Luscious Lashes Unleashed: 5 Vitamins for Eyelash Growth
Lash extensions are amazing, and we are oh so grateful to have them. However, we’d also like to ensure our natural lashes are growing while we’re faking it with our falsies.
Anytime you get salon lash extensions, you expose your natural lashes to harmful chemicals, like formaldehyde and cyanoacrylates (aka super glue). These chemicals fully harden on your natural lashes, which can make them brittle and cause them to break.
If you’re just coming off of a lash extension bender, we’ve got five vitamins you can consider to help restore your lash health, support natural lash growth, and keep your lashes safe. We’ll also talk about lash extensions that are healthy for your natural lashes (spoiler alert: It’s Lashify®!)
First, let’s cover what makes your natural lashes grow in the first place.
How Lashes Grow
Your natural eyelashes grow on a four-phase cycle.
- Anagen. This is the growth phase. During this phase, keratin cells cluster together at the base of your eyelash bulb to form a new hair strand. The blood supply feeds the cells to ensure they grow into healthy hair. During the anagen phase, your lash will grow through the hair follicle and the pore, visible as your eyelash.
- Catagen. This phase is when your eyelash stops growing. The blood supply is cut off from the hair bulb (the base of the eyelash), and the eyelash begins to enter a rest phase.
- Telogen. The resting phase of eyelash growth is when a new eyelash underneath it simultaneously enters the anagen phase. While a new lash is forming beneath the old one, the old lash moves further and further toward the end of the pore, where it will eventually fall out.
- Exogen. The exogen phase is not so much a phase as it is the actual time at which the hair leaves the follicle and is shed.
You can’t grow more eyelashes than you have hair follicles, but you can grow healthier lashes. The only FDA-approved treatment that is proven to make your natural lashes grow longer requires a prescription and takes about 16 weeks to see full results.
Most people have eyelashes between 7-10mm long, so chances are, your lashes aren’t as short as you think they are, but wanting them to be as healthy as possible is certainly a worthy aspiration. For that, we can turn to vitamins that help support your lashes during hair growth.
Five Vitamins That Support Your Lashes
Vitamins won’t make your lashes grow longer than your DNA says they can grow, but they will help support healthy growth and help them repair themselves if repeated lash extension treatments have damaged them.
1. Biotin
The number one supplement recommended for supporting healthy skin, hair, and nails is biotin. Biotin is vitamin B7, which is crucial for helping support keratin production. It also helps keep your eyelash hairs strong, which can help protect them against breakage.
2. Vitamin C
Is there anything vitamin C can’t do? It helps support a thriving immune system, keeps skin bright and radiant, and helps support collagen production. Collagen is essential for supporting the structure and strength of your strands of hair.
Vitamin C also works as an antioxidant. Antioxidants are important for helping protect cells against free radicals. Free radicals are produced from external stressors like UV rays, pollution, cigarette smoke, and even blue light. Shielding your lashes from these stressors helps them grow safely and healthfully.
3. Vitamin D
Essential for the healthy development of bones, Vitamin D helps make sure your body can properly absorb calcium and phosphorus, two minerals that support hair growth. Vitamin D also plays a role in regulating cell growth cycles, which can ensure your eyelashes are cycling through their growth phases properly.
4. Vitamin E
If you’ve ever used vitamin E oil on your skin, you know how incredibly hydrating it is. That same hydration is available to your eyelashes if you use it topically.
Vitamin E is also a powerful antioxidant, providing extra protection to your lashes to keep them safe from oxidative stress. Further, vitamin E is involved in the proper circulation of blood, which is essential for the early stages of lash growth.
5. Lavender Oil
Lavandula, or lavender oil, has been trusted for years for its hair-nourishing effects. You can frequently find it in shampoos and conditioners, and now you can find it in tiny tubes of lash serum. In some studies, it was shown to increase hair growth after continued use. Not to mention, it smells amazing.
