Those tiny, sharp protrusions emerging from your skin, perhaps between your eyebrows or on your chin, are often quickly dealt with by plucking. It takes just a couple of seconds to restore that smooth feel. But have you ever pondered what actually occurs beneath the surface when you do this?
We typically focus on the smooth results above, but a simulation by YouTuber Zackdfilms could make you reconsider the next time you reach for your tweezers.
In his YouTube video, Zackdfilms takes viewers beneath the skin, down to the hair’s root, to show that plucking ‘actually rips out the entire root’.
You might think, “That’s what I want!” While it ensures the hair takes longer to return, it might also introduce some issues.
The YouTuber notes: “This damages the follicle, which can cause the new hair to grow in at an angle.”
If you’ve contended with an ingrown hair before, you might know where this discussion is going.
The simulation depicts an inflamed follicle left open after plucking, allowing a new hair to grow. However, due to the angle, it grows incorrectly, curling and failing to break through the skin.
This can result in the hair becoming trapped beneath the skin, forming a noticeable red bump that stands out more than the initial tiny stub.
Zackdfilms explains the hair can ‘get trapped under the skin, resulting in irritation and ingrown hairs.’
Check out the video here:
“And if you continue to repeatedly pluck like this, your follicles can become so damaged that it can no longer grow hair,” his video warns.
As the simulation suggests, the Cleveland Clinic explains that those who ‘tweeze or wax their hair can develop ingrown hairs’, though shaving can also lead to them.
These occur when new hairs grow from follicles under your skin and ‘it may curl back and enter your skin’, according to the Clinic.
Symptoms include irritation, small bumps with hairs at the center on your face and neck, pain, discoloration, and itching. They are best managed by allowing the hair to grow out naturally or by using warm compresses for 10 to 15 minutes, which help open the pores and facilitate the release of ingrown hairs.