Does repeated shaving of head help to regrow hair?

Unfortunately for a lot of balding people, this old wives tale is untrue: Shaving does not affect the growth rate of hair. Made from a protein called keratin, the same material found in finger and toenails, hair is lifeless and inanimate. Thus, chopping it off, like trimming your nails, has absolutely no effect.

This misconception likely arose from the fact that when most people begin shaving (usually in adolescence), their hair growth is sparse. As they continue to shave, however, the hair seems to fill in and grow thicker. It would seem as if it was the shaving itself that was causing this, rather than the normal biological processes of puberty. It should be noted, however, for those who still suspect shaving has something to do with their hair growth that new hairs continue to appear as people grow older, often in the most embarrassing of locations (ears, nose, back, etc.). All without the assistance of a razor.