Eyelash Growth Treatment
- Bimatoprost was originally a drug used to prevent blindness from glaucoma, but patients realized that their eyelashes were getting longer, thicker and darker. Allergan, the company that was producing bimatoprost, went to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and asked it to approve the drug for eyelash growth. The FDA approved Latisse specifically as an eyelash-growth treatment in 2008. Latisse is available by prescription only.
- Latisse is a liquid that is applied to your eyelid by a special applicator brush. You apply it once a day before going to bed at night. You must remove any eye makeup that you have on before application. Put a small drop of the liquid on the brush and rub it on your eyelid just above the top lashes only. Apply it as if you were applying eyeliner. Have a cotton pad ready to wipe up any liquid that drips below the eye. Use a new applicator for your other eye. Use only as directed; using more will not increase growth.
You do not need to put the liquid on the bottom lashes to experience growth in them because as you close your eyes to sleep, the top and bottom lashes touch. The cost for one bottle of Latisse that lasts 30 days starts at about 120.00 dollars. You will use it every day for 4 months and then switch to a maintenance program where the 30-day bottle will last approximately 60 days. - You will notice changes in your eyelashes after about four weeks, and the full effect will be visible at 16 weeks. The Latisse website claims that your eyelashes will be 25 percent longer, 106 percent fuller and 18 percent darker. The Latisse website also claims that 78 percent of people who tried the product saw significant growth in their eyelashes.
You can continue to wear eye make-up during the day while using Latisse.
The effects of longer eyelashes only lasts while you are using bimatoprost. When you stop, your eyelashes go back to how they were originally. After 16 weeks, you will be on a maintenance schedule with the product, meaning, you will not need to use it every night. - The most common side effects of bimatoprost are itchy, red eyes. Other symptoms are dry skin or redness of the eyelids. If you get the liquid on other parts of your body repeatedly, you can grow the hair there longer. According to MedlinePlus, use of this product may cause "blurred or decreased vision (or) ...change the color of your eyes to brown, which is likely to be permanent. Call your doctor if you notice these changes."
