks stopped after wolves in the area were hunted down and killed. These are just a few examples of werewolves around the world from literature to actual historical accounts. One can believe the accounts of werewolves or not, but it is clear that the werewolf has had quite an impact on many different cultures and nations over the ages.

Where do werewolves come from? Werewolves are no doubt familiar to anyone who has read a good set of horror stories. These mythical creatures seem like normal humans - except in the case of a full moon. At that time they transform into a wolf, or a wolf and man hybrid creature. While the definition of a werewolf may be common knowledge, its origin is not: where do werewolves come from? The answer depends on which variety of werewolf you are interested in. If you are asking about Russian werewolves, tradition holds that children who are born on December 24, Christmas Eve, become werewolves.

Russians also believe that men or women who offend God can be turned into werewolves as a punishment for their impudence. If you are looking in Sweden, the great Swedish historian Olaus Magnus wrote in the 16th century that werewolves were born men, but were transformed by drinking a magic cup of beer and saying a special chant. Elsewhere in Europe, such as in Germany and France, it is said that any man or woman can turn into a werewolf. To accomplish this feat, a person must only sleep outside on a Wednesday or a Friday. If the full moon shines directly on that person’s face for the whole night, the person will be transformed. Of course, there are some methods of becoming a werewolf that are not specific to any particular culture or legend.

The oldest and most frequently recounted legend is that a person can take off all of their clothing and put on instead the skin of a whole wolf. If the right magic happens, the person becomes a werewolf. There is also a less messy version of this method that only requires putting on a belt made from the hide of a wolf. Also, a person can take a sip of water out of the footprint of a werewolf. The enchantment on the werewolf will pass through the footprint and the water to the person. Lastly, new werewolves can be made the same way that new humans are made: when a mommy werewolf and a daddy werewolf love each other very much, they get together and make a baby.

A werewolf is a human who has the ability to turn into a wolf-like beast. Though it is once though you must either be bitten by a werewolf or have a placed with said curse placed on your in order to become a werewolf many other ways are also effective. As a man, after stripping of your human attire, you place either a wolfskin belt or the entire animals hide. Another method is to apply a cursed ointment to the skin. It is said too that a man who drinks from a specific magical river or even out of a single footprint of a werewolf may himself become this beast.

Other avenues include guzzling a specially made beer followed by imitating a set formula, being born of a specific date of the year and the simple fact of being born of both a werewolf mother and father. It is well known that the transformation from human to beast happens only under appearance of the full moon and is most often following a period of anxiety and discomfort or restlessness. After this initial phase, you begin to jerk violently and your muscles contract erratically during the actual transformation process. You will then be drawn to the nearest darkly forested area.

If you succeed in this transformation you will be granted superior senses and strength to both human and wolf. You must be leery of humans who know your true self, since there are ways a human can tell if you are indeed a lycanthrope, or werewolf. If a human comes at you with a knife, flee, for if you are cut with said weapon, your thick coat of hair will be exposed, therefore, shedding light on your true image. It is also known that you have bristles under your tongue, so it is imperative that you keep this sight from all humans. Though you appear invincible, this is not so. Your one weakness is to be shot with a pure silver bullet. This action would surely end your life.