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Embarrassing Bodies, 2:05am Tuesday 7th February 2012 on Channel 4. Catch up for free on 4oD »

Conditions

Hirsutism

Excessive hair

In ancient Greece, the young brides of Argos would fix false beards to their chins on their wedding night, so as to be in no way inferior to the men with whom they shared a bed. However, when the fun and games of the consummation were over, these Argive women knew they could remove the beard and embrace femininity again. But for modern women suffering from hirsutism – when females grow too much body or facial hair in a pattern seen normally occurring only in men – facial hair can be embarrassing and a cause of great distress. Furthermore, removing such facial and bodily hair requires treatment, such as physically removing the hairs; taking a course of anti-androgen drugs; or having courses of electrolysis or laser treatment. Excessive hairiness in women can be caused by abnormally high androgen levels (male hormones), which is sometimes due to an underlying medical condition, such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

If you are worried that your child may be suffering from excessive hair, read our condition guide especially for parents on Embarrassing Bodies: Kids.

Comments and Questions

The EB doctors have been looking at your comments and have answered some of the common questions below. Remember that it is always best to check with a health professional if you have any concerns about your health.

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Please note: Unfortunately Channel 4 cannot respond to individual inquiries. If you have any concerns, you can check out NHS Choices, but ultimately it is always best to check with a health professional.

i have a lot of body hair that gets me very embarassed and feeling extremely self-conscious. i've seen the pictures of hair growth in women posted up on here and im not as bad as them however i was wondering if there was anything i could do or use to reduce the hair growth in areas such as my upper-lip, jawline, sideburns, neck and bum areas(this being most embarassing)





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I have fair hair and have always had a lot of body hair but recently it is starting to get as long as mens body hair and is starting to grow thicker and darker (all over - face, arms, breasts, stumoch, thighs and lower legs, bikini line etc). What can I do?





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Hi I am 23 years old and have facial hair i have seen the programme on hirustism. Can you recommend any good clinics, or provide me with the name of the clinic that dr Dawn Harper referred the womento in the programme.i am desperate this is my last resort.





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i have never been told what is wrong with me... i have had tests since i was 15 (im now 22) i felt like docs kept fobbing me off for years (which they are still doing) i have been told its either PCOS or cushings syndrom, but they cant give me a defo answer - iv had medication like ...metforming(which was making me feel sick ) diannett - which made me moody all the time and also a cream to try and reduce the hair (which it doesnt for me) iv got hair absolutly everywhere and im sick of it, i shave everyday - sometimes twice it gets that bad - the hair will grow back after a couple of hours.(also it makes my neck all red and spotty and seriously sore ! I really dont no what to do anymore !!!





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Hey guys! Just wondering if somebody could help with my problem. I've suffered with excessive hair as soon as a started puberty, since puberty I had been overweight till I lost 4 stone more than 3 years ago. I am now 23 with a healthy BMI and healthy, regular periods, don't know if I have pcos as I've never been diagnosed, I read that it is supposed to be hard to lose weight when suffering from the condition but for me it was quite easy. I have been having laser treatments on various problem areas on my face after years or plucking and bleaching. My problem areas seem to be my neck, cheeks and jaw line. The laser seems to have calmed down the scarring caused by plucking but thick hairs still seem to be sprouting in other places and treating them is now becoming too costly! Excessive hair doesn't just stop at my face, I have noticeable hair all over my body, the thicker hair being on my lower abdomen, feet, arms, backside, legs and bikini line. Any ideas to help with the hair? And could it still be pcos? thank you :)





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i'm a 21 year old girl and i have hair on my legs, back, face, belly, arms,fingers, toes and neck, anywhere you can think of its there, please help me. i can't live like this no more. I have really bad thourghts about myself please help me, please i'm desperate i dont no what to do anymore.





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I am 44 year old, not going through the menopause and Im pretty healthy. I have fair skin and auburn hair and slowly getting a few white hairs. But on my chin I have a few spiky straight hairs that are black and I have to trim them with scissors or wax them as my facial epilator wont grab them to pull them out. I know this is because my testosterone level is getting higher but how can I stop these growing out of my chin?





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Hi I'm 22 latina & since I got my first period I realized hair growing on my nipples. There are only a few hair on my nipples but its so embarrassing. I haven't seen my GP for this problem cause I'm very embarrass, Please help me. Thank you





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ermmm... i dont have excessice body hair just a bit round the top of my eyebrows is that natural..... i dont want to get bullied or anything but darent go to my doctors either.. can you please help as i dont know what to do?





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hey girls..i'm 21 years old and i have excess hair all over me..i have PCOS like most of you on here..i thought i'm the only one!it's horrible..i do waxing on my face..it's really painfull but what else can i do if i wanna look like normal woman? i've started to use weet cream for minimizing hair and it's actually working but you need to use it everyday..hope it will help you a bit :)





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It looks like no one else has asked this question, so please fill in the rest of your details below.





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Important Notice

The information provided on this website (including any NHS Choices medical information) is for use as information or for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical care by a qualified doctor or other qualified healthcare professional. We do not warrant that any information included within this site will meet your health or medical requirements. This Embarrassing Bodies site does not provide any medical or diagnostic services so you should always check with a health professional if you have any concerns about your health.


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More Information

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