Family Encyclopedia >> Beauty & Style

Wednesday's Question:Does Shaving Make Hair Thicker?

The answer is no:it is a visual and tactile illusion. A hair grows from the root and thins out towards the tip (so the razor only touches the tip). When you shave it, you cut it clean at the base of the skin, where it is widest. As a result, the "new tip" of the hair is wider. And, as it has been bevel cut, it is thicker to the touch. Visually, it looks darker because it is thicker, and because it hasn't had time to be (slightly) lightened. As for the amount of hair, it is fixed at birth, so it cannot increase. On the other hand, it can split:we then have two stems in the same bulb.

To avoid this, the ideal is to alternate waxing (which tears out the hair and its bulb) and shaving. What about depilatory cream? Formulated with high pH active ingredients or sulfur derivatives, it dissolves the hair in minutes, without touching the bulb. Instead of being cut flush, the hair is destroyed "in hollow" (so it is less coarse to the touch) and we gain a few days of tranquility. But ditto, as it is cut in half, its new tip may be wider and darker...

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