While mascara, false eyelashes, and lash extensions can make your eyelashes look longer and fuller, they can actually damage your natural lashes. Plus, what if you’re looking for a more permanent solution that doesn’t need to be removed before bed or retouched every few weeks? That’s where eyelash growth serum comes in!
Eyelash growth serums encourage growth while conditioning the lashes. However, not all lash serums are created equal! Keep reading to learn how to find the best eyelash serum for you. And if you don’t believe us, just check out the eyelash serum before and after photo below!
Index
How Does the Lash Growth Cycle Work?
Before we can talk about how to grow longer, lusher eyelashes, we first need to talk about how lash growth works.
Most people have 90 to 160 lashes along the upper lash line. Each eyelash is made up of a hair shaft (the part of the eyelash that you can see) and a root that grows the eyelash.
Like the hair on your head, your eyelashes grow in a cycle that includes three stages:
- The anagen or growth phase, which lasts between four to ten weeks. About 35-40% of your upper lashes are in this phase at any time.
- The catagen or degradation phase, which lasts around 15 days
- The telogen or resting phase, which lasts between four and nine months Around 50% of your lashes are in the telogen phase at any time.
After the telogen phase, the eyelash falls out and the cycle begins again. So if you notice a few lashes on your pillow in the morning – don’t panic! Shedding lashes is a natural part of the growth cycle. Each of your eyelashes in a different stage of the growth cycle, which is why you don’t shed all of your eyelashes at once.
So, how long do eyelashes grow? Since the anagen phase of the growth cycle is much shorter than the anagen phase of your scalp hair (which can last for years), eyelashes rarely grow longer than 12mm. On average, eyelashes grow between 0.12mm to 0.14mm daily.
Why Do Eyelashes Fall Out?
As I mentioned earlier, eyelashes naturally fall out after the telogen phase of the growth cycle. However, the way that you treat your lashes can also cause them to fall out prematurely. That’s why the key to lash growth is to encourage more growth during the anagen phase while also preventing the lashes from breaking or falling out by treating them with extra special care (more on that later).
You can see the results below. This photo shows before and after using eyelash growth serum for 3 months.
Why Are My Eyelashes Short, Light, or Sparse?
There are several reasons why your eyelashes could be short, light, or sparse:
- Genetics – Depending on your background, your eyelashes may be lighter in color or shorter. Some people’s eyelashes don’t have as much natural curl, which can also make them appear shorter.
- Age – As we get older, our eyelashes tend to become more sparse. This is because the growth cycle slows down, so it takes longer to grow new lashes after the old ones have shed. Additionally, lashes become more brittle and dry, which can cause them to break off or fall out prematurely.
- Improper Care – Using drying mascaras or wearing false eyelashes and eyelash extensions can lead to sparse, brittle, or short lashes.
- Inadequate Nutrition – Hair follicles require a certain amount of vitamins and minerals in order to grow healthy hair. If you don’t eat enough nutrients, your hair growth can suffer – include growth of your eyelashes. Inadequate nutrition can also mean that the hair that does grow is more brittle and prone to breakage.
- Medical Conditions – Certain conditions like alopecia, hypothyroidism, or trichotillomania can lead to loss of lashes. Sometimes hair loss (including eyelash loss) can be a side effect of medication. If you suspect that your lash loss is caused by a medical condition, speak to your GP.
How Can I Speed Up Eyelash Growth?
If you want to speed up lash growth, you can try some of these natural methods.
1. Take a Break from Mascara
Believe it or not, the ingredients in mascara can actually dry out your eyelashes, making them more brittle and prone to falling out.
2. Gently Remove Makeup Before Bed
If you do choose to wear eye makeup, make sure to remove it before going to bed. The last thing you want is those drying mascara ingredients on your lashes all night long! And be extra gentle when removing eye makeup to avoid pulling out lashes unnecessarily. Use an oil-based eye makeup remover to gently remove mascara, eyeliner, and eyeshadow.
3. Ditch the Eyelash Curlers
You probably don’t need us to tell you that eyelash curlers pull out your eyelashes! While it may not seem like a big deal to pull out an eyelash here and there, over time, those lost eyelashes can really add up.
4. Avoid False Eyelashes and Extensions
While false eyelashes can help to create the appearance of fuller, longer lashes, they can actually damage your real lashes. It’s near impossible to remove glue from false eyelashes and extensions without pulling out your natural lashes, so it’s best to save these for special occasions only.
5. Try a Hair Growth Supplement
Eyelashes are just hair, so it makes sense that taking a hair growth supplement can encourage lash growth!
Hairlust Hair Formula Gummies for Women contain a nourishing mix of vitamins and minerals that are proven to support healthy hair growth, including silica, biotin, folic acid, vitamin C, and zinc. Plus, they’re sugar-free and vegan, so you know they’re good for you. No synthetic flavors or colorants here! With consistent use, you’ll notice healthier-looking hair and lashes.
