Mammals are typically very hairy beings in nature. However, the human being is considered bald when you compare them to their primate cousins like the gorillas and chimpanzees. The most notable hair you’ll find on the human body is normally located in the armpits, groins, scalp, and facial hair like eyebrows, lashes, and beards in men.
The fact that humans have a lot less hair compared to their other mammal counterparts is a bit puzzling, especially when you consider that females can’t even grow mustaches or beards.
So, why is it that men can grow mustaches and beards and women can’t?
Beards Might Have Evolved
Luis Villazon, technology and science educator and Zoologist, answered why women can’t grow beards and men can.
He claims that beards might have become essential because of evolution. It slowly became a sign of how to measure men’s testosterone levels. Men with thicker and fuller beards seemed to get more females because it showed that they were the more dominant and stronger than their counterparts without one.
The hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT) stimulates hair follicles in the jaw, and that’s what allows men to grow beards. Women also have this hormone, but it’s not as profound as it is in men.
Advantages of Facial Hair
Let’s take a look at a few reasons why men should consider having a beard.
1. Women find men with beards more attractive- A study published in the Evolution and Human Behaviour journal showed that women find men with beards more attractive. However, it sometimes depends on whether their fathers had one or not. Most scientists believe that people form mate preferences at an incredibly young age and are largely modeled after their parents.
2. Men with beards are often thought of as more mature- Many people usually think that men with beards are more mature. There are even studies that have proven this.
3. A beard can block UV rays- Yes, having a beard won’t guarantee that you won’t get cancer, but studies have shown that it can help block harmful UV rays.
