Debunked Myths

Few myths are as macabre and persistent as the idea that the dead continue to grow. It’s a haunting image that has fueled Gothic literature and horror films for centuries, suggesting a lingering spark of life or a grotesque, autonomous growth. The thought of a corpse in its coffin, hair and nails slowly lengthening in the dark, taps into a deep-seated fear of death and the unknown, making the end seem even more unnatural and eerie.

The biological truth is far less animated. Growth is an incredibly complex process that requires energy, new cell production, and hormonal regulation—all functions that cease abruptly when the heart stops and oxygenated blood stops flowing. The body's cells begin to die within minutes. Hair shafts and fingernails, which are made of dead keratin protein, are utterly incapable of any new growth.

So, where does this chilling illusion come from? The answer lies in dehydration. After death, the body begins to dry out. As the skin and soft tissues lose moisture, they retract and shrink back, particularly around the hair follicles and nail beds. This retraction exposes more of the hair shaft and nail that was previously tucked inside the skin, creating the perfect optical illusion of growth. It’s not that the nails are growing, but that the fingertips are shrinking away from them. This myth endures because it confirms our darkest imaginations about death, proving that sometimes, what we see is a trick of the light—or in this case, a trick of the receding flesh.