Should Men Shave Their Body Hair?

Smooth as silk or hairy like a wolf? How or if you shave your body hair is completely up to you. That being said, let’s dive into some benefits, questions, and answers for men shaving their body hair.

Why do we have body hair?

Compared to the great apes, we’re bald. But that’s not for evolution’s lack of trying, as we have around 5 million tiny hair follicles all around our bodies.  

As our early Homo sapiens ancestors traded the ground game for an upright stance, the once-lush hominid body hair landscape evolved toward a more streamlined aesthetic. This follicular evolution wasn't just a fashion statement; it was a strategic move. Body hair, the unsung hero of temperature regulation, played a crucial role in keeping our cool as we conquered the terrain. Beyond style, it acted as a natural barrier, warding off unwanted dirt in our prime sensory zones—eyes and nostrils.  

Running, cooling, breathing. This constant, relentless rhythm is why our species can tire out animals on the hunt. Because ungulates, most primates, and other game animals have a thick coat of fur and need to rely on other methods to keep cool. Homo sapiens, on the other hand, can efficiently cool through our many unobstructed pores—we can keep going all day.

All frickin’ day.

Why do people shave their body hair?

Athletes, for one, get a significant advantage when they shave their body hair, especially in such a competitive stage as the Olympics. Picture this: in the boxing ring, a glove glides effortlessly on smooth, sweat-kissed skin, giving the clean-shaven contender a distinct edge. Dive into swimming lore, and you'll find that those who shear the leg fuzz gain a mere 0.06 - 0.07 percent speed advantage, which is a lot considering Michael Phelps won his 7th gold medal by 1/100th of a second.

For those of us who aren’t going to the Olympics, shaving body hair has some benefits:

• Personal hygiene, feeling clean.
• Easier to smell better for longer.
• Some prefer the shaved aesthetic.
• To improve athletic performance.

Body odor and your body hair.

Body hair and body odor have an intertwined yet nuanced relationship. Less hair means less body odor, but less hair might not be your “look”.  

Underarms, for example, are the typical culprit for bad body odor, and you’d be forgiven for thinking sweat causes all of the olfactory nonsense you’re sensing through your nose holes. But it’s not really sweat that stinks, it’s the bacterial cocktail you’ve been brewing on your skin’s surface. 

That bacterium comes from your hair follicles. So, if you trim your hair, you’ll be reducing the available surface area bacteria can grow on—thus reducing your stinkiness. The downside is that shaving your body hair can result in skin irritation, especially if you don’t do it all the time. And although we have plenty of formulations to help with before and after, it’s an important thing to note before you proceed.

Mother earth, father sun—and your body hair.

This might be where the rubber meets the road. Men are a practical people, and their reasons for shaving or not shaving their body hair comes down to their environment—even more than aesthetics, swimming times, and body odor.

Let me explain.

Sun Protection

Since Homo Sapiens evolved to walk upright, we no longer needed to have fur all over our body. Experts agree that the reason we still have hair on the top of our heads is because that’s the spot on our body that will get the most sun on an average day.

You might think going hairless or rocking a bald head is the move for staying cool, but the reality is a bit more nuanced. First, ditching the head hair might expose your scalp to more sun, meaning you’ll sweat more during those sunny workouts—though the difference is minimal.

Weirdly, it's the less-hairy zones on our body that sweat more during a workout. Think forehead, neck, feet, and hands—they take the lead. To stay cool in the heat, the trick is to keep these areas uncovered (don't forget the sunscreen, though).

Oddly enough, even though men remove their body hair or trim the beard in the heat—it doesn’t actually change your sweating or cooling rate all that much.

Keeping Warm

Along the same vein as cooling and sun protection, many men will keep their hair longer in the winter to stay warm. Maybe it’s a primal urge, or just something we’re trying to imitate after watching one too many seasons of Alone, but for some reason we just want to grow out the beard in winter.

In reality, our body hair and head hair play just a small part in keeping us warm.

When the chill sets in, the muscles around our body hair follicles do a little dance, causing the hairs to stand at attention, aka goosebumps. It's an attempt to trap some heat close, but given how thin our body hair is, it's not a game-changer in the warmth department.

Now, head hair tries to play hero by preventing a bit of heat loss, but it's like a cap on a leaky faucet—the effect is there, but it's limited.

Even with a longer, thicker hair style for winter, the heat can still sneak out through the skin on your head. Plus, the scalp isn't packing much fat compared to the rest of our skin, so it's not the coziest spot.

If you're serious about keeping the warmth in, get a warm hat or beanie.

Ticks(tok)

Throughout the world, ticks latch onto their hairy prey and transmit diseases while they suck your blood. Shaving your body hair can prevent these little buggers from making your blood their fifth cocktail.

Your lush, nearly Amazonian forests of hair offer prime real estate for these tiny arachnids, giving them a cozy hideout to latch onto. With each strand, it's like they've got their own personal jungle gym. Shaving down disrupts their hiding spots, making it trickier for these critters to set up camp.

It's not just about grooming; it's a tactical move against tick trespassers. Keep it smooth, and you're not just stylish—you're clear-cutting tick-friendly terrain.

A win-win.