Growing older often brings unexpected grooming challenges. This is particularly apparent when some areas that, when young, we could otherwise ignore, start to develop hair.
This includes our nose and ears, where hair grows thicker and longer as we age. But why do hairs in these areas act like this?
The answer predominantly lies in our sex hormones.
Two types of hair
There are two types of hair that grow across our bodies.
Vellus hair is fine and colorless. This hair (also called “peach fuzz”) grows across most of our bodies, including our arms and neck.
Terminal hair is stiff, thick, and darker. It stands up from our skin and is usually very obvious. Adult males have terminal hair on about 90% of their bodies, with females growing it on about 30% of their bodies.
Terminal hair stands up when we’re cold (giving goosebumps) and helps trap heat to keep us warm. It also protects us from the sun (such as hair on our scalp), and keeps dust and dirt out of our eyes through eyebrows and eyelashes.
As vellus hair is smaller, thinner, and colorless, it is not usually an aesthetic problem (although it can be altered in some diseases). Instead, it is the terminal hair that is often noticed, and the primary target of our razor.
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