The health secrets of women's private body hair

Generally speaking, the density of pubic hair is related to the body's own hormone levels. People with high hormone levels have denser pubic hair, and more hair in other parts of the body. It is also related to the parents' genes. People whose parents have more body hair will have relatively more body hair on their children. In addition, the amount of pubic hair is also related to the development of local hair follicles. The amount of pubic hair in men and women is often an important indicator for diagnosing disease. The amount of pubic hair varies greatly between men and women. Generally speaking, women have less pubic hair than men. Female pubic hair usually appears when the breasts begin to develop, first appearing on the labia majora and then developing to the mons pubis triangle area. The distribution of pubic hair is an inverted triangle. Armpit hair grows after pubic hair appears and before menarche.

1. Physiologically too little pubic hair

Physiological hypotrichosis, also known as the simple absence of pubic hair, may be related to the sensitivity of the pubic hair follicles to androgens in people who are normal in other aspects. For those who simply do not grow pubic hair but are normal in other aspects, it may be because the pubic hair follicles are insensitive to their own androgens. The endocrine system, menstrual cycle, sexual characteristics development, sexual function and fertility of most women with hypotrichosis are normal. This is not pathological and has nothing to do with it. It neither affects physical health nor marriage and fertility, so there is no need to worry about it.

Normal women have less body hair, most of which is physiological. There are no major diseases in the body and it has no impact on health.

2. Hypoplastic syndrome

Why do some women have no pubic hair and underarm hair? One reason is that the androgen level in women's bodies is low; the second reason is that the androgen receptors in the pubic and underarm hair follicles are insensitive to androgen or have other defects, or some women do not have such receptors at all. When pubic and axillary hair is extremely sparse or absent, it is called hypotrichosis, which occurs in about 2.5% of the population.

Having too little pubic hair is a pathology in a few women. Very few cases of hypotrichosis are pathological, such as a genetic disease called Turner syndrome, which is a sex chromosome abnormality, also known as gonadal dysgenesis or congenital ovarian dysgenesis. The patient's chromosomes are mostly 45, X, with one less sex chromosome, which is caused by the non-disjunction or loss of sex chromosomes during the maturation of sex cells. Female patients with this condition have gonadal insufficiency, characterized by short stature, webbed neck, underdeveloped breasts, immature external genitalia, and little or no hair on the mons pubis. They also suffer from amenorrhea due to the absence of ovarian follicles. Although they can have sexual intercourse, they are infertile. Women with hypothyroidism have no armpit hair and sparse pubic hair. They can have sex but their sexual desire is significantly reduced. Simple gonadal dysgenesis is also accompanied by hypotrichosis, and fertility can be restored after treatment of mild cases.

If hypotrichosis is accompanied by other obvious symptoms, do not take it lightly and it is best to go to the hospital for examination as soon as possible.

3. Pubic hair loss

The amount of pubic hair is closely related to genetic factors and can vary greatly among individuals. Like head hair, pubic hair also falls out due to metabolism. Pubic hair is replaced approximately every six months, with about 10-20 hairs falling out every day. As age increases, the secretion of sex hormones gradually decreases, the hair follicles gradually shrink, and the shedding of pubic hair increases. The pubic hair will gradually become sparse and turn from black to white. These are all normal physiological phenomena. Before and after menopause, pubic hair falls out faster. If there are no special abnormal symptoms, it is physiological and there is no need to worry about it. However, some people experience severe pubic hair loss in adulthood or even in adolescence, which should be taken seriously because this situation is mostly caused by some disease.

In women, premature pubic hair loss is most commonly caused by pituitary prolactinoma and hypopituitarism. The former can occur at any age, while the latter is more common in women with postpartum hemorrhage. The lesions in both cases are located in the pituitary gland. If you suffer from a pituitary prolactinoma, the concentration of prolactin in the blood will increase. In addition to galactorrhea, the patient will also suffer from loss of axillary and pubic hair. Heavy hemorrhage in women after childbirth can cause Sheehan's syndrome, a disease characterized by hypopituitarism. Patients will become extremely emaciated, suffer from amenorrhea, infertility, gradual loss of hair and pubic hair, weakness, and a very decreased libido. If pubic hair loss is accompanied by symptoms such as menstrual disorders, amenorrhea, nipple discharge, and headache, you should go to the hospital for treatment as soon as possible.

Some patients need to take certain medications for a long time due to their medical conditions, such as anti-tumor drugs, antipsychotic drugs, and drugs for treating rheumatic diseases, which can cause pubic hair loss.

In addition, Sjögren's syndrome, hypothyroidism, endogenous obesity, adrenal insufficiency, etc. can all cause pubic hair loss. It can be seen that pubic hair loss can also be a symptom of certain diseases. If pubic hair loss is obvious and gradually worsens, and is accompanied by other symptoms, you should seek medical attention immediately.

4. Excessive pubic hair

Some women have excessive hair growth, which is often a sign of disease. Women with eosinophilic or alkaliphilic pituitary adenomas often have hirsutism in the pubic area. The former has sausage-like fingers, thickened gums, enlarged tongue, and gonadal dysfunction; the latter has a full-moon face, a drum-like belly, rough skin, and is accompanied by amenorrhea and hypertension. Women with adrenal cortical hyperplasia and tumors have excessive secretion of male hormones, which can cause excessive pubic hair and clitoral hypertrophy. Polycystic ovary syndrome can also cause excessive hair growth, which is characterized by a slight amount of hair at the beginning, and a significant increase in pubic hair and body hair after the onset of amenorrhea, oligomenorrhea, obesity, infertility and other conditions. In addition, people with hereditary hirsutism, drug-induced hirsutism, and neurogenic hirsutism should be examined and diagnosed in a timely manner.

5. Pubic hair color changes

White: Common causes of pubic hair whitening include nutritional factors, mental factors, systemic diseases, and some albinism. The pathogenesis is related to skin.

The whitening of pubic hair is caused by the reduction of melanin, which is related to age. Regularly massaging or scratching the pubic hair like hair can delay the process of graying hair.

Yellow or red: Also related to age and nutrition, similar to white pubic hair.

Note: Some young people dye their pubic hair into various colors to make it look beautiful.

6. There is something attached to the pubic hair

Colored aggregates on pubic hair: Aggregates on pubic hair may indicate tinea pubis, which is caused by infection with Corynebacterium parvum. The bacteria grow in and between the cells of the hair epidermis and rarely involve the cortex. They appear as yellow, black, or red aggregates on the surface of the pubic hair, which are hard or soft, nodular or diffusely surrounding the hair shaft. The hair shaft loses its luster, becomes brittle and breaks easily. The hair roots and skin are spared. Due to the different colors of the aggregates, local sweat and clothes can be stained yellow, red or black. In the past, the two were more common and black was the least common. The treatment is to shave the affected pubic hair and apply topical salicylic acid benzoic acid ointment or 1% formaldehyde (formalin) ethanol solution.

There are grayish-white nits (lice eggs) on the pubic hair: caused by pubic lice. Symptoms include itching of the affected area, local redness, small red spots with blood scabs on them. In the early stages, patients may inadvertently see small black or red spots on their underwear, which are small blood spots where lice suck blood and they seek medical attention. Lice eggs are an infectious disease and should be treated actively by medical treatment.