Dec 14, 2010 21:11 GMT  ·  By

Being pretty is a tough job – this is probably one of those lines one is likely to hear in bad rom-coms. Yet, it’s true. A new poll shows that women spend an average of $42,000 on haircuts and dye jobs in a lifetime, and about a year in total just to style it.

Celebrity hairdresser Nicky Clarke and OnePoll joined forces in a bid to find out just how important was hair for a woman – and, most importantly, how much they’d be willing to spend on making it look good.

As it turns out, a lot. An average of the answers given by the 3,000 respondents shows that women spend about $42,000 in their life getting their hair done, the Daily Mail reports.

“The average female spends £26,500 [approximately $42,000] on her tresses over a lifetime – and a year of her life styling it, according to a poll,” the tab writes.

“It means that many women spend the equivalent of a year’s average salary buying haircare products and having their locks cut, colored and styled,” the Mail further says.

Speaking of styling, women also spend about a year making sure their hair is in top shape before leaving home for work in the morning. But that doesn’t mean they stop worrying about it when they get there.

“The obsession can also cause problems at work, with 40 per cent of those questioned admitting that styling their hair made them late to the office at least twice a year,” the Mail says.

Of the respondents, about 25 percent admit they would rather spend money on hair products or a good cut than on food,

“And it will also come as no surprise to long-suffering partners that one in three women who took part in the survey admitted it took her an average of 40 minutes to style her hair before a night out,” the Mail also says.

Of course, men also spend a lot of time in front of the mirror styling their hair – but they still have a long way to go until they come even close to their female counterparts.