Eyebrows don’t lie

The eyes are considered the window to the soul – but did you know that the eyebrows also reveal quite a few things about us?“Brows say more than 1000 words” – this is a common joke among researchers but our eyebrows can actually tell people how we’re feeling, as well as reveal many other surprising things about us, our bodies and our souls. Why do we have eyebrows and what do they say about us? BETTER VISION tells all.

Whether we’re surprised, sceptical, scared, confused, disgusted, annoyed, sad or happy, our eyebrows reveal exactly what’s going through our minds at any given moment. Alongside the eyes, they’re our most expressive facial feature and help us read a whole range of emotions on other people’s faces. Eyebrows reinforce our facial expressions, affect the attractiveness of our faces and protect our eyes against things like sweat. Our gender, age and level of health can all be determined by looking at our brows. For instance, if the thyroid doesn’t produce enough metabolic hormones (hypothyroidism), the eyebrows could become thinner at the ends. A nutrient deficiency, vitamin deficiency, stress, eczema, hair loss (Alopecia areata) and the side effects of chemotherapy can all cause our eyebrows to fall out.

Eyebrows have two key functions: they convey how we’re feeling and give our faces expression and character. They also protect our eyes from things that could impair our vision, such as sunlight, moisture, sweat, dirt and dust. Without our eyebrows, the salty sweat that forms on our forehead would run into our eyes and cause an unpleasant burning sensation. Eyebrows can also catch a few raindrops.

Eyebrows work in the same way for men and women, but they look totally different: women’s brows are higher up, closer to each other and more curved. Four factors influence their growth and, as such, how our brows look: hormones, age, genes and gender. The male hormone testosterone results in particularly bushy brows, and the female hormone oestrogen creates thin, curved brows. If a father has bushy brows, it’s likely he’ll pass these on to his son. Brothers and sisters, however, rarely have the same brows despite having identical genes because the visual differences between men’s and women’s brows are too big.

Eyebrows don’t just play a role in terms of direct communication with other people, they also help us identify faces. One study1  revealed that celebrities would be harder to recognise in photos if their brows were to be concealed using a black marker. This is because eyebrows lend our faces a lot of character. Actors can even improve their expression by practising eyebrow movements and using them to a greater extent. Women – and an increasing number of men – also focus on the cosmetic effect of their brows, and pluck them to achieve the desired shape. Some people even shave off their eyebrows and draw on new ones to achieve a particular shape.