Many hair myths abound to the point where men aren’t sure what to believe. One popular myth is the idea that shaving or otherwise cutting, waxing or trimming your hair impacts how the hair grows back.
The truth is that the method by which you trim or shave your hair (whether scalp hair, body hair or facial hair) doesn’t impact how the hair grows back. With a few small provisos.
Shaving And Waxing
If you shave your hair, it will start growing back noticeably within a few days. If you wax your hair, you’ll probably go several weeks without seeing hair in that same spot. Shaving simply trims the hair at skin level or slightly below so that it grows back quickly.
Waxing literally pulls hair out by the root well below the surface of the skin so that it takes longer to grow back. But it will grow back, in the same form that it did before you waxed or shaved.
So shaving and waxing does not impact how your hair grows back. It will grow back exactly as it was before you removed it. Your hair will not grow back thicker, thinner, lighter, darker or any differently. Nor will it grow back faster or slower if you shave it. Hair growth is determined by genetics and in the case of facial hair for men, additionally hormones.
Your choice of hair removal options can certainly impact how quickly your hair does grow back, but the actual growth rate of the hair that returns is unaffected. But since shaving and waxing are only temporary hair removal methods, it is beneficial to learn more about other options that help you go hair free for a longer period of time.
Laser And IPL Hair Removal
There are hair removal options that can impact how hair grows back. Laser and Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) hair removal can impact how hair grows back because of how these options remove the hair. Both types of machines used by commercial laser and IPL clinics use a flash of light to destroy hair down to the root causing the hair to fall out within several days of treatment.
The pulse of light damages the hair follicle and may damage it to the point where no hair is able to grow back.
With repeated treatments, you can achieve permanent hair reduction so that each time you have laser or IPL performed, less hair may grow back and the hair that does grow back may be finer than before.
So ultimately, you may not achieve 100% hair removal but you end up with less hair and the remaining hair is thinner and perhaps less noticeable than before.
Electrolysis
Electrolysis is currently the only hair removal option that provides 100% permanent hair removal. Electrolysis is approved by the FDA in the US for this purpose. This process treats each hair one at a time so it can be time-consuming and costly and hence is generally only used for small areas of hair removal ie. lip hair, chin hair, etc.
When done properly, electrolysis targets the hair follicle so that hair removal is permanent and hair will not grow back.
Conclusion
So, does shaving stimulate hair growth? No it does not. Hair growth is not impacted by shaving, waxing or tweezing. However, laser and IPL hair removal zaps hair with a pulse of light that can damage (on purpose) the hair follicles which can impact how the hair grows back if at all. Electrolysis does offer permanent hair removal but it tends to be only good for small areas of hair removal.
To learn more about hair growth, check out the graphic at the very top of the post that described the four phases of hair growth. The final phase on the far right hand side (Early Anagen Phase) is the first phase beginning again so there are really 4 distinct phases.
Also check out my post on the hair growth cycle to understand more about each phase and how it impacts your hair removal choices.