Back before modern conveniences like showers, shaving your armpits may have been considered a way to reduce odors, infections, and pests. Now, however, whether or not to shave one’s body hair is purely an aesthetic choice, and one some are starting to examine more closely. This is because even though all genders have body hair, only women are pressured to shave theirs. A shaved body has been the ideal of feminine beauty for decades, but that doesn’t make it healthy, or—mind-blowing thought—the most beautiful way to upkeep our bodies.
Shaving is a cultural phenomenon enforced by those who set, and follow, beauty standards. We’re beginning to move past the idea everyone should be impossibly thin, white, and have long, flowing hair—so perhaps in time, we can move beyond the pre-adolescent visual preference for removing body hair, too. Meanwhile, we talked to expert dermatologists to learn some health benefits of not shaving your armpits.Keep scrolling to read more.
Meet the Expert
- Dr. Mina Amin is a Los Angeles–based dermatologist at California Dermatology Specialists.
- Dr. Brendan Camp is a double board-certified dermatologist in dermatology and dermatopathology at MDCS Dermatology: Medical Dermatology & Cosmetic Surgery.
What are the Benefits of Not Shaving Your Armpits?
- Reducing Irritation: Most obviously, by not shaving under your arms you’ll eliminate the dermatological problems that can result from doing so: ingrown hairs, razor burn, rashes, and irritation. Dermatologist, Mina Amin, MD, tells us that two of the major benefits of not shaving are reducing razor burn and ingrown hairs. Additionally, those tiny little nicks and cuts from shaving can lead to infections like MRSA, if they come into contact with it, the potential for which is mitigated by not shaving in the first place.
- Reducing Friction: Not shaving reduces skin-on-skin contact friction, which means when you do activities that involve arm movement, like running or walking, your skin is much less likely to get irritated by the friction. This might lead to fewer skin issues like rashes and ingrown hairs. Dermatologist, Brendan Camp, MD, adds, "Underarm hair acts as a dry lubricant to minimize friction. Friction, heat, and sweat during exercise or on particularly hot days can cause irritation of the delicate underarm skin. Avoiding shaving can also prevent razor burn, ingrown hairs, or folliculitis, which can all be consequences of shaving."
- Embracing Natural Pheromones: It’s common knowledge our natural scents play a role in our attractions; just think of how someone might seem made for you on a dating app, but in person your expectations fall flat for seemingly no reason. We fit, or don’t, with others partially based on how our bodies react to the scent of theirs, and that scent is caused by pheromones. A study published in 2018 showed that the natural pheromones of our partners make us feel calmer and less stressed.
Do You Smell Worse if You Don't Shave Your Armpits?
One of the biggest concerns with not shaving is the potential for body odor—and we know no one wants to deal with that.
But first, what is body odor? "Body odor occurs when bacteria on the skin break down ingredients within sweat, leading to the formation of odoriferous byproducts. As long as the underarm is kept clean by regular washing and the use of a deodorant product, your underarm is unlikely to smell more if you don’t shave," Dr. Camp explains.
However, Dr. Amin believes, "It is possible to smell worse if you do not shave as the hair can collect bacteria from sweating and odor can get trapped in the hair. Sweat can collect more easily in the warm, moist environment that takes place when the hair is present. Sweat breaks down bacteria and leads to underarm odor."
If you don't want to shave and are concerned about odor, consider using an antibacterial soap. A fave is the Dove Antibacterial Beauty Bar.
How Do Antiperspirants Affect Not Shaving Your Armpits?
There’s a lot of talk out there about aluminum and breast cancer, but the claim that the aluminum in antiperspirants leads to increased rates of breast cancer has yet to be widely proven. However, no matter what chemicals you put under your arms, you will absorb a greater percentage of them when you apply deodorant and/or antiperspirant after having just shaved. The rate of increase may seem minor, with the jump being from .01% to .06% with damaged skin, but that is a six-fold rise in chemical exposure regardless.
"Deodorant can reach the skin better when used on shaved armpits compared to unshaved armpits. Using deodorant with aluminum on shaved armpits can increase skin irritation, clog pores, and can increase the chance of aluminum in the bloodstream if small cuts are made during shaving," Dr. Amin explains, while Dr. Camp adds, "Excessive underarm hair may limit deodorant and antiperspirant products' ability to contact the underarm skin. This may be especially true for solid or stick products."
Additionally, the correlation between the usage of aluminum antiperspirant, shaving and the age of breast cancer onset has been investigated in an older 2003 study, concluding that “underarm shaving with antiperspirant/deodorant use may play a role in breast cancer.” There’s more research needed, but this preliminary conclusion may be enough to give under arm shaving a second thought if you’re a fan of antiperspirants.
Will You Sweat More If You Don't Shave Your Armpits?
Similar to the idea that unshaved underarms smell less lovely than shaven ones, we also tend to think that shaving helps us sweat less. The reality: shaving, or not, likely has no effect on how much we sweat. "Sweat is controlled by sweat glands, located under your armpits and do not correspond with the hair follicles," explains Dr. Amin.
"Shaving does not affect the number of sweat glands on your underarms. While you may not sweat more, you may initially experience the sensation of sweat differently on an unshaved underarm compared to a shaved underarm," Dr. Camp adds.
Final Thoughts
If you’ve thought about stopping your under-arm shaving, the above information may be enough to convince you of what a healthy option it is. And if you haven’t ever considered it, this is an excellent opportunity to look into why! Luckily, there’s no commitment needed; while some people who choose to stop shaving never go back to it, you can always pick a razor back up again at any time.
