How Long Does It Take for Eyelashes to Grow?
Published January 16, 2023
Eyelashes are more than just a beauty trend. They’re also responsible for protecting the eye from debris that may obstruct your vision or cause injuries or infection, like dust and pollen.
That’s why it can be worrisome to discover that you’re losing eyelashes.
However, one must remember that eyelashes falling out is actually a common occurrence for both males and females. In fact, experts suggest that most people lose one to five eyelashes per day.
Nevertheless, that doesn’t answer your questions on why they fall out and how long it’ll take to grow, but that’s why you’re here. Let’s start by learning why eyelashes fall out in the first place.
Why Do My Eyelashes Keep Falling Out?
Eyelashes falling out, which we’ll refer to as “eyelash loss,” for simplicity’s sake, occurs because it’s natural for hair to replace itself regularly. It’s similar to how regular hair grows whenever you cut it short. And like regular hair, there’s also a point where you lose too many eyelashes.
“Too many” in this context is around ten eyelashes per day since the normal rate should be at most five. If you think you’re losing too many eyelashes, it’s due to one of the following reasons:
- Cosmetics can speed up the shedding part of your eyelashes’ natural cycle. Leaving cosmetics, specifically eye makeup, for too long and using eyelash curlers and eyelash extensions too often can have this effect. As such, it’s best to ease up on these things.
- Blepharitis is an eye condition in which your eyelids would swell, itch, or appear swollen or reddish. It’s common, but it’s not very harmful. At most, it would cause mild discomfort and may occasionally lead to a slightly faster rate of eyelash loss.
- Alopecia areata is a condition wherein the immune system cells attack your hair follicles. As a result, your hair would fall out rapidly, including your eyelashes.
- Thyroid disorders occur when your thyroid gland produces too much thyroid hormone (hyperthyroidism) or too little thyroid hormone (hypothyroidism). Numerous symptoms can take place when you have this disorder, including hand tremors, rapid heartbeat, weight loss, and, very rarely, hair loss. And yes, that includes eyelashes.
The aforementioned causes are some of the most common reasons why your eyelashes may fall out more quickly than expected. Apart from these, there are uncommon instances where eyelash loss is associated with a much more severe health condition, such as the following:
- Lupus
- Scleroderma
- Chemotherapy
- Skin cancer
Of course, since these are quite rare, there’s a good chance your eyelash loss is not linked to these conditions. That’s particularly true if you’re only losing slightly more eyelashes than expected (one to five eyelashes per day). In that case, you can just wait for them to grow back.
How Long Does It Take for Eyelashes to Grow?
The natural cycle dictates that eyelashes that fell out because of natural shedding should grow back within one to six weeks. If, however, the cause of the loss is unnatural, like when you pull them out by force, for example, the growth cycle might take significantly longer than usual.
There’s no exact growth rate for unnatural eyelash shedding, but a good estimate would be one to six months. So, why does it take longer if the eyelashes are pulled out? you may ask.
To start with, it’s important to understand that your hair follicles are what grows your hair, like eyelashes. If these follicles are taken away, perhaps because of a condition or simply because you damaged them, the follicles must regrow first before they start growing back the hair.
That means if you damage the follicles when you pull out your eyelashes, naturally, it’ll take longer for your eyelashes to grow back. The same applies to conditions that damage follicles.
The good news is you can speed up the growth of your eyelashes.
How Can I Speed Up the Growth of My Eyelashes?
Another thing you need to understand is that hair requires a few things in order to grow back. The main requirement, of course, is the follicle, which we’ve explained already previously.
Nutrient is another requirement, which is why the main method to speed up the growth of eyelashes is to supply your body with more nutrients. You can do so by either:
- eating a healthy diet, preferably a diet rich in protein, biotin, and iron, or
- taking vitamin supplements.
Another way is to apply castor oil, which supposedly boosts hair growth. You can also try using an eyelash growth serum. Keep in mind, though, that these two methods, compared to nutrient supplementation, are not guaranteed to succeed in speeding up the growth of your eyelashes.
How to Prevent Eyelashes From Falling Out
Preventing eyelashes from falling out follows the same fundamental idea of speeding up the growth of your eyelashes. You need to eat a healthy diet containing the aforementioned nutrients. It would also help if you stopped tugging or rubbing your lashes frequently.
While you may argue that you’re only tugging or pulling them lightly, you’re still reducing your eyelashes’ durability. It may come to a point where they’re no longer intact and fall off randomly.
Parting Words
How long does it take for eyelashes to grow? Though it’s not as serious of a subject as other health problems, eyelashes falling out can be incredibly frustrating to self-conscious individuals. However, with this guide, you should have an understanding that it’s a normal occurrence and an expectation that it’ll grow back quickly.
Lease Salon Space In Royal Palm Beach Florida
Fulfill your dreams and be your own boss when you lease salon space in Palm Beach Florida with us. Our beautiful salon spaces come with complimentary laundry and cleaning services and a flexible lease agreement you can afford. Our salon suites come with many amenities including free cleaning service, televisions, storage space, and more. Contact us now to book a tour or learn more.
Fact Checked By Experts
Our team of internal experts diligently fact-checked this content to ensure accuracy and reliability. Find detailed information about the rigorous editorial standards we uphold for our website.
About The Author
Lenard Arceo is an experienced writer who has written about a vast array of topics. His passion for beauty trends fuels his work for the Salon Suites of Palm Beach website and blog.
