Eyebrow hair loss

1. Daily influences that can weaken eyebrows
2. Skin conditions that can cause eyebrow hair loss
3. Natural changes in the body that weaken eyebrow hairs
4. Medication use and medical treatments

If you already know why your eyebrows are thinning or falling out and you want to know how to restore them to fullness and health, read our comprehensive guide now.

• Thinning eyebrows are often temporary and easy to treat.
• Common causes include skin problems, hormones, and stress.
• Excessive plucking and waxing can cause permanent damage.
• Have you noticed sudden or unexplained hair loss? Consult your doctor.

Daily habits can weaken your eyebrow hairs unnecessarily. In particular, improper care, poor nutrition, and persistent stress are common causes of hair loss or thin eyebrows.

Both waxing and epilation remove eyebrow hairs at the root, which, with repeated use, can contribute to hair loss and even permanent damage to the hair follicles.

Every time you remove hair—whether with wax or tweezers—the hair follicle under the skin is stressed. With occasional epilation, the hair follicle usually recovers well. However, frequent or aggressive waxing/epilation can lead to:

1. Inflammation and irritation: Pulling hairs causes minor trauma to the skin and hair follicle. This can lead to swelling, redness, and even infection, which weakens the hair follicle.
2. Repeated damage: Regular waxing or epilation repeatedly damages the hair follicle. Over time, the follicle can form scar tissue or die, preventing new hair from growing.
3. Thinning growth: Even if the hairs continue to grow back, they can become thinner or weaker, and eventually disappear.

In short: what starts as a cosmetic procedure can, with repeated or careless use, lead to permanent eyebrow loss due to damage to the hair structure.

The body needs various essential nutrients to function properly. These include energy sources such as carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, as well as amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals. Some of these substances play a direct role in hair growth. If the body has a deficiency in certain nutrients, this can lead to hair loss or loss of volume in the eyebrows.

For example, a deficiency in vitamin A or zinc can slow down cell division and reduce the production of sebum (the natural oil that moisturizes the skin and hair). This can cause your eyebrow hairs to become brittle and fall out.

Alle vitaminen/mineralen die invloed hebben op gezonde wenkbrauwharen:

• Vitamine A
• Biotine (vitamine B7)
• Vitamine B12
• Vitamine C (nodig voor de vorming van collageen)
• Vitamine D
• Vitamine E
• Omega-3-vetzuren
• IJzer
• Zink
• Cysteïne (een zwavelhoudend aminozuur dat betrokken is bij keratine productie)

Natural reactions to stress and anxiety can lead to changes in the body that affect the health of the eyebrows. Prolonged tension can, among other things, reduce blood circulation, resulting in less oxygen and nutrients reaching the hair follicles of the eyebrows. At the same time, stress-related hormonal fluctuations such as increased cortisol production can shorten the growth phase of the hair or even lead to hair loss.

Stress and anxiety activate the sympathetic nervous system, which can constrict blood vessels. This reduces the amount of oxygen and nutrients reaching the hair follicles in the eyebrows, impairing their function. In addition, hormonal changes caused by stress, such as rising cortisol levels, can disrupt the natural hair growth cycle, resulting in eyebrow hairs falling out more quickly or growing back more slowly [5, Thom].

In both men and women, changes in hormone levels can affect the health of your eyebrow hairs.

The transition (menopause) causes a drastic hormonal shift in the body, which, like stress, pregnancy, or chemotherapy, can have a direct impact on the health of the hair, including the eyebrows.

During menopause, the levels of female hormones such as estrogen and progesterone decrease, while the relative proportion of male hormones (such as androgen) increases [9, Gupta et al.]. This change has several effects on hair growth:

1. Shorter growth phase: Estrogen normally prolongs the growth phase of hair. Due to the decrease in this hormone, eyebrow hairs enter the resting and shedding phases more quickly.
2. Thinner and slower regrowth: Hormonal imbalance causes hair to become thinner, lighter, and grow back more slowly.
3. Sensitivity to androgenic hair loss: Some women become more sensitive to androgenic influences during menopause, which can lead to hair loss in typically female patterns, including thinning of the outer edge of the eyebrows.

