Myth Buster: Does Shaving Make Hair Grow Back Thicker and Darker?

Myth: Hair grows back thicker and darker after it has been shaven.

Facts: This is simply not true, says Robin Ashinoff, M.D., director of Dermatologic, Mohs and Laser Surgery at Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, N.J. “It only appears that hair is thicker after cutting because the proximal shaft [the part of the hair closest to the skin] is thicker in diameter,” she says. A strand of hair naturally tapers toward the end.

Paradi Mirmirani, M.D., a dermatologist at the Permanente Medical Group in Vallejo, Calif., adds, “Once it has been shaven, the hair will regrow with a blunt tip, which creates a more stubbly and rough feeling.”

Nor will hair grow back darker after shaving, Mirmirani says. Shaving changes the hair shaft, which grows outside the skin, but doesn’t change the hair follicle, which determines the hair’s length, girth and color, she says.