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How To Actually Re-Grow Your Eyebrows: 8 Tips + What Not To Do
Hannah Frye is the Assistant Beauty Editor at mindbodygreen. She has a B.S. in journalism and a minor in women’s, gender, and queer studies from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Hannah has written across lifestyle sections including health, wellness, sustainability, personal development, and more.
Over-plucking your brows is so common that it almost seems like everyone has had a thin brow era—but not in a cute or trendy way. The second you make your brows too thin for your liking and look in the mirror, the lesson is learned and written in stone: Put the tweezers down.
The bad news? Not every over-plucked brow will grow back perfectly, if at all. Luckily, there are a few things you can do to re-grow your brows and encourage thicker arches—here are few tips to keep in mind if you’ve gone too far.
Can you re-grow eyebrows?
To be frank: You might be able to re-grow your brows, but that isn’t guaranteed. Whether or not you experience re-growth depends on how much damage you’ve done in the first place.
A simple over-tweeze probably won’t ruin your entire brow forever. Keep that up, though, and you might be set back. “Eyebrows that have endured chronic over-plucking [may not] respond to normal re-growth,” surgeon and hair loss specialist William Yates, M.D. previously told mbg.
Other damaging habits like bleaching your brows follow a similar pattern—a few rounds of bleach may not ruin your brows for good, but continuous dye jobs could leave you with sparse, patchy, thin brows for good. So remember this before hopping on the next brow trend.
8 steps to re-grow brows.
If you’re ready to rehabilitate your brows, we’ve got you covered. To come, a few must-know tips from the experts, all in one place.
Leave them alone.
The first step is simple: Don’t touch them with tweezers, threads, or wax. Simply let them be and trim them slightly if you need to, but resist the urge to pull out any hairs altogether—you want every strand to re-grow before selecting which ones stay and which ones go.
"Everyone's a little different, and everyone has different rates of growth with their hair, but I would say you want to go at least four weeks to see an optimal result," legendary brow expert Joey Healy previously explained. So that’s that—set aside hair removal tools for a full month.
Use a brow serum.
To accelerate the growth during this period, use a brow growth serum daily. When you’re shopping, look for the following ingredients:
- Peptides: Amino acid peptides contain good-for-skin and hair ingredients, and several types of peptides have been shown to enhance collagen production. They do this by acting as messengers in the skin, signaling your cells to produce more collagen, elastin, and keratin—and hair is made up of the protein keratin.
- Castor oil: This fatty acid- and antioxidant-rich oil is a longtime beauty staple in many households. While there's no clinical research to back up the growth claim, we can't ignore its moisturizing and anti-inflammatory properties for optimal brow health. As board-certified dermatologist Ava Shamban, M.D., founder of SKINFIVE, tells mbg about the renowned oil: "There is no denying its anecdotal powers and prowess."
- Saw palmetto: This little herb doesn’t have quite as much research as the previously mentioned ingredients, but it’s still worth mentioning. In one study, men were treated with topical saw palmetto and an amino acid complex. Almost half of the participants increased their hair count after four months. While this shouldn’t be the only active ingredient you choose, it’s a great addition to a blend.
- Rosemary oil: This oil is fairly well-known for its hair growth benefits when used on the head, but serves as a great addition to brow serums as well. In fact, a 2015 randomized comparative trial found that rosemary essential oil was just as effective1 as minoxidil (the active ingredient in many commercial hair-growth products) for reversing hair loss caused by androgens—also known as male- or female-pattern baldness—after six months.
- Panthenol: Technically, panthenol is an antioxidant (vitamin B5, to be exact), but it has specific moisturizing and anti-inflammatory properties that make it a brow care hero. The ingredient restores and protects the skin barrier2 and can also help the wound-healing process, so it's great for those with over-plucked, inflamed brows looking for some relief.
Looking for a brow serum to test? We’ve already curated a list of the eight best options on the market here if you’re ready to shop.
Gently massage with oils.
While brow growth and hair growth on the head are slightly different, a few things remain true to both—including the fact that massaging the skin underneath your hair is an A+ habit for growth.
In one 2016 study, a small number of men received a daily four-minute scalp massage. At the conclusion of the study, the investigators found an increase in hair thickness3. A more recent 2019 study found that of the 300 or so participants who followed a specific massage regimen, nearly 70% reported improved hair thickness at the end4.
Knowing this, why not give your brows a good massage? If you can, commit to a daily massage habit for your brows to see the best results. Use a gentle face oil or carrier oil (like jojoba, grapeseed, or squalane, for example) and massage the brows using your fingertips—you can even do this during the double-cleansing step of your evening skin care routine if applicable.
Just make sure to be super gentle; you don't want to pluck out any precious hairs.
Don't use irritating ingredients on the area.
Obviously, bleach is a no-go during this time of brow re-growth. But dye isn’t the only potential irritant that can touch your brows—in fact, you have to be mindful of what skin care products rub onto your arches.