As with telogen effluvium or stress-related hair loss, the underlying problem is a disrupted hair growth cycle. In this case, however, the trigger is the body's natural hormonal aging process.

During and after pregnancy, the body undergoes significant hormonal changes that can affect hair growth, including eyebrow hair. The sharp drop in estrogen after childbirth can disrupt the natural hair growth cycle, causing hair to enter the shedding phase more quickly and temporarily become thinner or fall out.

Pregnancy temporarily increases estrogen levels, which stimulates hair growth. After giving birth, this hormone drops abruptly, causing many hairs to enter the resting and shedding phase at the same time [6, Gizlenti and Ekmekci]. This phenomenon, known as postpartum hair loss, affects not only the hair on the head but also the eyebrows. The body needs time to restore hormonal balance, which explains why eyebrow hair often grows temporarily thinner or more irregularly after childbirth.

As we age, our hormone balance changes, which can lead to gradually thinning hair, including in the eyebrows. In women, estrogen levels decline as menopause approaches, while in men, testosterone levels slowly decrease. These hormonal changes can slow hair growth and contribute to the loss of eyebrow hairs.

Hormones play a key role in the hair growth cycle. Estrogen stimulates hair growth, while testosterone affects hair structure and density. After the age of 40, these hormones become unbalanced: less estrogen or testosterone means that the growth phase of hair becomes shorter and the resting and shedding phases become longer. This leads to less active hair follicles and therefore thinner or less full eyebrows as the years progress.

Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy hair follicles, resulting in sudden hair loss. This condition often leads to round, bald patches on the scalp, but can also affect other parts of the body, such as eyebrows, eyelashes, and beard hair [1, Lepe et al.].

The image on the right shows that the left eyebrow has only a few hairs left.

Different types of alopecia:

There are various forms of alopecia, each with its own characteristics:

• Alopecia areata: patchy hair loss on the scalp or other parts of the body.
• Alopecia totalis: complete hair loss on the scalp. Alopecia universalis: complete hair loss on the entire body.
• Frontal fibrosing alopecia: a form of scarring that leads to hair loss at the front of the scalp and often also affects the eyebrows.

Possible causes and progression:

The exact cause of alopecia areata is not yet fully understood. It is considered a polygenic disorder, meaning that multiple genetic factors play a role. Environmental factors, such as stress or infections, may act as triggers. The course of the disease is unpredictable; in some cases, hair grows back spontaneously, while others experience prolonged or permanent hair loss.

Eczema (atopic dermatitis) is a skin inflammation that causes symptoms such as itching, redness, irritation, and sometimes moist patches. The condition is caused by an overactive immune system that reacts hypersensitively to certain stimuli.

Eczema can occur as a one-time flare-up, but it can also be chronic with recurring symptoms.

Psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the skin, causing skin cells to renew themselves much faster than normal. This leads to a buildup of skin cells that form thick, red, and scaly patches, often accompanied by itching, pain, or a burning sensation.

When psoriasis occurs on or around the eyebrows, an area that is thin and sensitive, the inflamed skin and accumulation of flakes can suffocate or irritate the hair follicles. This disrupts natural hair growth and can lead to temporary or even long-term hair loss.

In addition, scratching or rubbing the flaky areas, or using aggressive treatments or creams, can damage the hair follicles or slow down recovery. In severe cases, the hair follicles can become inflamed or scarred, which can result in permanent hair loss.

Contact dermatitis is a skin reaction that occurs when the skin comes into contact with an irritant or allergen [2, Li and Li]. Examples include cosmetics, skin care products, hair dye, perfume, metals (such as nickel in jewelry), or cleaning products. The reaction often causes itching, redness, swelling, flaking, or a burning sensation.

