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The obsessive quest to achieve a physical ideal is taking a needless toll on male health
Is it progress for women if men are increasingly encouraged to hate themselves too? Consumer research from Mintel found that 42% of younger men (16-24) now remove their underarm hair (a rise of 26% from 2016), while 46% of all men remove body hair (up from 36% in 2016). Which means that young men are removing body hair almost as frequently as young women (29% of men v 34% of women). The rise is thought to be fuelled by shows such as Love Island, as well as pop stars, sportsmen and social media.
Clearly, I’m out of the loop, because my first reaction to this was: “Men like creepy smooth Ken dolls – really?” Apart from that, one could ask: why does the idea of men removing their hair automatically make it more interesting? Women have long felt pressured to remove their body hair. In fact, shorten that: women have simply long felt pressured. While it has become more fashionable for women to keep armpit and other body hair (admittedly, this may be truer in more woke circles), women are still way out in front in terms of both grooming and myriad other, more serious issues relating to body image.
Continue reading...from US news | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2Dfk9xq
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