Why am I growing hair on my belly and lower back?
Answered by Eva Taub
A lot of women lower their voice when they ask me this question, almost as if they’re about to tell me a secret. They’ll say, “I know about my chin… but I’m getting hair on my stomach too.”
The first thing I tell them is this: you’re not unusual, and you’re certainly not alone.
When hormones like androgens become more active, they don’t choose just one place on the body. They stimulate hair follicles wherever those follicles are sensitive to them. That’s why women with PCOS and other hormonal conditions often notice hair not only on the chin and upper lip, but also along the center of the abdomen, around the nipples, across the chest, and on the lower back. This pattern is one of the reasons I often ask women about their menstrual cycles, acne, scalp hair thinning, and family history. Hair appearing in several hormone-sensitive areas at the same time is often part of a much bigger hormonal picture than a single patch of unwanted hair.
After more than forty years treating hormonal hair growth, I actually expect to see this pattern. In many cases, I’ll ask about these areas before a woman mentions them herself, because so many feel embarrassed to bring them up.
The good news is that facial hair isn’t the only area that responds well to treatment. The same laser technology I use for hormonal facial hair can also be used on the abdomen, lower back, chest, and other body areas, provided the correct laser is used for your skin tone and hair type.
One thing I always want women to understand is that body hair caused by hormones follows the same rules as facial hair. It isn’t removed in just a few sessions. Every woman I treat needs a minimum of twelve sessions, and when PCOS is driving the hair growth, it’s common for treatment to continue for twenty to thirty sessions or more, with occasional maintenance if the hormonal activity continues.
That isn’t because the laser isn’t working. It’s because your hormones may continue activating new follicles over time. The laser permanently treats the follicles it reaches, but it can’t stop your body from recruiting new ones if the hormonal condition remains active.
The goal isn’t simply to remove the hair you have today. It’s to help you stop worrying about the next hairs that appear tomorrow.