I’m Suddenly Growing Facial Hair. What Does That Mean?

You may notice that facial hairs are starting to spring up when they weren’t there before. Don’t worry! It’s normal. Although growing new facial hair may be common, that doesn’t mean that it’s a welcome sign, either. 

You may not like seeing facial hair and may be looking for ways to eliminate it that are more effective than tweezers. The providers at the Center for Women’s Health Richmond in Sugar Land and  Richmond, Texas, explain what causes the growth of new facial hair and how hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can help.

What causes facial hair growth?

Facial hair growth can feel like an overwhelming and unwanted surprise. If you’ve noticed facial hair starting to grow in new places, it can sometimes be a sign of a hormonal imbalance.

These hormonal imbalances can have many symptoms and causes:

• Excess of androgens (the male sex hormone)
• Polycystic ovary syndrome (or PCOS)
• The symptoms of menopause

It’s often a normal part of the aging process. In severe cases, having too much body hair is a condition called hirsutism which affects about 7% of American women.

How to bring your hormones into balance

If your hormones are out of balance, that could be causing the facial hair. Often, simply trying a medication or two can work to bring your hormones back into balance. If you’re not planning to have children anytime soon, birth control pills are often enough to get rid of excess body hair.

Other medications work to reduce hair growth as well, including a medication called Vaniqa® (eflornithine), which is a topical cream you apply to reduce the growth of unintended hair.

Hormone therapy

If you’re in menopause (one year after your last period) or perimenopause (4-10 years before your last period), you may want to consider hormone replacement therapy or HRT.

Many people still hold an outdated opinion about the safety of hormone therapy and how it works. Newer research shows that for most women, hormone replacement therapy is usually safe and rarely causes problems.

For most women who don’t have a family history of heart disease, hormone replacement therapy doesn’t significantly increase your risk. Even if you do have a family history of heart disease, it can still be used safely in many women with caution.

The symptoms we can relieve with HRT

Hormone replacement therapy is generally very safe. Some of the symptoms we can relieve with HRT include the following:

• Excessive hair growth
• Hot flashes
• Night sweats
• Weight gain
• Mood swings
• Insomnia
• Low libido
• Help prevent bone loss or fractures
• Vaginal dryness
• Dry skin or itching

If you have menopausal symptoms, you have several different options for hormone replacement. The one we use most is called BioTE, which is a natural alternative. This provides a steady stream of hormones delivered just under the skin in the form of pellets.

If you have noticed an increase in facial hair, you have options. Contact the providers at the Center for Women’s Health at the location nearest to you or request an appointment online.