Does Shaving make hair grow faster?

06 September 2009

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Question

All of my life, I have heard it said that shaving makes hair grow back faster and that once you start shaving, you’re then committed for life. What’s the answer?

Answer

Diana - Well, the short answer is no. We had a really good answer from the forum about this actually from databit who said that hair grows actually in a cone shape. So, when you let it grow naturally, the end looks thinner and therefore, the hair looks thinner. But when you actually shave it, you cut it right at the base where it's at it's very thickest and that makes it look much thicker. So, once you've start shaving your hair, the stubble will look much thicker and make it look like more like it's actually growing, but there isn't. It's the same.

Chris - And the other point I think also to make is that when you're cutting a hair that is growing already, it's got a head start because it's already an actively growing hair compared with a hair follicle that was not active because hair follicles go through various cycles of activity and inactivity. So therefore, you're cutting a growing hair already therefore, it's already growing. Therefore, it's going to grow back quicker.

Diana - That's right. You sort of bring all the hairs back down to the same level of growth and so, it appears as if they're all sort of growing at once.

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