To care for your pubic area, all you need to do is regularly rinse with water. Long story short, there is nothing dirty or unclean about pubic hair. There is no medical reason to remove it. And yet, many people feel pressured to shave or wax because of our society's long-standing ideas of gender, beauty, and purity.
Trimming pubic hair is an intimate choice but many experts feel that shaving pubic hair is simply a misleading attempt at personal hygiene. An increasing number of studies are now advocating against shaving the pubes.
Your Pubic Hair Serves a Purpose
It provides protection against friction that can cause skin irritation in this sensitive area. It helps reduce the amount of sweat produced around the vagina. It helps block your vagina from the following bacteria and infections: Sexually transmitted infections.
People remove their pubic hair for different reasons. Some common reasons include: Personal preference: Some people may prefer the look and feel of having no public hair. Their partner's preference: There may have been an implied or explicit request to groom or remove the pubic hair.
It is more hygienic not to shave it (although depilation does make pubic lice homeless). In removing their pubic hair, most women will get cuts or ingrown hairs, and some will develop inflammation of the hair follicles or hyperpigmentation.
Pubic Hair Trends
According to the researchers, when asked if they removed their pubic hair, 80% of women and 39% of men removed their pubic hair near the time of the survey. Also, 3% of women and 21% of men had never removed their pubic hair.
Shaving your pubic hair is entirely a personal preference. As we mentioned, some people just let it grow out and never shave it off. The decision is based on comfort, appearance, and health. If you're prone to excessive sweating, not only will your hairy groin area overheat, but it may have an odor.
A slightly musty smell is normal. This is usually caused by sweat, dead skin, heat and is especially present in pubic hair.
As an ob-gyn, I want you to know that pubic hair is normal. Whether to groom or let it grow is your choice—no one else's. And there is no reason to apologize about your pubic hair, to your ob-gyn or anyone else.
A strong vaginal odor may be a sign of vaginitis, or it may be a temporary smell related to your hygiene, lifestyle or other changes. Take note of whether you have other symptoms. If the odor is related to an infection, you'll usually notice other changes, like vaginal itching, burning and discharge.
Unfortunately, warm and moist areas can sometimes provide an ideal environment for growth of different organisms such as fungus and bacteria, which can lead to development of different odors and even skin rash. But you don't have to shave your pubic hair or use deodorant or creams down there to stop the odor!
Here's what they found: 80% of women said they had removed their pubic hair recently at the time of the survey. Perhaps unsurprisingly, that number was only 39% for the guys. Just 3% of women said they had never removed their pubic fuzz.
You'll see that scissors are a terrible idea for trimming pubic hair, and not just because you could accidentally snip your junk (although that's a very serious consideration). Scissors are more than an inferior tool. They're a relic of a past, not so long ago, when grooming was a dangerous venture.
Trim between 2mm and 6mm lengths for neat and tidy pubic hair.
Most of them had no idea, and a few had educated guesses. Marc Glashofer, a dermatologist and fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology, claims that the texture of pubic hair tends to be thicker and more coarse than hair on the rest of our body because of its origins as a buffer.
Itchy pubic hair is common and is often easily treatable. Common causes include rash burn, contact dermatitis, jock itch, pubic lice, scabies, yeast infection, psoriasis, eczema, and folliculitis. See a healthcare provider if the itching is severe, painful, persistent, or worsening.
Pubis Shaving
For many years, people never cared about shaving their pubic hair until the birth of bikini in 1946. Between the 1960s and 1970s, trimming took a different twist, and women were discouraged from trimming. In the 1980s, they were now encouraged on trimming and even to do a thorough shave.
In general, we recommend shaving every two to three days if you want a clean shave; three to five days if you want to simply style or trim; and if you want to just let your hair grow, then simply stop shaving.
In general, pubic hair in females naturally covers the labia majora (outer lips) to the inner thighs and form a triangle-like shape up to the pubic bone. Some women will naturally grow thicker or thinner hair than others, so typically there's no cause for alarm when there's slight variation.
Inner thigh odor is caused by a variety of factors, including excessive sweating, fungal infections, poor hygiene, and hormonal changes.
Semen, or cum, typically has a faint smell caused by a mixture of chemicals, such as citric acid and calcium. It may also smell slightly sweet, as it contains fructose. A strong, fishy odor, might stem from an infection, while a very sweet smell may be a sign of diabetes.