Recognising Menopause Month: How To Prevent Eyebrow Loss

When menopause or peri-menopause is mentioned, there is a long list of symptoms that are usually associated with it. Whether it be hot flashes, sleep deprivation or brain fog, these are all terms that you often hear in conversations about menopause.
Less people seem to discuss the effect menopause can have on our lashes, hair and brows, but with a whopping 50% of women experiencing hair loss during menopause, including menopausal eyebrow loss, during this time, it is a common phenomenon that should be explored!
That’s why the experts at UKLASH are here! In this article we’re going to look at eyebrow thinning during menopause, why it happens, touching on hormonal changes and eyebrow loss, and the best eyebrow care during menopause, including a step-by-step guide to eyebrow grooming!

Why Eyebrow Loss Happens During Menopause

There are a few reasons why we might experience eyebrow thinning during menopause. One simple reason is that, much like the rest of our bodies, hair matures and with that the number of hair follicles we have reduces. Therefore, when it comes to your eyebrows, it could be that as a general part of ageing your hair follicles have reduced and your eyebrows have followed suit.
Another reason could be related to hormones. Sadly, eyebrow loss and hormonal changes go hand in hand, and during menopause, your levels of oestrogen; a hormone that plays a pivotal role in female functionality and health, start to reduce. This reduction of oestrogen can affect the oils that are produced to make hair smooth and silky and can affect the hair growth cycle by shortening the Anagen Phase, which is also known as the growth phase, and lengthening the end of the Telogen phase when hair detaches from the root. Ultimately this gives your brows less time to grow and more time to fall out, leading to noticeable eyebrow loss.
Another reason could be eyebrow trends that have come back to haunt you. If you were drawn to the thin eyebrow trend that gained popularity in the 1990s and early 2000s, which caused you to over pluck and wax your brows into a thin, highly arched shape, it could be that you’re seeing the long-term effects of this. By consistently waxing and plucking the hairs out, you could have caused damage to the hair follicles, preventing hairs from growing back in those places.

How To Protect Your Eyebrows During Menopause

Eat a balanced diet - During such a tumultuous time in our lives it’s easy for a balanced diet to fall by the wayside on our list of priorities, although it’s so important to make sure your body is getting all it needs to stay fit and healthy and to keep your hormones in check, which can in turn minimise your menopausal symptoms and prevent eyebrow loss during menopause. To create healthier and fuller-looking eyebrows during menopause, increase your intake of nutrient-rich foods. Whole grain cereals, eggs, fish, and sweet potatoes are great sources of Vitamin B5 (Panthenol), which helps strengthen brow hairs. Also, foods like cheese, milk, and leafy vegetables provide Vitamin A, which supports hair regeneration and conditions the hair follicles, preventing your eyebrow hairs from becoming brittle and breaking.
Take Your Supplements - Another solution for how to stop eyebrow loss in menopause is to make sure your body is getting all it needs, taking supplements and vitamins where necessary. The decrease in oestrogen levels that happens during menopause can leave bones more brittle and can cause conditions such as osteoporosis, so you must get enough Vitamin D and Calcium to counteract this, which can be found in supplement form if you’re not taking enough in through your food. If you’re focusing on menopausal hair loss prevention, you should be making sure you’re getting enough Vitamin C, Vitamin A and Biotin, all of which are featured in our UKHAIR Hair Growth Vitamins. This combination of nutrients and vitamins helps to condition the hair follicles and promote regeneration at the root, leading to fuller, thicker and healthier-looking brows.
Consider Medical Solutions - HRT has risen in popularity over the last few years, with a recent statistic showing that around 2.3 million women in the UK are prescribed it each year. Standing for Hormone Replacement Therapy, it works to increase the levels of oestrogen in your body and therefore can help to regulate your hair and eyebrow growth cycles back to what they once were, balancing out the Growth Phase and the Shedding Phase to reduce eyebrow loss and improve hair texture. However, it does need to be prescribed by a medical professional so please reach out to your local GP for more assistance.

Eyebrow Grooming Guide During Menopause

1. Find your perfect shape - It might be that you think you know your brow shape already, or that your brows have lost their way over the years due to excessive waxing and overplucking. Whatever the case, maybe now is a great time to give your brows a reset and find the perfect pair to frame your face! Brow mapping is a great method to find where your brows start, end and arch. To do this, use the UKBROW Eyebrow Pencil and place it vertically at the side of your nose, using this as a guide to where the innermost part of your brow should sit. Next, turn the pencil at an angle that sits below your eye’s pupil - this is where the arch of your brow belongs. Finally, turn the angle of your pencil even further so it frames the outer part of your eye and use this as a guide for where your brows should end. Make sure to pencil a dot at each turn to frame your brows and find out where you should fill in. To learn more about finding the best brow shape for you, head to our article here.

2. Trim with caution - One way to keep your brows and face looking neat is by occasionally trimming and taming your brow hairs to catch any unruly ones. However, when doing this, it’s important to err on the side of caution, making sure not to over pluck or wax too many hairs away, especially if you’re already working with thinner brows than you would necessarily like or are used to. For a full guide on how to pluck your brows like a pro, head to our article here.

3. Use an Eyebrow Serum - Our award-winning UKBROW Eyebrow Serum can help with eyebrow regrowth after menopause and is beloved by those looking to achieve fuller and thicker-looking brows because it really works! Its powerful formula is fortified with Vitamin B5 (Panthenol), Green Tea extract, and Myristoyl Pentapeptide-17 — an amino acid peptide known for encouraging keratin growth and strengthening your brow hairs. The serum enhances the thickness of the brow hairs by strengthening the hair roots and encouraging better absorption of nutrients from the bloodstream for healthier brow growth. The Editors at British Vogue even commented to say “Trust me when I say this stuff really works. It almost works too well – where I’ve haphazardly smeared it on the hairs around my brows have flourished, so much so that I’ve had to tweeze and trim all the stray strands.”

4. Set Your Brows - Life during menopause can feel hectic, consisting of days frantically running around working, looking after the family and combatting all of the other symptoms that come along during mid-life. By setting your brows during your daily make-up routine, you can worry less about having unruly-looking eyebrows. Using our UKBROW Brow Gel Sculpt, with its cream-to-clear formula, you can help hold your brows in place all day, and shape them to sit where you’d like using the clever dual-ended brush that’s hidden in the lid!

5. Shade and Fill Your Brows - As well as our groundbreaking serums, our makeup range at UKLASH also has you covered when it comes to helping you feel your best during menopause. And what better way to set off your makeup look and show off your hard-earned brow growth than by using the UKBROW Brow Pomade and Pencil? The Brow Pomade packs a pigmented formula into one end of its dual-ended design, with a fine, angular brush on the other, allowing for precise application to fill and shape your brows easily. Follow up with the Brow Pencil, using its ultra-fine tip to create short, hair-like strokes, adding definition and depth to your ultimate brow look!

Ultimately, we understand that menopause can already be such a tricky time of life to navigate, and losing your eyebrows which help to frame your face, can cause a knock-on effect on how you feel, your self-image and your confidence. We hope that the above eyebrow regrowth tips for women in menopause can shed some light on what to do during this time if you’re looking to achieve fuller and thicker brows and can help you to feel healthier, bolder and stronger at any age.