Body hair removal is part of a trend toward more meticulous groom

Posted Jul 4, 2010

Men, especially young ones, are taming the hirsute look

Determined to lose his virginity, geeky Andy Stitzer decides to get some body hair professionally removed. During the process, he screams in agony as an aesthetician rips waxy fabric strips from his chest and stomach. Anita Lindermeir hates the scene from the 2005 comedy movie “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” because it teaches the public that body hair removal is excruciating.”It kind of upsets me that they portrayed it in such a manner,” said Lindermeir, a registered nurse and certified electrologist who performs hair removal at Monroeville (Pa.) Massage & Wellness “There are ways to minimize discomfort. We use science.”

Advances in science and technology, along with more attention to grooming, are prompting more men to seek methods to shed unwanted hair. While hair removal in America traditionally has been associated with women’s legs, armpits and bikini areas, both men and women have a long history of doing it. And for men it had nothing to do with so-called metrosexuality.

Body hair removal is part of a trend toward more meticulous grooming among men who also are more knowledgeable about their options, said Peckich. “I think they are just more aware. It’s accepted now; it’s not such a big deal, anymore. With fashion and what’s presented before us as the way to look, you’re not really seeing men in underwear ads with tons of hair all over them.”

Whether men want a smoother, sleeker look or aim to minimize discomforts such as ingrown hairs, the fact remains that there’s nothing attractive about clumps of hair sprouting out of ears, or a shirtless guy who looks like he’s wearing a rug on his back. The earliest known hair-removal techniques involved sharp stones, which were used by primitive men. Tools evolved to bronze razors in Egypt and graduated to tweezers as early as 3500 BC.

The use of thread and lye poultices eventually became popular methods, and the last 100 years saw the rise of abrasive mitts, disposable and electric razors, creamy depilatories, do-it-yourself home kits, and more hi-tech procedures such as electrolysis and lasers. Where girlfriends, wives and mothers once were the driving force behind men seeking body hair removal, more fellows are getting it done on their own, said Michelle Grenata, owner of Michelle’s Electrolysis & Skin Care in Monroeville.