It’s 3:00 AM. You’re hunched over in a dimly lit bathroom, wielding a dull razor like a plastic scythe, wondering why on earth you’re doing this. Your shins are stinging. There’s a red bump forming near your ankle. Most of us have been there, trapped in the ritual of maintenance that feels less like "self-care" and more like a tax we never agreed to pay. Honestly, the conversation around women and body hair is usually exhausting because it’s so polarizing. On one side, you have the vintage razor ads whispering about "silky smoothness" as if hair is a literal deformity. On the other, you have the radical body-positivity movement that sometimes makes you feel guilty for actually liking the feeling of fresh sheets against shaved legs.
The truth is messier.
Our relationship with our follicles isn't just about vanity. It’s a weird, tangled web of evolutionary biology, 20th-century marketing schemes, and the very real physical reality of how our skin reacts to trauma. Most people think women started shaving because of some ancient "purity" standard, but that’s not quite the whole story.
The Gillette Shift: How Marketing Created a Problem
Before 1915, most American women didn't give a second thought to their underarm hair. It just... existed. Then came the "Milady Décolleté" razor. Gillette realized they had saturated the male market and needed a new demographic to keep the profits climbing. They didn't just sell a tool; they sold a "solution" to a problem nobody knew they had. They ran ads in magazines like Harper’s Bazaar describing underarm hair as "objectionable."
Think about that word for a second. Objectionable. It wasn't about being dirty. It was about fashion. As sleeveless dresses became the trend in the "Roaring Twenties," the industry saw an opening. By the time World War II rolled around, a nylon shortage meant women weren't wearing stockings. Suddenly, hairy legs were "unsightly" because they were visible. We basically got tricked into a multi-billion-dollar grooming habit by savvy advertisers who needed to move units. It’s kinda wild how a hundred-year-old marketing campaign still dictates what we do in our showers today.
The Biology of the Follicle
Body hair isn't just a cosmetic nuisance. It actually does stuff.
Each hair is connected to a sebaceous gland and a tiny nerve ending. It helps regulate body temperature by trapping a thin layer of air near the skin. It also acts as a protective barrier against friction. When we talk about women and body hair, we often ignore the fact that removing it can actually mess with our skin’s microbiome.
According to dermatologists like Dr. Whitney Bowe, over-exfoliation and aggressive hair removal can lead to folliculitis—which is basically just a fancy word for those angry, red, infected hair follicles. If you’ve ever had "strawberry legs," you’ve experienced the aftermath of the skin’s defense system being overwhelmed. Our bodies want that hair there. It's the "buffer zone" between our clothes and our sensitive epidermis.
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The Great "Natural" Rebrand
Lately, things are changing. You’ve probably seen Januhairy on Instagram or noticed celebrities like Lola Kirke and Willow Smith rocking full armpit hair on the red carpet. It’s not just a "lazy" phase. For many, it’s a reclamation of time.
If the average woman spends 72 days of her life shaving her legs, that’s over two months of existence spent standing in a shower stall. That’s a lot of time. People are starting to ask: What else could I be doing with those 1,728 hours? But here’s the nuanced part: keeping your hair isn't always "easier." If you live in a humid climate, sweat clings to hair. Pheromones get trapped. You have to learn a whole new way of managing body odor because deodorants are designed to sit on skin, not on a thicket of hair. It's a learning curve.
Why Choice Is More Complicated Than It Looks
Is it really a "choice" if you feel a surge of anxiety when you go to the beach with a bit of stubble? Social psychologist Sandra Bartky famously argued that "docile bodies" are created through these constant, small acts of self-surveillance. We police ourselves. We check our legs in the sunlight. We apologize to our massage therapists for "the state of my legs."
Why do we apologize for having a body that functions normally?
It's a deep-seated cultural conditioning. Even the most "enlightened" among us often feel a twinge of shame. This isn't because we’re weak; it’s because the social cost of non-conformity is real. In professional environments, visible body hair on women is still often subconsciously coded as "unprofessional" or "unhygienic," even though there is zero medical evidence to support the idea that hair is dirty.
The Science of Removal: What Actually Works
If you do decide to remove it—because, let’s be honest, some of us just prefer the feeling—there’s a lot of misinformation about the "best" way.
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- Shaving: The classic. It cuts the hair at its thickest point (the base), which is why it feels "prickly" when it grows back. It doesn't actually make the hair grow back thicker; that’s a total myth. It just feels thicker because the end is blunt instead of tapered.
- Waxing: This pulls the hair from the follicle. Over time, this can actually damage the follicle enough that the hair stops growing or grows back much finer. But it carries the risk of ingrown hairs if you don't exfoliate properly.
