The main function of eyelashes is to protect the eyes from dust and other foreign particles and foreign bodies getting into them. Secondary, but no less important, is aesthetic: every woman dreams of them being long, fluffy, and beautifully shaped. And if eyelashes fall out, it becomes a real disaster, especially when the process cannot be stopped, and bald spots appear on the eyelids.
What causes eyelashes to fall out, what can cause this problem and how to solve it?
Aged eyelashes “fly away” as easily as dandelion seeds
How eyelashes grow
Eyelashes are the same hair, only short and with a shorter period of growth and life in general. They originate in hair follicles located along the edge of the eyelids, grow within a month or two, and fall out after 150-200 days. New ones immediately begin to grow in their place.
This process is ongoing, and it is impossible to say exactly how many eyelashes should fall out per day: everyone has their own norm, their own growth rate and life expectancy of hairs.
Phases of hair and eyelash growth
For reference. On average, there are about two hundred hair follicles on the upper eyelid, and about one hundred on the lower eyelid.
If we assume that we have 300 eyelashes on each eye, then the disappearance of five to ten will be completely unnoticeable. And in general, if they do not become sparse and thin, and do not break off, then everything is fine with you.
In this case, normal care and preventive measures are sufficient. For example, you can lubricate the bristles with cosmetic oil a couple of times a week.
When eyelashes fall out significantly, it is immediately visible: empty areas appear on the eyelids or noticeable thinning catches the eye. Most women begin to sound the alarm, not wanting to lose their attractiveness.
But in such a situation, you need to think first of all not about beauty, but about what caused the problem. If the norm for eyelash loss per day is 5-10 hairs, then a larger number may indicate something is wrong in the body.
The girl in the photo has a clear problem
However, this is not the only reason, there are others.
Associated symptoms with eyelash loss
The very first sign indicating the occurrence of health problems is significant thinning of the hairline. There are also several characteristic symptoms that make it possible to identify the true cause of eyelash loss. The main manifestations include:
- Swelling of the eyelid,
- Unbearable itching and burning of the organ of vision,
- Peeling of the skin in the eye area,
- Formation of pustules,
- Intense redness of the mucous membrane.
Depending on the clinical picture, you need to seek medical help from an ophthalmologist or dermatologist.
Why do eyelashes fall out?
Let's find out why eyelashes fall out. We will, of course, talk about those situations when this happens excessively and leads to visible defects in appearance. There are many reasons; let’s divide them into external and internal.
External reasons
They are the most common, especially when it comes to girls and women who regularly use decorative cosmetics and modern methods of eye beautification.
Very often we destroy natural beauty with our own hands, being overly carried away with false eyelashes. Not only do they create stress on their own hairs, but they are also negatively affected by adhesives.
And there is no need to talk about improper removal of artificial bristles: when mechanically torn from the eyelids, along with the linings, their own hairs can be torn out of the hair follicles.
How to remove false eyelashes correctly
Note. The instructions for using false eyelashes recommend that you always remove them at night, using special makeup removers or cosmetic oils that dissolve glue.
Other external reasons that can lead to negative consequences:
- Using low-quality eye cosmetics . An indicator of low quality can be an expired expiration date, an unpleasant odor, a suspiciously low price or a completely unfamiliar brand.
- Use of low-quality care products - creams, oils, masks, etc.
- Presence of allergy-causing substances in cosmetic preparations.
- Failure to comply with hygiene rules . At night, any decorative cosmetics must be washed off. It is also necessary to wash your face, even if you do not wear makeup, because... During the day, a lot of dust, dirt, and harmful substances accumulate on eyelashes.
Remove makeup correctly
- Excessive passion for salon methods - extensions, chemical coloring, perm.
Note. Unprofessional extensions can lead to breaking off your eyelashes. Until these “stumps” fall out, new ones will not begin to grow. You already know how long eyelashes grow after they fall out; add to this the average lifespan of eyelashes and you will get the period during which there will be “bald patches” in place of normal eyelashes.
- Poor nutrition and bad habits . The lack of vitamins and nutrients in the body seriously affects all organs, just as harmful substances have a destructive effect on them.
Balance your diet with vitamins
- Stress, chronic fatigue, and lack of sleep also often cause a person to lose hair and eyelashes . Try not to bring yourself to physical and psychological exhaustion.
Internal reasons
There are often cases when all of the external causes listed above are excluded, but the problem still exists. For example, when a person carefully monitors hygiene, eats well, uses only high-quality cosmetics, etc.
Or when a child’s eyelashes fall out. A priori, he does not paint his eyes every day, his diet and hygiene are carefully monitored by his parents, he has no bad habits, there is no stress in his life, and his eyelashes begin to fall out one after another.
Problems with eyelashes in young children should be alarming
These are situations when you should sound the alarm, because you are faced not just with an aesthetic problem, but with some serious disease, only one of the symptoms of which is hair loss, eyebrows and eyelashes. These could be eye diseases, serious disorders in the functioning of internal organs, or genetic diseases.