If you’re just breaking up with your lash tech because you noticed your natural lashes were taking a beating, you should know you can still support your natural lashes and wear amazing, salon-quality extensions at the same time. How? With the Lashify DIY Lash Extension™ System.
Lashify: Extensions and Healthy Natural Lashes
You can have lash extensions and healthy natural lashes, too, as long as you use Lashify. Our system was designed to give you the look of salon lash extensions without harsh chemicals, stiff adhesives, or damage to your natural lashes.
Lashify uses Underlash Technology™, which attaches our Gossamer® lashes to the underside of your natural lashes to keep them safe and make them feel weightless. We also don’t use glues to adhere our Gossamer lashes to your natural lashes. Instead, we developed Bonds.
Our Bonds feature Micro Flex™, which means they never fully harden, allowing them to bend and flex with your natural lashes to avoid breakage. They also never contain formaldehyde-releasing ingredients or cyanoacrylates. Instead, they contain biotin and Lavendula, making them more like an eyelash serum.
The best part? You can get amazing Lashify looks right in the comfort of your own home, even if you’re a beginner. It all starts with a little eyelash control.
The Control Kit
Consider it your ticket to healthy lashes and extensions. The Control Kit™ contains everything you need to Be Your Own Lash Tech™.
Here’s what’s inside.
Gossamer Lashes
You get to pick two pairs of Gossamer lashes. Our Gossamer lashes come in various lengths and styles, so you can pick the ones that work best for you. You can also find convenient lash maps to help you create fully customized styles.
Fuse Control™ Wand
The best way to apply your Gossamer lashes is with our Fuse Control Wand. Available in two sizes, it’s ergonomically designed to give you an easy application experience every single time you use it.
Glass Finishing Coat
Gossamer lashes don’t have to be sealed. When properly applied, they’ll stay put until you’re ready to remove them. However, for more staying power (like up to 10 days), add a coat of Glass to your Gossamers to help seal them in tight.
Whisper Light™ Bond
Our most popular bond, Whisper Light is formulated with lash-loving biotin and Lavendula. It’s like giving your lashes a nutrient-rich lash treatment every time you use it.
Whisper Light never fully cures, keeping your Gossamer lashes moving with your natural lashes so they never bend or break them.
Wandom® Pair
It’s always important to protect your tool. Your Fuse Control Wand wears Wandoms, little covers that go on the ends, to help keep your Wand from sticking to your Gossamers during application.
If you ever find yourself in a sticky situation with your Wand and your Gossamer, never pull the Wand away from the Gossamer. Gently blink to help release the Gossamer from the Wand.
Samples
It’s important to cleanse your natural lashes before you apply your Gossamer lashes, and our oil-free cleanser, Pre Cleanse, gets the job done perfectly every time. You can also use it as a face wash.
For removal, you need a dual-phase, oil-based makeup remover. Melt Away will help glide your Gossamer lashes right off your natural lashes (revealing healthier, happier lashes).
You’ll get a sample of each product; all wrapped up in a protective case to keep your Gossamer lashes safe and your tools all in one place.
Healthy Lashes With Lashify
Your natural lashes might not be super healthy, especially if you’ve been getting salon lashes for a few months. It’s a good idea to give your natural lashes a break, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still get the gorgeous extensions you love.
Lashify helps support your natural lashes with Bonds that are safe and formulated like lash serums. Our Gossamer lashes protect your natural lashes and help them stay healthy, so you get stronger, better natural lashes even when you’re wearing your extensions.
Be kind to your lashes with Lashify.
Sources:
The eyelash follicle features and anomalies: A review - PMC
Biotin - Health Professional Fact Sheet|NIH.gov
8 Random Facts About Your Eyelashes|Good Housekeeping
Vitamin C and Skin Health | Linus Pauling Institute
Hair Growth-Promoting Effects of Lavender Oil in C57BL/6 Mice - PMC
