An age old belief is that shaving body hair makes it grow back thicker, darker, and longer. Many individuals considering removing back and body hair are hesitant to do so because of the possibility of having to manage a more complicated and larger problem… More Hair!
But in reality, shaving your hair will NOT increase the thickness, darkness, or length of your hair, body or back! Dr Jonith Breadon of Chicago explains :
Fortunately, you can shave, pluck, wax or nair unwanted hair, without causing more unwanted hair to grow.
For any impact that may possible increase or decrease hair thickness, darkness and length, the follicles (the alive part of your hair) must be modified.
Shaving has no impact on hair follicles. In fact, shaving your hair is no different than cutting it with scissors, it is just closer to the skin. The commercials for razors that show hair being pulled slightly above the skin before cutting is an accurate picture of what is often happening when shaving. You are giving yourself a hair cut with the hair returning slightly below the skin line (thus the cause of ingrown hairs).
Be sure to find out more about why hair grows and if it comes in thicker and darker by browsing through the rest of this site and the links we provide on this article. The information you’re looking for may be just around the corner.
Why People Think Shaving Makes Your Hair Grow Back Thicker and Darker
Shaving itself makes people think the hair is growing more, or that its growing back faster. This illusion is often noticed after a clean shave because a shave makes individuals feel like they’ve completely removed hair when in reality they’ve only cut it. When hair starts growing back, no matter how slightly, people who have shaved will notice the new hair very quickly. If you had left your body or back hair to grow alone, and it grew the same length you probably would never notice because it “blends” in with the rest of the length of the hair.
Additionally, shorter hair often retains darker coloring and looks more “healthy” thus making individuals feel that the hair is thicker and darker when its growing back in. In reality, once the hair reaches its original length, it would be the same color as before a shave.
