The One Ingredient Your Eyelash Growth Serum Should Have In It

Getting long and lush eyelashes is as easy as swiping on a few layers of your favorite mascara. But that's just temporary. The best eyelash growth serums on the market offer a more permanent solution that doesn't require goopy layers, reoccurring extension appointments, or potentially harmful oils that could damage your fine hairs.

Eyelash growth serums assist with promoting the growth of the real eyelash, instead of extending the length you already have with mascaras and primers. Even though many mascara formulas contain essential ingredients like peptides and biotin, they're somewhat counterintuitive in the fact that during the removal process, eyelashes can be ripped out, leaving sparse areas that need even more assistance with growth.

But first things first: You have to understand how your lashes grow. Dr. Dominic Burg, M.D., a chief scientist, hair biologist, and trichologist at Évolis, explains that hair grows in a special cycle for a short period. The growth of the lashes rest for an extended period, then fall out. They are also cycling asynchronously, which means that each hair is doing its own thing in its own time,” he says.

To influence eyelash growth, you need to catch each follicle as it is preparing to grow, or alter it at the time it is actively growing. “This means that to achieve an effect on your lashes as a whole, you would need to use a product continually for three months or more to start seeing visible results, and longer for maximum results,” Dr. Burg says.

If you choose a growth serum, note that they typically contain two sets of ingredients. “The conditioning ingredients hydrate and plump the lashes while peptides stimulate growth,” says Dr. Joshua Zeichner, M.D., F.A.A.D., the director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. The two ingredients you’ll want to look for are biotin and peptides. Ron Robinson, a cosmetic chemist and the founder of Beauty Stat says most times these serums contain biotin (also known as vitamin B), botanical extracts, peptides, amino acids, proteins, collagen, and ceramides. Biotin is a vitamin that you can usually take via supplement form or by eating foods like salmon and almonds. It promotes hair growth by keeping the skin healthy and strong, which is a needed environment for thriving hair. And ceramides help bind your hair to its shaft. He also explains that since all of these products are considered cosmetics, it's difficult to determine how genuinely useful the ingredients in eyelash growth serums are. "Stick to reputable brands and word-of-mouth recommendations," he suggests.

But such products aren't without a few risks. "As with anything close to the eye, you must be careful that the ingredients are clean, as natural as possible, and dermatologically-tested,” Dr. Burg notes. Extended irritation and inflammation can disrupt the hair growth cycle, causing hair thinning and hair loss.

If you're ready to get lush lashes, shop some of the best serums below.

We only include products that have been independently selected by The Zoe Report’s editorial team. However, we may receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

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