Ron,
Thanks for putting me right - I see no point in going through life with the wrong information - though it can be fun (and convenient) at times!
"I was not aware it would hurt a woman's voice."
It isn't really a case of hurting the voice (at least, I don't think so) but rather, the amount of air it takes to produce exhausts the supply that can be better used elsewhere.
A friend here (in rural Ireland) uses head voice in all her singing. She suffers from chronic hay-fever which has the effect of preventing her from singing throughout the summer, except for when she joins in choruses, which she does for some reason in her natural speaking chest voice - and has no problem whatever.
Personally I find the 'little girl lost' effect produced by head voice far too limiting to be of any great use, especially when you consider the problems it raises, but as people have rightly pointed out, that's personal taste. What does disturb me (not a little) is when a singers never uses any other tone and it becomes their only way of singing.
Singing and music are very much on the up here in Ireland at present and many singers are setting up as teachers and teaching head voice - as a permanent way of singing - I've been to a couple of classes at singing week-ends and seen them in action.
Jim Carroll