Your derm-approved guide to dealing with…butt hair

I’ve been acutely aware of body hair ever since I decided to start shaving my arms in middle school (I’ve since embraced that hair, thank you very much). However, I have hawk-like eyes when it comes to that one rogue chin hair that I get; nipple hair happens now-and-then, and I’m on it; and having not yet embraced the full bush, I’ve made the choice to stay diligent about the upkeep of my bikini line. Despite my guard-dog-esque tendencies for strands that inhabit the body, however, there’s one frontier that I haven’t paid much thought to: the hair on the buttocks.

Yes, that’s right—I’m here to talk about butt hair and how to, well, deal with it. I asked a derm for answers on this and, though she couldn’t find a statistic for it, she noted that butt hair is totally common. “This is a normal finding,” says Estee Williams, MD, a board-certified dermatologist. “It’s not a cause for concern. Patients with thick, dark hair are more likely to have buttocks hairs than those with fine or lighter hair.”

“[Butt hair] is a normal finding.” —Estee Williams, MD

In fact, it’s so common that salon centers get the request to tend to those hairs quite often. “A butt strip is actually included in the Brazilian, which is one of our most popular services,” says Melanie Coba, national brand ambassador for European Wax Center. “A lot of guests upgrade to a full butt wax to ensure all hair is gone from the area.”

So yes, you can have the tush waxed. Basically, you can treat that hair like you do with that on your limbs. “From a hair removal standpoint, the butt area can be treated similarly to the legs,” says Dr. Williams. Waxing in this area actually doesn’t suck: “Surprisingly, the butt area is one of the least painful places to have waxed,” says Coba. “It should be waxed every three to four weeks because it allows proper time for regrowth. The hair grows back soft and sparse.”

This involves hair in and around your rear, by the way. “People most commonly get butt hair removed during a Brazilian wax when the wax specialist removes hair between the cheeks,” says Coba. “If the hair has grown further out, the waxer can do a full butt wax where they remove hair from the entire butt area.”

You’ve got options, though, including laser hair removal. “Laser hair removal is the most ideal method,”  says Dr. Williams. “I use the Lumenis LightSheer Desire. It’s as effective as waxing or shaving, but has the added benefit of sparing the skin from irritation—only the hair follicle itself is targeted—and offers long-term results, meaning you won’t have to reach for that razor every week.” But (ahem) make sure that you’re going to a practiced dermatologist or esthetician who can talk you through the lasers they offer to make sure they work with your skin tone and sensitivity levels.

Of course, you could always shave. That just requires a special kind of dexterity and I’d imagine, perhaps, a mirror. One thing’s for sure, whichever butt grooming method you choose—or if you decide to just let those strands be—you can rest assured you’re not the only one. No ifs, ands, or butts about it.

Now for the muscles underneath! Here’s Jennifer Lopez’s butt workout, and a butt-sculpting workout from Charlee Atkins.