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What Causes Unwanted Facial Hair in Women?

Sep 29, 2016

Most of us have absent-mindedly run our hands over our chins (usually whilst thinking about something) and encountered something shocking- a dark coarse hair. Or maybe we’re stood in front of the mirror brushing our teeth when, the light catches our faces and we notice a straggly coarse hair that we can’t believe we didn’t notice before. We dispose of the offending hair as best we can, but keep our lips sealed, worried at what we have just found and what it might mean.

Because whilst we just about manage to discuss other ‘female’ problems like hot flushes, PMT, insomnia or even painful sex, unwanted facial hair is one of the last remaining female taboos and most of us don’t even mention it to our best friends.

Today, I’d like to break the taboo by starting a dialogue on unwanted facial hair, and helping to accept ourselves exactly as we are. We’ll be taking a look at our hair-free culture, investigating the causes and I’ll even give you some great tips on what you can do to reduce your future hair-growth in a 100% holistic way. Let’s take a look.

What do I mean by ‘unwanted facial hair’?

Let me start by saying that as a culture- we tend to be rather hair-phobic. We allow ourselves to believe that the female body is meant to be completely hair-free when this is far from the case. Absolutely everyone has short ‘peach fuzz’ hair (of varying length and colour) all over their bodies, regardless of their age or gender. This is 100% normal and plays a role in protecting your skin and helping to maintain a healthy body temperature.

However, when we refer to ‘excess hair’ or ‘unwanted hair’ or ‘hirsutism’, we are talking about the appearance of darker and coarser hair in certain parts of the body, such as on the corners of the mouth, on the chin, around the nipples, between the belly button and the pubic area and even on the chest.

As these are areas associated with male hair growth, the appearance of this kind of dark male-like can have a massive impact upon self-esteem, confidence and even your sense of femininity and sexual confidence. All too often, your social life is also affected, your relationships often suffer and you really struggle to feel good about yourself.

The link between hormones and excess facial and body hair

If this sounds at all like you, you’re almost certainly suffering from a hormonal imbalance caused by an excess of androgens in your blood.

Androgens are a group of hormones which includes testosterone, androstenedione, dihydrotestosterone (DHT), dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) which are usually converted to oestrogen in the female body.

But sometimes the body produces more than it should or the androgens are not ‘bound’ effectively within the body. This can have a devastating effect on your body, causing your hair follicles to effectively ‘switch on’ and produce hair, whilst also disrupting your periods, triggering acne, affecting fertility and causing many other problems.

It’s also important to note that some women suffer from a genetic predisposition which makes them more sensitive to normal levels of androgens in their bodies. This is especially the case in younger women.

What causes this hormonal disruption?

Whilst high levels of androgens can be caused by a wide range of factors including PCOS, Cushing Disease, hormone-secreting tumours, certain birth control pills, the menopause, the most common causes (and easily fixed) include chronic stress and a high sugar intake.

Chronic stress

Chronic stress has a massive effect upon our bodies, and causes the body to be in a state of constant ‘fight or flight’ alert. This places extra strain on the adrenal glands, increasing the levels of stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline circulating in our bodies and decreasing the normal production of hormones like oestrogen, progesterone and DHEA. This obviously can have a devastating effect upon the female body. This is the same whether you are peri-menopausal, menopausal or nowhere even close!

A high sugar intake

Eating too much (processed) sugar forces your body to increase its insulin production in an attempt to protect your cells. This disrupts your delicate hormonal balance, leaves you with a yo-yo in your moods, makes you more likely to produce excessive androgens and for them to have an effect upon your body.

So what can you do about your unwanted hair?

I’m not going to lie. We can’t wave a magic wand and make that unwanted hair disappear. Once the androgens have switched on the hair follicle, it’s there for good. However, that doesn’t mean you’re a lost cause! We absolutely can dive to the root of the problem and make lifestyle adjustments that will help us to rebalance our hormones, prevent new hair growth in the future and also lift your self-esteem.

These are as follows:
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1.      Manage your stress

Taking steps to reduce or manage your stress will make a massive difference to your symptoms, almost overnight. As you’ve seen stress is a contributing factor to most hormonally-based health problems. It doesn’t matter what you do, as long as it works for you. Why not start guided visualisations, indulge in some well-deserved ‘me’ time, start a relaxing hobby like meditation or yoga?  

 2.     Balance your blood sugar

Calm and rebalance your hormones by reducing your sugar intake. Instead substitute with a small amount of low GI foods, increase your protein intake to help beat sugar cravings and eat small, regular meals.

 3.     Eat cholesterol

Forget what you’ve heard about low-fat diets and eat more cholesterol rich foods such as eggs, butter, full-fat dairy (if you’re not on a dairy-free plan) and coconut oils. Our bodies need cholesterol to produce all of the hormones in our bodies, so make sure you are eating enough.

 4.    Get enough sleep

Sleep isn’t for wimps- it’s vital for keeping our hormones healthy. Our bodies mainly produce hormones at night (especially between 10pm and midnight), so if you’re burning the midnight oil, you’ll be increasing your likelihood of suffering with more symptoms. Get to bed early and aim for 8-10 hours per night. You’re worth it! 

 5.     Don’t be afraid to use hair removal

There are many ways you can remove the hair itself so it’s less noticeable. Don’t worry- it won’t cause it to grow back thicker or turn into a full beard- that’s just an old wives’ tale! You could try plucking, hair removal cream, bleaching, waxing, shaving, sugaring and even permanent light removal. Experiment with a few and find out what works best for you.

 Unwanted hair growth is clearly something that we shouldn’t just tackle with a big dose of self-love and kindness, but also with more understanding. If you have unwanted facial hair, there’s no need to be embarrassed. It really is more common than we realise. Share your experiences with your friends and loved ones and break that silly taboo of excess hair on women.

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