# Why do people continue to wage a war on body hair? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 25, 2018, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725 "2018-06-25T18:23:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2018, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725/61 "2018-06-27T20:18:02Z")
> [@EmilyG](#): > > Yeah, I shave my legs in summer so I can wear shorts and bathing suits without getting nasty comments. > > I don’t generally shave my legs the rest of the year, though. This is looked down upon in some internet circles, the implication being that women who don’t shave their legs all year round aren’t getting laid. Whatever, I don’t care. Like you, Emily, I only shave my legs in the summer when wearing skirts/dresses (which is actually a pretty rare thing for me, wearing dresses or skirts at any time). I have not had trouble getting laid these past 30+ years, I don’t know where these notions come from. ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2018, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725/62 "2018-06-27T20:25:52Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Like you, Emily, I only shave my legs in the summer when wearing skirts/dresses (which is actually a pretty rare thing for me, wearing dresses or skirts at any time). I have not had trouble getting laid these past 30+ years, I don’t know where these notions come from. I think it’s from losers on the internet (that is, some men who think that getting laid by attractive women is a priority, and don’t concern themselves with committed relationships.) ---
**Author:** ![JustBree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a698b9/32.png) [@JustBree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JustBree)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2018, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725/63 "2018-06-29T19:39:34Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > The social penalty a woman incurs for having body hair these days is pretty steep. This this this this this. For some people, the motivation to shave is pure shame. That’s what it is for me. I’m a woman with hair growing on my face and neck because of a hormone issue. I’m taking medication for it, but it doesn’t stop the hair from growing in unwanted places. I got mocked viciously in school for being ugly, and I know exactly what traits made me “ugly” because people told me. It’s because I’m hairy. I got laughed at in P.E. wearing my gym shorts or my swimsuit (we had a section of the curriculum about swimming/pool stuff) because my body hair is like a wild jungle. There may be men with less fur on their legs than me. And you know what? I’m mortified to admit it here. I’m ashamed. My body hair makes me feel ugly. And that’s why I shave it. I should learn how to accept it, but I’ve tried and I just can’t. I don’t mind body hair on other people. But the thought of it as unattractive, unseemly, disgusting — it’s deeply ingrained into my brain and I can’t root it out. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2018, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725/64 "2018-06-29T20:28:56Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Please talk to your MD about you pulling your nose hair. It’s not safe. Aw man, but snagging a particularly long one is so very satisfying! ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2018, 10:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725/65 "2018-06-30T10:31:39Z")
I trim my Body hair. Why? My underarm hair grows out in an odd direction. I’m the only one who ever looks at it, it looks odd to me, so I trim it back. I trim my crotch because when it gets long, it itches. My theory is that when it gets long, it gets tangled or pulled by my underwear. I don’t know if that’s the real explanation, but again, nobody cares, so I just prune it back I don’t shave anywhere except my chin, and I would expect a woman to do the same. I confess that even shaved underarms look a bit odd to me, and shaved privates… well I’ve never actually been attracted to anybody under the age of 16. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2018, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725/66 "2018-07-06T15:01:13Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > For another point of view: > > Beats me. It’s just the way people in this particular culture want to look. This. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2018, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725/67 "2018-07-06T15:05:11Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > I confess that even shaved underarms look a bit odd to me, and shaved privates… well I’ve never actually been attracted to anybody under the age of 16. My wife is four decades past 16. I assure you, she looks quite good without looking underage. The idea that people shave to look like 10 year olds is simply wrong. As you can tell from this tread and others, there are a variety of perfectly good reasons to shave or not shave. Free country, and all that. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2018, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725/68 "2018-07-06T16:21:09Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > The idea that people shave to look like 10 year olds is simply wrong. The fact that people with shaved pubes are reminiscent _to some of us_ of prepubescents doesn’t mean we’re saying that’s the motivation of the folks who shave there. Most of us don’t care why you folks do it. Most of us don’t care that it doesn’t look mock-childlike to _you_. We’re saying it looks that way to _us_. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2018, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725/69 "2018-07-06T19:27:45Z")
I’m afraid of smelling. I don’t have a good sense of smell, so I can’t sniff my clothes to see if they smell bad. I shave my armpits and some of my pubic hair to make sure I don’t smell. I used to get clots in my pubic hair during my period, but now I don’t any more because I shave. Deodorant without antiperspirant isn’t an armpit option for me, because I hate the feeling of wetness when I sweat. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-continue-to-wage-a-war-on-body-hair/816725.md?page=3)