The table contains the most common diseases that lead to similar consequences. It is very important to identify them in time and begin adequate treatment.
| Eye diseases | Internal diseases |
| Barley is an inflammation of the sebaceous gland and hair follicle. Purulent processes in the hair follicle lead to loss of eyelashes, and if they drag on, a new follicle may not develop. | Sexually transmitted diseases, in which changes in the thickness and color of eyebrows and eyelashes and their loss are a secondary symptom. |
| Demodicosis is the most common disease of eyelash loss, caused by the subcutaneous demodex mite. It penetrates the hair root and feeds on epithelial cells, weakening the hair follicle. | Oncological diseases. In addition to the disease itself, aggressive methods of treatment - chemotherapy, radiation - have a huge negative impact on the vital activity of hair follicles. |
| Blepharitis is an inflammation of the edges of the eyelids, accompanied by itching, redness of the eyes, the appearance of scaly crusts, and swelling. | Hypothyroidism is a disease of the thyroid gland in which there is a sharp decrease in the production of hormones. |
| Allergies, retinal diseases, purulent conjunctivitis can also lead to similar results. | Neurotic disorders, when children and even adults can pull out eyelashes themselves without noticing it. |
Characteristic signs of blepharitis
Advice. Observe how often your child's eyelashes fall out and why this happens. Perhaps this will help you identify some serious disease at an early stage.
Treatment methods
If problems arise with eyelashes and their significant loss, it is recommended to consult a specialist in order to determine the cause of the pathology. If there are indications, the doctor can conduct an examination, based on the results of which an accurate diagnosis will be determined and comprehensive treatment will be selected. Therapy for hair loss involves prescribing medications, vitamins, physiotherapy and herbal medicine.
Cosmetical tools
If the loss of eyelashes is severe, it is recommended to stop using cosmetics during the day for a while, and moisturize them with nourishing oil at night. For this purpose, you can use olive, flaxseed or castor oil. With their help, it is possible to achieve a softening effect on the skin of the eyelids and accelerate the growth of new eyelashes.
Another effective remedy for severe hair loss is vitamin E in oil, which not only has a nutritional effect, but also slows down the aging process. Ampoules with this composition can be purchased at any pharmacy.
If the cause of eyelash loss is chronic or acute infectious pathologies, then treatment is carried out not only with the use of cosmetic products. The main emphasis is on eliminating painful symptoms, after which the patient is prescribed vitamin complexes and minerals. It is possible to speed up the elimination of the inflammatory process with the help of some physiotherapeutic procedures:
- ozone therapy;
- darsonvalization;
- electrophoresis;
- magnetotherapy.
In addition, massage courses are prescribed, during which massage movements are directed towards the area of hair growth. With this procedure, it is possible to normalize blood circulation, improve oxygen exchange in the upper layers of the epidermis and strengthen the hair follicles.
You can accelerate the growth of new eyelashes with the help of masks purchased at the pharmacy or prepared yourself. In addition, healing balms and nourishing oils can help solve the problem. External applications are applied to the eyelids until the eyelash row is completely restored.
Folk remedies and recipes
Often the cause of eyelash loss is an inflammatory process occurring in the organs of vision. It is possible to alleviate the condition in such a situation with the help of compresses based on a decoction of herbs such as chamomile, eyebright and blue cornflower. Brew a few tablespoons of the dry plant mixture with a glass of boiling water and leave the resulting mixture to steep for 40 minutes. After a while, the broth should be filtered, cotton pads soaked in it and applied to the sore eye. In addition to decoctions of medicinal herbs, you can use regular green tea at home.
Compresses made from almond or peach oil help speed up the growth of new eyelashes. It is necessary to slightly heat pure peach oil in a water bath, then moisten a cotton swab in it and apply it to the eyelids. This compress should be kept for at least 10–15 minutes, and this procedure should be carried out daily.
It is possible to accelerate the growth of eyelashes with the help of compresses based on sea buckthorn and fir oil, as well as with freshly squeezed carrot juice.
In addition, you can prepare the following nutrient:
- it is necessary to mix burdock oil, Vaseline and cognac in equal proportions;
- the resulting mass should be applied to damaged eyelashes every evening with a brush and make sure that the product does not penetrate the eyes.
Eyelashes acquire a well-groomed appearance after lubricating them with a mixture consisting of grape seed oils, wheat germ, rose, flax, castor and almond oils. This medicinal mixture should be applied to the eyelashes and eyelids for a few minutes, after which the excess should be carefully removed.
Natural causes of hair loss
Eyelash loss is a natural process. Physiological characteristics include 4 phases of the life cycle of cilia:
- Phase one - a new follicle is born and a hair develops in it. It takes about 30 days;
- The second phase is transitional, during which the eyelash actively grows and the root bulb decreases in size. The duration of the phase is no more than 10 days;
- Next comes the longest stage - the resting phase. At this time, within 90-100 days, the adult regrown hair appears in all its “glory”;
- Eyelashes age and die, the fourth phase ends with complete rejection of the villus and its loss.
How many eyelashes does a person lose in one day?
The complete life cycle of an eyelash, from birth to death, ranges from 90 to 150 days. Thus, it is considered quite normal for eyelashes to fall out. The process occurs gradually and imperceptibly. If 4-5 hairs fall out per day, this indicates natural replacement. And when the number of lost eyelashes increases significantly, then it’s time to sound the alarm.
