Part of the perception that your pubic hair grows much faster than the hair on your head may be due to the growth cycle it follows. With pubic hair—and other body hair—the entire process takes about 30 to 44 days, Dr. Hazen says.
Pubic hair follows the same pattern as any other hair on your body. In a typical cycle, the entire three-phase process takes 30-44 days, according to a doctor at Men's Health. You can count on your pubes growing back at a steady rate of ⅛ inch per week, or 1 cm every three weeks.
Pubic hair plays a role in reducing friction during activities such as sexual intercourse. It also plays a role in preventing dirt and pathogens from entering the genitals. A person can safely remove their pubic hair if they wish to, but they do not need to.
Laser hair removal or electrolysis
Laser hair removal and electrolysis are both considered “permanent” methods to denude pubes: both eliminate hair follicles so hair doesn't grow back.
Hirsutism. Hirsutism usually results from high levels of male hormones (androgens, such as testosterone) or from increased sensitivity to normal levels of male hormones in the body. Testosterone stimulates hair growth in the pubic area and underarms.
Does pubic hair cease growing once it's reached a certain length? All hair grows at a contstant rate, but eventually falls out. With body hair, which typically does not grow as long as head hair, the rate at which it falls out is greater. This results in hair that appears to reach a certain length then stops growing.
Pubic hair and hair on the body doesn't usually grow back after the menopause, this is due to levels of estrogen and progesterone remaining low as we continue to age. Not everyone will lose their pubic hair.
Removing pubic hair may therefore make a person more susceptible to common infections, such as UTIs, vaginitis, and yeast infections. Hair removal can also irritate your skin, leading to skin infections such as cellulitis and folliculitis. In other cases, grooming-related injuries, such as cuts, could become infected.
Everyone has some hair in the area between their butt crack. This hair wicks away moisture and protects the sensitive skin around your anus.
Bacteria can cling to hair. In the vaginal area, that is both a good thing and a bad thing. You need your good vaginal bacteria to prevent an overgrowth of yeast, but when bacteria mix with the sweat and oil on your pubic hair, it can produce a smell.
Weiss speculates that one of the main reasons that human beings uniquely evolved a “thick bush of wiry hair” around their genital regions is its visual signaling of sexual maturation. (It also likely serves as a primitive odor trap and aids in the wafting of human pheromones.)
That's why it's helpful to keep everything at a short clip. The exact length is up to you, but it's best to leave it under an inch or an inch and a half. You don't need to trim as much of your other body hair, though.
Just like the hair on the head, the hair on the rest of the body, including the pubic area, is subject to graying. As people age, their skin produces less melanin. Melanin is the pigment responsible for giving skin and hair its color.
Finding a white strand in your genital area can come as a surprise. Even when you anticipate your hair eventually turning gray or white, this may be the last place you expect to see white strands. But the hair here is no different from hair on other parts of your body, so graying is inevitable.
Trimming with scissors Using scissors can be a safe way to give the pubic area a well-groomed look. Since the operation does not come into contact with the skin, trimming the pubic hair with scissors has a relatively low risk of injury.
The issue with shaving all the time? "If you do remove hair too frequently, you can end up with something called folliculitis, which is an infection of the hair follicle," Dr. Metz says. Basically, the act of shaving poorly can damage the follicle and cause inflammation.
Pubic hair removal is common — approximately 80 percent of women ages 18 to 65 report they remove some or all of their pubic hair.
As you age, your pubic hair, just like the hair on your head, will naturally start to thin and turn grey. Part of the aging process includes hair loss and the slowing of the rate of hair growth. Typically, hair in the armpits, chest, and pubic region will start to thin and turn grey later than scalp hair.
As we age, some pubic hair thinning, or loss, is normal. However, certain conditions like alopecia or an adrenal issue can also cause hair loss. If you have any concerns, it's best to contact your Axia Women's Health provider.
Common causes of genital itching include contact dermatitis, jock itch, scabies, yeast infection, and folliculitis. Your healthcare provider can help you determine the cause and point you to the best treatment and prevention strategies.
But like other hair, your pubic hair requires natural oils to stay healthy. If your body doesn't produce enough essential oils, your pubic hair can become dry, and this tends to cause irritation to sensitive skin and itching after shaving. The best way to fight off this discomfort is by softening your pubic hair.
When the hair wicks sweat off the skin (to keep you dry and cool), it collects, along with pheromones and bacteria, in that area. "The hair traps the smell," Michael Cackovic, M.D., an ob/gyn at Ohio State Wexner Medical Center, tells SELF.
Like other parts of the body, the skin of the areola contains hair follicles. These can be affected by the fluctuations in hormones during times of significant hormonal change, such as puberty, pregnancy, and menopause.