6. Apply Vitamin E Oil
If your lashes are brittle or dry, vitamin E may be the solution. Vitamin E is a potent antioxidant that protects the delicate lash hairs as it moisturizes. But be careful: it’s difficult to apply vitamin E to your lashes, and you don’t want to get this oil into your eyes!
Of course, if you’re looking for a big difference in the appearance of your eyelashes, you’ll need to use an eyelash growth serum. Keep reading to find out the best eyelash serum for you!
What Do Eyelash Growth Serums Do & How Do They Work?
Eyelash growth serums work by nourishing the lashes and encouraging hair growth. Eyelash serums fall into one of three main categories based on their key active ingredients:
Peptide-Based
Peptides are small proteins that stimulate follicle growth and promote natural hair production. By applying a peptide-based serum for lashes to the lash line, you can stimulate the hair follicles there to grow more hair.
Vitamin-Based
Vitamin-based eyelash growth serums work by nourishing the lashes from the outside-in. By nourishing the lashes with vitamins, you can prevent breakage and fallout. As a result, lashes will appear longer and healthier.
Prostaglandin-Derived
These growth serums are derived from a medication originally developed to treat an eye condition called glaucoma. This type of serum for eyelashes works by artificially extending the anagen phase of the hair growth cycle in the lashes.
Prostaglandin-derived eyelash serums include ingredients like isopropyl cloprostenate, isopropyl phenylhydroxypentene dihydroxycyclopentylheptenate, and dechloro dihydroxy difluoro ethylcloprostenolamide.
While effective, these eyelash serums tend to have serious side effects (more on that later).
How Do I Find the Best Eyelash Serum?
Now that you know the three main types of serum for lashes, how can you find the best eyelash serum? I recommend weighing the pros and cons of each type of eyelash growth serum. For each type of eyelash serum, we’ll let you know how well they work and the side effects to help you choose the best eyelash serum.
Prostaglandin-Derived Eyelash Serum
The good news about prostaglandin-derived eyelash serums is that they work for most. The bad news is that the side effects tend to outweigh the results.
Prostaglandin-derived eyelash serums have many possible negative side effects, including:
- Lowered eye pressure if the lash serum get into the eye
- Eyelid darkening
- Permanent eye color change (i.e. blue eyes may turn brown!)
- Unwanted hair growth in areas other than the lashes
- Itching, swelling, inflammation, and redness
Since prostaglandin-derived eyelash serums have such serious side effects, both the Swedish Medical Products Agency and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have issued warnings against them.
Did you know that the use of prostaglandins in eyebrow and eyelash serums is forbidden in many countries, such as Canada and Sweden?
Peptide-Based Lash Serums
These types of serum for lashes pack the same growth punch that prostaglandin-derived eyelash serums do, but with far less side effects.
Vitamin-Based Lash Serums
While these eyelash serums don’t work as well to promote growth, they do a great job of improving the condition of the lashes.
For this reason, I think that the best eyelash serum is one that contains both peptides and vitamins, such as Hairlust Superb Lash Eyelash Enhancing Serum.
Superb Lash Eyelash Enhancing Serum is a safe alternative to a prostaglandin-derived serum for lashes. Powered by a clinically-proven peptide complex combined with an innovative blend of active botanicals, such as organic aloe vera, jojoba oil, coffee seed oil, pea protein, and red clover flower, this nutrient-rich, deeply conditioning formula helps provide stronger, thicker, and healthier eyelashes.
How to Apply Serum for Lashes Step-by-Step
Applying Superb Lash Eyelash Enhancing Serum is easy! Here’s how to do it:
- Step One: Start by cleansing the face to remove makeup, dead skin, and excess oils from the eye area.
- Step Two: Apply one swipe of Eyelash Growth Serum along each lash line. Make sure to apply the serum to the base of the eyelashes, and not to the eyelashes themselves.
- Step Three: Wait five to ten minutes before applying makeup.
For best results, Hairlust recommend using Eyelash Serum in the morning and evening. In order to see results, you must stay consistent! If used as directed, your eyelashes will be noticeably longer and thicker-looking within four to eight weeks*. (*These studies are created by Lucas Meyer Cosmetics. For more information visit www.lucasmeyercosmetics.com).
What Happens If I Stop Using a Lash Serum?
If you stop using a prostaglandin-derived lash serum, you may experience lash shedding which can make your eyelashes appear sparse.
Since peptide- and vitamin-based serums don’t actually change the growth cycle of the eyelashes, they don’t cause this same result with discontinued use. Instead, the results gradually fade over time. Just another reason why peptide- and vitamin-based eyelash serums are the best eyelash serums!
I hope this post answered all your questions about lash growth and how to choose the best eyelash serum!
