Is Armpit Hair Now in Vogue?

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Miley Cyrus. Maddona. Jemima Kirke. All three of these female celebrities are daring to go where few have dared to (publicly) go before - they're growing out their armpit hair!

No doubt there will be many who cringe at this new style, and we'll have to wait to see how far this new trend actually goes in Hollywood. But it's worth asking: why is it socially unacceptable for women to have hair there? 

It's certainly a unique counter-trend at a time when both women and men are trying to remove hair from various parts of the body. From a medical standpoint, there's no real benefit or risk for either letting your body hair grow out, or deciding to remove it (as long as you use safe products under sanitary conditions) - but with one exception. Pubic hair is one area of the body where removing the hair can actually put you at a higher risk of infection, STDs, etc. Here's what I had to say about that back in 2012.