Getting goose bumps could boost hair growth
The same nerves, muscles and hormones work together to stimulate hair follicles
SAN DIEGO — Getting goose bumps doesn’t just make hairs stand on end; it may also help hair grow.
Nerves and muscles that raise goose bumps also stimulate stem cells in the skin to make hair follicles and grow hair. Ya-Chieh Hsu, a stem cell researcher at Harvard University, reported the unpublished findings December 9 at the joint meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology and the European Molecular Biology Organization. Getting goose bumps when it’s cold may encourage animals’ fur to grow thicker, Hsu said.