Does anyone know if it's true that your Hair and Nails still grow after death?

Answer 1

It's not exactly true, but it's understandable how the idea came about. Unfortunately, books and Hollywood have done more to bloat this idea than any corpse ever could. So here's The Straight Dope.

Hair and fingernails aren't actually growing. Dead is dead. The only things growing after you're dead are worms, bacteria, and flowers. What is happening, however, is that the skin around the hair and fingernails will desiccate (i.e., lose water) and thereby shrink. When the skin shrinks, it retracts, making hair and fingernails look longer, as if they'd grown.

Think of it this way: a fifty foot tree grows in ten feet of swamp water. The visible part of the tree is 40' tall. A few months later, a drought causes the water level to drop five feet. Now the visible part of the tree is 45' tall. Did the tree grow in a drought? No, but you can see why people would think it did.

Answer 2

Many people believe that a person's hair, fingernails and toenails continue to grow after death. Despite what you may have read or seen in the movies, this is false. Once a person has died all growth of the hair and nails ceases. After death the body dehydrates and the skin around the hair and nails will recede a little making it appear as the deceased's nails and hair have grown. However, it is only an optical illusion. The nails and hair remains the same length as before but more of it is exposed due to tissue shrinkage.

Answer 3

No. When you die, all your cells start to die, too. There's no substantial growth after death.

It sometimes looks as though dead people's nails or hair have grown, because as the body dries up it begins to shrivel. This can make the skin pull back from the nail or hair, causing it to appear longer.

Best wishes, and God bless.

Answer 4

No its not true, the body quits all functions after death

Answer 5

They do not.Your skin begins to pull back, making it LOOK like your hair or nails are still growing when in fact it's your skin receeding.

Answer 6

Okay honey think about this........ Your body's heart keeps everything running and growing. Now your dead , your heart has stopped your body no longer eats food for nutriton to keep things growing. Now can you answer your own question.

Answer 7

no, the flesh and skin shrink back so the hair and nails look longer

Answer 8

yes it's true; my mother owns a beauty shop and had to learn about all of that kind of stuff in school. im not really sure of the "scientific reason" but i do know that it is true!

Answer 9

yes ,coffins that have been opened show corpses with nails and hair much longer ,than when they were buried

Answer 10

nah, you just shrivel up, and it appears that your hair and nails are longer, but they are not.