If you’re noticing your leg hair more and more, especially if you feel the need for a shave, you may be asking the question: why are my legs so hairy?
Human beings have leg hair to prevent friction during movement and to trap body heat in cool weather. Hairy legs may be the result of irregular hair removal practices or a hormonal imbalance that causes rapid hair growth.
Hairy legs can be a pain to take care of, and it is important to understand the cause of hairy legs in order to maintain good health! Therefore, in this article, we’ll not only look at why legs can get so hairy, but what to do about them, as well as the health benefits of hairy legs.
Why Are My Legs So Hairy?
The average leg grows hair about half an inch per month, or roughly at the same speed of the hair on your head. This happens below the surface of the skin in the hair follicle as cells divide, multiply, and push out dead cells. Those dead cells are eventually what harden into hair shafts!
Some hair types grow in more thickly than others, or sometimes the hair shaft is simply darker in color and appears more visible to the naked eye. This is the result of differences in genetic makeup, and can’t really be solved.
However, if you find your leg hair growing back faster than two to three days after shaving, you may be suffering from hirsutism. Hirsutism is a hormonal imbalance which causes women to grow hair faster and in more places than is normal.
One final explanation for abnormally hairy legs is that you aren’t more hairy than normal at all: instead, you may have faulty hair removal practices. For example, if you make it a habit to wax your legs, but the wax fails to pull out the hair at the root, you’ll notice the broken shaft making a comeback as soon as a day later!
This can be resolved by being sure that you shave closely and wax all the way to the root.
What Can I Do About My Hairy Legs?
There are some solutions for hairy legs once you have identified why they seem hairier than is normal. Check out the list below to see what you can do about your hairy legs!
- Shave
- Wax
- Seek Treatment for Hirsutism
Let’s take a deeper dive into these three methods for dealing with hairy legs.
Shave
Shaving your legs is the first and sometimes simplest method of dealing with hairy legs. A shave, done correctly, does not remove the hair shafts at their root. Instead, it slices the hairs down so that they are almost invisible against the surface of your skin. Think of it like cutting grass, with only a short length of the grass blades showing above the surface of the earth!
The first step to shaving down hairy legs is to make sure your legs are lathered in soap or even shaving cream. Then purchase a clean, sharp, rust-free razor for the best results.
Drag the razor with the blade flat against your leg up from your ankles to your knee, against the direction of your hair’s natural growth. Be sure to rinse not only your legs, but your razor once you’re done!
Normally grown leg hair tends to grow back two to three days after a shave, so be prepared to shave again if you’re hoping to avoid hairy legs.
Wax
Waxing your legs is a step above shaving them in order to deal with hairy legs. It is sometimes easiest to seek a professional appointment for shaving your legs, but it can also be done at home.
Unlike shaving, which cuts the shaft of the hair, waxing is designed to pull hair out at the root. If shaving is similar to mowing a lawn, waxing is more like pulling weeds out of the ground!
To wax your legs yourself, make sure your legs are clean, first. Then heat the wax until it is about the consistency of honey. Spread the hot wax in the direction of your hair growth using a spatula.
Wait until the wax is soft but dry, then use wax paper strips to quickly pull the wax off of your leg in the opposite direction of hair growth. Have a cool cotton pad nearby to press against your legs afterward: waxing is thorough, pulling your hair out at the root, but it does sting a little!
Seek Treatment for Hirsutism
Hirsutism, a hormonal imbalance causing excessive hair growth, is treatable in several ways. Two of these are shaving and waxing; however, professionals have treated hirsutism in a few other ways.
- Depilatory Lotion – Depilatory lotion uses chemicals on the skin around hair follicles to soften the hair shafts, weakening them so that they can be wiped away as easily as cobwebs.
- Laser Hair Removal – Laser hair removal is done by professionals, using light which hair pigments absorb to destroy the shaft. It is most effective for people with dark leg hair that contrasts strongly against light skin, and requires several sessions to be effective.
- Medicated Cream – There is a medicated skin cream with eflornithine which causes hair growth to slow down over six to eight weeks.
- Antiandrogen Medication – Antiandrogen medication reduces the androgen levels in your body, which slows the body’s ability to produce hair. Be sure to make yourself aware of the side-effects that antiandrogen medications may have by consulting your doctor.
Are Hairy Legs Healthy?
There are some health benefits to hairy legs! Firstly, hairy legs are a sign of good health. When the human body is suffering from autoimmune conditions or an iron deficiency, for example, it will be unable to hang on to hair or cause new hair growth.
Secondly, hair follicles are a prime location for blood cells to deliver nutrients and oxygen, meaning if you have hairy legs, you’re not usually suffering from any artery diseases!
Finally, hairy legs do help to prevent chafing in day to day movements such as walking and even sitting. Leg hair tends to act as a natural sweater, trapping our body heat close to the skin whenever the weather gets colder.
How Do You Stop Hairy Legs From Growing?
There are very few permanent ways to keep leg hair from growing. However, if you’re applying the correct shaving and waxing methods, or seeking laser hair removal at regular intervals, your leg hair will have a hard time bouncing back.
One notable way to lower hair growth is to change your diet. For example, turmeric root is not only a delicious seasoning, but a deterrent for the growth of hair on the body.
Summary
In summary, hairy legs are usually a sign of good health and can be lessened by proper shaving and waxing techniques. If your leg hair does grow back at an alarming rate, faster than three days after shaving or waxing, it may be a sign of a hormonal imbalance like hirsutism, which can be treated professionally.
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