Age: Eyelashes naturally thin as part of the aging process. Medical conditions: A medical condition such as blepharitis, thyroid disorders, alopecia, inflammatory diseases, skin cancer, and many other diseases can cause eyelashes to thin. Eyelashes are more than just cosmetic fringes. The eyelashes protect the eye from debris that can obstruct vision or cause infection or injury.
Eyelashes grow, fall out and replace themselves in a natural cycle every six to 10 weeks, just like the hair on the top of the head. According to certified dermatologist Jeanine Downie, MD, D. Just as stress can cause more hair loss, increased anxiety can have a similar effect on those small hairs on your eyelashes. What happens is that stress pushes the follicles into a latent phase (known as the telogen phase), which can cause those hairs to fall out.
Trichotillomania is a specific disorder in which people may face an irresistible urge to tear their hair off their scalp, eyebrows and eyelashes. It's complex and not all cases are exactly the same, but it's sometimes stress-related. If your eyelash loss is significant or is progressing, you may want to talk to your doctor or a dermatologist to make sure you don't have any underlying health problems. Alopecia areata may respond to topical steroids, hypothyroidism requires treatment, and even trichotillomania sometimes resolves with behavior modification therapy, Ciraldo says.