While chemical exfoliants and retinol may be generally safe for use on the brows, they could irritate this area and result in inflammation, which creates a not-so-nice environment for growth. When applying active skin care products, be sure to keep them away from the brow area.
Keep skin care off your brows.
While we’re on the topic, let’s be honest: No skin care product needs to be on your brows. While a lightweight gel moisturizer might not do any damage, it’s not designed to be packed onto the brow.
One rule brow expert Sania Vucetaj swears by: Don't let your skin care graze your brows. The heavy creams and oils your facial skin loves may weigh down your brows, forcing the tiny hairs to droop down and preventing growth in the right direction. If you get some face cream on your brows, she recommends gently wiping it off with a damp rag.
Be mindful of lifestyle habits.
Your hair, skin, and nails can all reflect what’s going on within your body. For this reason, don’t overlook lifestyle habits when you’re trying to create an optimal growth environment for your brows.
Be mindful of what foods you consume and do your best to eat as many whole, natural foods as possible to get your share of nutrients; also drink plenty of water and perhaps consider hair, skin, and nail vitamins if you'd like some extra support.
In addition, add some stress-relieving activities to your day when possible. Stress hair loss is a real thing, and it’s not always going to stop at your head—your brows may suffer as well. Not sure where to start? Here are a few relaxation techniques to try out.
Address health concerns.
Sure, overworking the brows can lead to hair loss, but so can internal health concerns. If you’re noticing hair loss on your head and your brows, then you may want to visit a medical professional to ensure the loss is not a symptom of something else.
Visit a pro.
Growing back your brows is not an easy journey, but you don’t have to go through it on your own. Visiting a brow specialist can truly change the game and give your brows the personal touch they truly deserve. Plus they can also give you advice on how to shape them at home, so you don't run the risk of thinning the brows even further.
Board-certified dermatologists can also be tremendously helpful. These experts can help you pinpoint why your brow hair loss began in the first place and may even recommend prescription-grade topicals to help you out.
Why do brows thin?
The full re-growth cycle happens anywhere from four to six weeks for most people but can take up to ten weeks for others. If you want to grow out your brows, you'll want to first make sure you know why they're thinning in the first place:
- Age: Just as you can expect to lose the hair on your head as you age, the brows may follow suit. This type of hair loss can't be fully prevented, but you can start using brow growth serums early on in an effort to preserve your brows for as long as possible.
- Overplucking: Plucking can easily become addictive, and you may be working in the wrong direction if you're not sure exactly where you should be extracting hair from in the first place. While one tweezer-happy experience won’t permanently damage most hairs, it can have lasting effects on those with sensitive brows.
- Health concerns: Losing your hair (brows included) can be a sign of an underlying health concern that has nothing to do with cosmetics and beauty practices. If your brow hair loss has come on suddenly or it's paired with loss of hair on the head, it's best to visit a medical professional for a check-in.
- You naturally have thin brows: Not everyone is born with super-thick and dense brows—that's OK! Remember that as long as you're tending to your brows and you feel satisfied with their appearance, there's nothing more you need to do.
How to use makeup to make brows appear fuller.
Four weeks can feel like a long time until you see some growth, so keep these makeup tips on-hand to nail a faux full brow in the meantime:
- Powder: Using a brow powder will mimic a dense brow. This is the best option for those who are satisfied with their brow shape and length but crave more thickness.
- Pencil: If you want to perfect your shape, fill in sparse patches, or extend the tail of your brow, then a brow pencil is the best way to go. Of course, you can combine pencil and powder if desired, too.
- Brow gel: Brush your brows up with a lightweight brow gel to mask sparse patches and make them look orderly while they’re growing out. Remember to use a gel that's flexible and feels more like a serum than a gel. If need be, carry a spoolie in your bag to refresh them midday.
Products to regrow brows
FAQ
What stimulates eyebrow growth?
To stimulate brow growth look to brow growth serums and light brow massage. Serums should include peptides, castor oil, panthenol, and rosemary oil, to name a few star ingredients. In addition, massage your brows with a face or carrier oil (like jojoba, grapeseed, or squalane) to stimulate growth.
How can I increase my eyebrows naturally?
To increase density in your brow, call upon brow growth serums with ingredients like peptides, castor oil, panthenol, and rosemary oil. Do your best to resist plucking, threading, or waxing your brows while you’re waiting for increased growth.
Which oil is best for eyebrow growth?
Castor oil and rosemary oil are great for eyebrow growth. When using rosemary oil, be sure to dilute it in a carrier oil like jojoba, grapeseed, or squalane oil before applying it to the brow, or use it in a pre-formulated brow growth serum.
The takeaway.
At the end of the day, re-growing your brows takes more patience than anything else. To accelerate the process, keep hair removal tools away from your face for a full month, add a brow serum to your routine, and stimulate your brows via massage nightly. Now, if your brows are uneven, that’s a slightly different topic, so check out this guide for tailored tips.
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