Want longer, thicker lashes? There's more to it than MASCARA.
To bring back the lashes you were born with, your first step is to make the most of the lashes you have.
Here are the bad habits to ditch, the good habits to replace them, ways to build better lashes, and why you have them in the first place.
The Life of Your Lashes
Besides being key in flirting, lashes have a crucial role in the health of your eyes.
"Eyelashes serve a protective function: to keep foreign matter out of the eye," says New York optometrist Susan Resnick, MD. "They also act as antennae to sense when something is close to the eye and stimulate the protective blink reflex."
A lash can last about three months before falling out and can take two months or more to completely grow back.
If you've ever marveled over a toddler's lush lashes, you may think yours have thinned out. But that's likely an optical illusion.
We are born with a set number of follicles and this doesn't change as we age. Although some lashes may fall out over time, we essentially have the same number of lashes throughout life.
"My theory is that because kids' eyes look bigger in general (because their heads are relatively smaller) we notice the lashes more," Resnick tells WebMD.
Why You Lose Lashes
1. Time and abuse can damage lashes, so that they fail to grow in as thick and long as they did when we were younger.
2. "The same reasons hair on your head falls out cause lashes to fall out," says dermatologist Jeannette Graf, MD, in Great Neck, N.Y.
That means stress and a bad diet can directly impact your lashes, she says. So can thyroid problems, eyelid inflammation (blepharitis), and chemotherapy.
3. You can be your eyelashes' worst enemy. Wear and tear can result from rubbing or tugging at our eyelids, sleeping in mascara (the stiffness can break lashes), and wearing water-proof mascara, which can be drying.
4. "Usually the process of removing mascara, especially waterproof formulas, is the problem," Graf says.
Long-wearing mascaras also tend to be more stubborn to remove and result in aggressive lash handling.
"The lash root is very delicate and lashes can easily break due to our daily habits," Graf says.
If you damage the follicle enough, it will stop producing hair, Graf says. Damage can also make the hair more fragile, thinner, and shorter when it grows in.
Once the root is injured, you cannot restore lash growth. And the damage adds up, Graf says.
What to do -- and what not to do -- for lush, full lashes.
Try these tips to keep your eyelashes in good shape:
- Use a gentle remover and pat or dab at the lids rather than rubbing or pulling.
- Never tug at lashes.
- If you use a lash curler, make sure you're not pulling on your lids at all.
- If you want to remove clumps from mascara, you must do it when the mascara is still wet and easy to comb through.
Tossing your old mascara will also help keep your lashes -- and eyes -- healthy.
Get a new tube every three to six months, Resnick says. Otherwise, germs can contaminate the mascara and lead to infections.
If you've had pink eye or another eye illness, you must replace or sanitize anything that went near your eye area, or you risk more infection that can cause serious problems aside from lash loss, Resnick says.
So, lets take care our eyelashes.....
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