When contact dermatitis occurs in the area around the eyebrows, it can disrupt normal hair growth. The inflammatory reaction irritates the skin, which can affect the hair follicles. As a result, the hair roots are less well nourished or even damaged, causing eyebrow hairs to fall out or grow back more slowly.

In addition, scratching or rubbing the irritated area, which often occurs with itching, can cause mechanical damage to the hair follicles. If the skin remains inflamed for a long time, or if the irritant is regularly exposed to the skin, this can even lead to permanent hair loss in the affected area.

Seborrheic dermatitis is a chronic, often recurring skin condition that mainly occurs on oily or sebaceous areas of the skin, such as the scalp, sides of the nose, ears, and eyebrows [3, Tucker and Masood]. It is thought to be caused by a combination of factors: excessive sebum production and a reaction to the presence of a yeast-like fungus called Malassezia, which occurs naturally on the skin.

The condition usually manifests itself in the form of redness, flaking (often yellowish or white), itching, and sometimes a burning sensation. In the eyebrow area, seborrheic eczema can manifest itself as fine, dry, or greasy flakes similar to dandruff on the scalp.

When this inflammation occurs in and around the hair follicles of the eyebrows, it can affect hair growth. The constant irritation and accumulation of flakes can clog or suffocate the hair follicles, leading to weakening of the hairs or even hair loss. In addition, frequent rubbing or scratching, often in response to itching, can loosen the eyebrow hairs or damage the skin, slowing down recovery.

Thyroid problems are among the most common medical causes of hair loss, including in the eyebrow area. The thyroid is a small, butterfly-shaped gland in the neck that is responsible for producing hormones that regulate your metabolism and cell activity.

When the thyroid gland produces too few (hypothyroidism) or too many (hyperthyroidism) hormones, the body becomes unbalanced. This hormonal imbalance affects all kinds of bodily functions, including hair growth [4, Muacevic and Adler].

Hypothyroidism slows down the metabolism, which leads to reduced cell renewal in the skin and hair follicles. This can cause eyebrow hairs to become thinner or fall out, particularly at the outer edges of the eyebrows, which is a classic symptom. Other complaints include fatigue, weight gain, sensitivity to cold, and brain fog.

Hyperthyroidism, on the other hand, speeds up the metabolism, putting the body into a kind of overdrive. This can also lead to hair loss, although it is often more widespread. Symptoms include heart palpitations, weight loss, increased irritability, and sometimes bulging eyes (as in Graves' disease).

The hair growth cycle consists of a growth phase (anagen), a resting phase (telogen), and a shedding phase. In telogen effluvium, a trigger such as illness, stress, hormonal fluctuations, or nutritional deficiencies causes more hairs than normal to shift to the telogen phase at the same time. After a few weeks or months, these hairs fall out. This does not only happen on the scalp, but can also affect the eyebrows, which becomes visible as thinning or uneven eyebrows.

Chemotherapy aims to destroy rapidly dividing cells, such as cancer cells. Unfortunately, this also affects healthy cells, including those in the hair follicles [8, Wikramanayake et al]. This causes not only the hair on the head but also the eyebrow hair to fall out within a short period of time.

Hair follicles contain rapidly dividing cells that continuously produce new hairs. Chemotherapy can abruptly halt this activity, causing premature hair loss. Because the entire body is affected, this also affects the eyebrows. Hair loss often begins a few weeks after the start of treatment and eyebrow hair may temporarily disappear completely. After therapy, the hair follicles can recover, but growth returns gradually and may sometimes change in thickness, color, or pattern.

Eyebrow loss is often a sign that there is more going on. Listen to your body, find the cause, and get well informed. With the right approach, you can often limit further loss and, in some cases, support recovery. And don't forget: your appearance is more than just a few hairs—confidence starts from within.