- Laser Hair Removal: This targets the melanin in the hair. If you have light hair and light skin, it's basically useless. It works best on high contrast. Also, it’s rarely "permanent." It’s "permanent reduction." You’ll still likely need touch-ups.
- Dermaplaning: This is the trendy version of shaving your face. It removes the "peach fuzz" (vellus hair) and the top layer of dead skin. It makes makeup sit better, but for some, it causes breakouts.
Addressing the PCOS Factor
We can't talk about women and body hair without mentioning Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). For millions of women, body hair isn't a "choice" or a "fashion statement"—it’s a clinical symptom of hormonal imbalance. Hirsutism, or excess body hair in a male-pattern distribution, affects roughly 5% to 10% of women.
For these women, the conversation isn't about "embracing the natural look"; it’s about managing a condition that can be deeply distressing. This is where the "body positivity" movement sometimes fails. If your hair growth is caused by an androgen spike, it can be thick, dark, and painful. Treating it isn't "giving in to the patriarchy"—it’s medical management.
Realities of the Grooming Industry
The "Pink Tax" is real. A 2015 study by the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs found that women’s grooming products cost about 11% more than men’s. Razors are the biggest offenders. You are literally paying more for a pink handle and a "moisture strip" that usually just turns into goop after three uses.
Pro tip: buy the men’s razors. They’re built for coarser beard hair, they’re sharper, and they’re cheaper. Don't pay the tax.
Navigating the Future of Body Hair
Where are we heading? It feels like we’re moving toward a "do what you want" era, but we aren't there yet. The goal shouldn't be to switch from "everyone must shave" to "everyone must be hairy." That’s just another set of rules. The goal is body autonomy.
If you want to wax everything from the neck down because you like feeling like a dolphin, go for it. If you want to grow a full thicket under your arms because you like the way it looks with a tank top, do that. The power is in the lack of apology.
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Actionable Steps for Better Skin Health
Whether you’re keeping it or clearing it, your skin deserves a bit of respect. Here is how to handle the "hair situation" without ruining your skin barrier.
If you are shaving:
Always use a sharp blade. Never, ever use a razor that has been sitting in your shower for a month. Bacteria loves those damp blades. Use a shaving cream with high slip—hair conditioner actually works in a pinch because it softens the keratin in the hair. Shave in the direction of growth first, then go against the grain only if you have to.
If you are growing it out:
Wash your hair just like the hair on your head. Body hair can trap bacteria and sweat, leading to odors. A gentle, pH-balanced wash is better than harsh bar soaps. If the hair is coarse and itchy, a tiny bit of body oil (like jojoba or grapeseed) can soften the strands and stop that "stabbing" sensation against your skin.
If you struggle with ingrowns:
Stop scrubbing with loofahs. They are breeding grounds for mold. Use a chemical exfoliant instead. A lotion with Salicylic acid or Lactic acid will gently dissolve the dead skin cells that trap hairs underground. This is way more effective than physical scrubbing, which usually just causes micro-tears in the skin.
Managing the psychological side:
Try going one week without hair removal in a "visible" area. See how it feels. Notice when you feel the urge to cover up. Is it because you feel uncomfortable, or because you’re worried about what a stranger at the grocery store thinks? Understanding the "why" behind your grooming habits is the first step toward actually owning them.
The history of women and body hair is a history of control, but the future doesn't have to be. We’re finally at a point where we can look at a razor and see it for what it is: a tool, not a requirement. It’s okay to care. It’s also okay to not care. Just make sure the decision is coming from inside the house, not from a marketing board meeting in 1915.
Your follicles, your business.
Practical Checklist for Healthy Skin Maintenance:
- Check your blade: If the moisture strip is faded or the metal looks dull, toss it. A dull blade pulls the skin, leading to micro-tears.
- Temperature matters: Don't shave in a boiling hot shower. It swells the skin and can hide the base of the hair, leading to a less effective shave and more irritation once the skin cools and "shrinks" back.
- Hydrate after: Hair removal strips the natural oils from the surface. Use a fragrance-free moisturizer immediately after patting dry.
- Sun protection: If you’ve recently waxed or lasered, that skin is hyper-sensitive to UV rays. Slather on the SPF or keep it covered, otherwise, you risk permanent hyperpigmentation (dark spots).
- Consult a pro: If you have sudden, rapid hair growth on your face, chest, or back, skip the salon and go to an endocrinologist. It’s often the first sign of a hormonal shift that needs medical attention, not just a stronger wax.