Unwanted PCOS facial hair can take a significant mental health toll. Hirsutism is a common PCOS symptom that causes dark, thick hair growth in areas where women normally have thin, invisible hair. For many women, its impact can be inconvenient, demoralizing, and even depressing.
In this post, I’ll explain why PCOS causes hirsutism in the first place. Then, I’ll outline how to deal with PCOS hair growth naturally to address its root causes, as well as how to get rid of it in the short term.
Why Does PCOS Cause Facial Hair Growth?
PCOS stands for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. It’s a health condition that affects millions of women and others assigned female at birth. It’s usually diagnosed when two of these three main criteria are present: irregular periods, unusually high levels of androgens, and cysts on the ovaries.
It’s that second factor – high levels of androgens, that leads to PCOS facial hair growth.
Having dark, thick hair on the arms, legs, underarms, and pubic area is quite normal for most women. Our face and the rest of our body, on the other hand, are usually covered in hair follicles that produce vellus hairs which are very thin, light-colored hairs that aren’t really visible.
In PCOS, androgens can cause hair follicles to change from producing light, invisible vellus hair to making dark, coarse, terminal hair. This is what’s behind hirsutism in PCOS.
The Natural Method to Treat PCOS Facial Hair
Normally, doctors prescribe birth control or other hormonal medications in order to reduce the levels of androgen in the body, which may help with hair growth.
However, as a practitioner of functional medicine, my focus is on how to stop facial hair growth in females naturally and holistically, without the need for medications that may disrupt your hormones further or come with other unwanted side effects.
Testing and Diagnosis
The first part of naturopathic PCOS hirsutism treatment is to understand exactly what’s going on inside your body. My patients undergo a comprehensive series of lab tests that give us a complete picture of their health.
Beyond simple blood tests for sex hormones, it’s important to understand the complete activity of your endocrine system. This way, we can understand how to stop facial hair growth due to PCOS by treating its root causes and prescribing a treatment tailored to your needs.
Hormonal Balance
Once we have a complete understanding of any hormonal imbalances you might be experiencing and why, we can tailor the treatment to balance your hormones and optimize your health. We can naturally suppress androgens or increase estrogens in your body in order to slow facial hair growth.
The functional medicine approach is holistic, so your treatment includes much more than simple pills that only address symptoms. Instead, we look at every aspect of your life that might be making your PCOS hair growth (not to mention other symptoms) worse.
That includes your diet, lifestyle, stress levels, and more. I will also prescribe supplements that will further balance your hormones and contribute to your overall health.
How to Get Rid of PCOS Facial Hair
We’ve talked about long-term solutions, but how can you get rid of facial hair in the short term? There are a lot of different options that will help you feel more comfortable in your own skin.
Laser Hair Removal
Laser hair removal is the most frequently recommended treatment for PCOS hirsutism. It’s a permanent hair reduction method that targets hair with laser light and stops its growth. It’s a little painful and usually takes multiple treatments. Most people with PCOS see a reduction in hair growth rather than total elimination, and regrowth can occur if your hormones become disrupted again.
Electrolysis
If you have sparse but thick PCOS chin hair or upper lip hair, electrolysis can be a great solution. Electrolysis targets the hairs one by one, emitting a strong pulse of electricity via a needle directly into the hair follicle. It’s a much slower treatment, but regrowth is less likely in the long term. It’s a great solution for more stubborn PCOS facial hair.
Waxing or Sugaring
Waxing and sugaring are easy, and can be done at home or the salon. These methods rely on either hot wax or sugar paste to pull hair from the root. Over time, there can be some reduction in hair growth, although it’s not guaranteed or nearly as reliable as laser or electrolysis. Plus, it can lead to ingrown hairs.
Shaving
Shaving is easy and can be done at home. This method cuts the hair at the surface, so it’s not as painful as the other solutions. However, it must be done more frequently, it can leave visible stubble, and like waxing, it can also lead to ingrown hairs.
Holistic Hirsutism Treatment
Through functional medicine, we can stop facial hair growth in females naturally, or at least reduce it. Holistic PCOS treatment addresses everything in your life that is contributing to your symptoms, with some help from natural herbs and supplements that’ll improve the situation further.
Treating the underlying cause of your PCOS facial hair is often the best way to guarantee long-term results. The outcomes of treatments like laser hair removal depend on your hormones remaining balanced in the future, so the two approaches go hand in hand beautifully.
If you’d like to start your journey to treating PCOS from the very root, schedule your consultation.