Scientists say humans are just as hairy as any other apes [Science]
According to researchers in England, our body hair might seem useless to us but a new study suggests that it could help us detect parasites better and it's possible that our female ancestors used to dig bug-free mates and preferred hairier guys.
The LiveScience.com report explains how the research was conducted:
Investigators recruited 29 university student volunteers through Facebook and shaved a patch of hair from one of their arms. The scientists then tested how long it took the volunteers to detect bedbugs placed on each arm and how long it took the parasites to find a good place to feed on. (The bugs were removed before they started feeding.)
The researchers found that body hair significantly enhanced how well people detected the bedbugs, with participants noticing the bugs on the hairy arm quicker than they did when tested on the "hairless" arm, with the hairs serving as motion detectors. The hair also prolonged how long it took the parasites to find places to feed, presumably because they hindered movement, Siva-Jothy told LiveScience.
Men seemed better at detecting parasites — they are generally hairier than women because of higher testosterone levels. This does not necessarily mean that women are more likely to be bitten — blood-sucking insects likely prefer to bite hosts in relatively hairless areas such as ankles.
Although the researchers stress they are not saying that the differences in male and female body hair are due to parasites, they do speculate that in our evolutionary past women might have preferred men with fewer parasites on them — hairier men.
The research also notes that humans are basically apes with thinner hair:
Humans appear relatively hairless compared with our ape relatives, but the density of hair follicles on our skin is actually the same as would be expected of an ape our size. The fine hairs that cover our bodies, which have replaced the thicker ones seen on our close relatives, are thought to be an evolutionary leftover from our hairy ancestors.
[via www.foxnews.com]
Probably another reason why I think men who wax and shave their body hair are unattractive.
ReplyDeleteCan't pass this up...I have always liked hairy men although I know a lot of ladies who don't, I do.
ReplyDeleteI'm just happy my back isn't hairy.
ReplyDeleteLucky man you are Sasquai!
ReplyDeleteShawn have a sense of humor you know that last post was funny.
ReplyDeleteDam rights it was funny.
ReplyDeleteI wish we could drop the "human" name, and we could be squatches instead. I always wanted to call my kids, "my little sasquatches". Way better ring than human.