During menopause, a woman's body stops circulating estrogen but continues to circulate the same amounts of testosterone. The imbalance of hormones causes the appearance of some male secondary sex characteristics, like coarse facial hair. You should let your doctor know if your facial and body hairs are growing quickly.
As women age, they may notice the appearance of unwanted, unsightly facial hair. During the hormone changes caused by menopause, estrogen levels decline while levels of testosterone and other androgens rise. This can result in hair growth on the face as well as excess body hair.
“Your estrogen level starts to decline, which alters the balance of estrogen and testosterone in your body,” Dr. Kingsley explains. “As a result, you end up with relatively more testosterone, which can cause facial hair growth.”
While estrogen can help thin hair, it cannot completely reverse facial and body hair growth. Many trans women and other transgender people know all too well about how time-consuming daily grooming routines can be, so thankfully, there are alternative options available.
Causes of hirsutism
Hirsutism is linked to hormones called androgens. It can happen if the level of these hormones increases or if your body becomes more sensitive to them.
This can be due to virilization, or excess production of androgens. Sudden changes in facial hair patterns might mean your body is sending a sign something has changed. It can signal a hormonal imbalance caused by a medical condition or a side effect of medications.
Combination birth control pills: These pills, which have both estrogen and progesterone, may help shrink the cysts from PCOS. The estrogen can also help reduce excess hair. These drugs are usually a long-term solution for hirsutism. You'll most likely notice improvement after 3 to 6 months of drug therapy.
The only medicine out on the market that will reduce unwanted facial hair in women is Vaniqa (Elfornithine). Eflornithine is an ingredient in Vaniqa that blocks the natural substance hair needs to grow. It's a cream that your doctor must prescribe.
For women, the hair may grow in areas where men often have a lot of hair, but women often don't. This includes the upper lip, chin, chest, and back. It's caused by an excess of male hormones called androgens. All women naturally produce small amounts of androgens.
Both stress and excess fat can lead to increased androgen production. Prevention is ideal because once facial hair is present, reduction techniques such as laser hair removal, IPL (Intense Pulsed Light), or electrolysis are the only ways of achieving permanent removal. Waxing is also an option, though only temporary.
Your eyes and face will begin to develop a more feminine appearance as the fat under the skin increases and shifts.
However, repeated ripping of the hair from its follicle via waxing or plucking (which is essentially the same thing, when you think about it) will make hair grow back thicker, darker and coarser… and frequently, more plentiful and faster to re-grow.
Hirsutism (HUR-soot-iz-um) is a condition in women that results in excessive growth of dark or coarse hair in a male-like pattern — face, chest and back. With hirsutism, extra hair growth often arises from excess male hormones (androgens), primarily testosterone.
One such supplement — Beardalizer — promises to boost beard growth by providing nutrients like vitamin C, biotin, and vitamin A. Like hair supplements marketed toward women, these vitamins and minerals are said to produce thicker, healthier hair.
A poor diet can cause your beard to grow at a slow pace
If your diet lacks the right nutrition and number of calories, you may suffer from slow beard growth. Just like your skin absorbs the goodness from what you eat, beard growth also starts on the inside.
Low estrogen levels can interfere with sexual development and sexual functions. They can also increase your risk for obesity, osteoporosis, and cardiovascular disease. Treatments have evolved over the years and become more effective.
A Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center study involving postmenopausal, overweight, and obese women who took 2,000 IUs of vitamin D daily for a year found that those whose vitamin D blood levels increased the most had the greatest reductions in blood estrogens, which are a known risk factor for breast cancer.
The discovery of the odd hair on your chin is perfectly normal and usually not a cause for concern. Shifting hormones, aging, and even genetics could be behind a few chin hairs that stand out. For that, there are simple and efficient ways to remove them if you don't want them.
Few foods might help you to get rid of facial hair: Sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, flax seeds, garlic, peaches, oats, dried fruits, barley, mung beans, lentils, and rice bran may help increase the estrogen (hormone) levels in the body and reduce unwanted facial hair naturally.
In fact, by suppressing luteinizing hormone ( LH ) levels it decreases the stimulation of the theca (male-hormone producing) cells in our ovaries . Progesterone also decreases the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT), the male hormone that directly makes dark, coarse facial hair grow.