Hair on face, is it Hirsutism?
“You have moustache on your upper lip”, “You have so much hair on your body, don’t you wax?”, “ You have hair growth down there, you are not the true female”. These are some comments which we have often heard in our life. Females having body hair has often been considered as a sign of imperfectness. But, it is important to realize that we are ‘MAMMALS’ too. Taking about growth of hair on female body, I came across a medical condition, which to my suprise was very common in India. Around 10 million cases are registered every year. So, here’s a look at what actually it is.
Excessive and dense growth of dark coloured hair on face, chest, lower abdomen, inner thigh and other places where woman don’t generally have hair is called HIRSUTISM. The excessive hair growth is due to male hormone Androgen. Increase in male hormone can develop secondary male characters such voice deepening, enlargement of clitoris, decreased breast size and more muscular body.
Hair grows from follicles deep within our skin and there are around 50 million hair follicles all over our body. The form of hair in female is “Vellus” , which is shorter, lighter(colourless), less denser giving women the statement of hairless body. Whereas Men have more “Terminal” hair which are denser, thicker, darker . Women having Hirsutism offer have Terminal hair.
Question is why do some women have Hirsutism :- The answer is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). The common misconception we generally have is that, ANDROGEN is produced in male only! But that is a complete NO! Ovaries and Adrenal Gland in female also produce Androgen. But is generally masked by Estrogen in our body, but abnormal Androgen can cause Hirsutism, which leads to Vellus hair converting to Terminal type, increases sebum and causes acne .
Other causes could be :-
1. Cushing Syndrome:- Excessive level of Cortisol secreted by Adrenal Gland can also lead to excessive hair growth and leading to Hirsutism.
2. Congential Adrenal Hyperplasia :- Combined Cortisol + Androgen.
3. Genetic Condition.
4. Menopause:- Around menopause, estrogen production is restricted by ovaries leading to excess level of Androgen causing hair growth.
5. Medicinal side effects:- “Natural” supplements dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and androstenedione may cause hirsutism. Other medications associated with increased hair growth include danazol, phenytoin, minoxidil, and diazoxide. Patients on these medications develop acne more frequently than hirsutism.
At the end I would say, that these all are a part of our body and we have to accept the way it was given to us. That’s what makes us Beautiful. Self love is above all.