Does Pubic Shaving Increase the Spread of Herpes in Men?

What is the connection between a reported rise in the incidence of herpes in men and the rise in popularity of pubic area shaving and waxing? Several health care experts think that there is, and earlier this year went on the record to discuss why they think the practice of shaving and waxing dramatically elevates a man’s chance of acquiring HSV-2 (genital herpes).

Just How Prevalent is Pubic Shaving and Waxing?

Per Annette Milligan, New Zealand’s Director of Independent Nursing Practitioners, “The habit of pubic shaving really is the norm. When we do genital exams on a 20-year-old and they have got pubic hair, we almost fall over with surprise.” Milligan’s remarks echo those published a few months ago from a pair of Canadian researchers.

Presenting their conclusions in the Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, Lenore Riddell and Hannah Varto stated that around 50% of respondents who participated in their voluntary survey shaved or waxed some part of their pubic region. On top of that, a full 30% of men interviewed indicated that they frequently shaved or waxed the complete area. The researchers also found that the latter group suffered from a disproportionately high rate of herpes and HPV (genital warts) infections.

Just how are Pubic Shaving and Waxing Linked to Herpes in Men?

Since both waxing and shaving can result in damage to the skin, these grooming practices create openings through which the HSV-2 virus responsible for genital herpes can potentially enter the body. Nurse Milligan shed light on this process by explaining, “Our strong suspicion is that when they shave or wax, they get a whole lot of microscopic cuts, so if they shave or wax before they go out, and then they have sex with an infected person who is having an asymptomatic shedding episode, it’s the perfect portal for entry for herpes virus.”

The nurse’s belief was supported by another person with vast expertise in the area – Lucy Cabral who teaches waxing for the Yorkville School of Makeup and Esthetics in Toronto, Canada. Cabral instructs her students that after waxing, “your follicles and your pores are opened, so you’re now more susceptible to infection.” Although this concept is supposed to stress the significance of trying to keep their equipment clean, it also reveals how much the skin’s immunity to disease becomes compromised by these procedures.

The Lesson Learned

Although there have not been any conventional medical studies into the matter (Riddell and Varto’s investigation was based only on surveys), there does seem to be some link between a cited increase in HSV-2 infection rates and the large number of young men, specifically, who use pubic shaving and waxing.

A long-time nurse from Milligan’s own clinic acknowledged that she rarely sees pubic hair on patients between the ages of 13 and 28 any longer, and that the appearance of this grooming fad has perfectly coincided with an huge increase in the number of herpes in men incidents she has seen. Milligan concurred by declaring, “It’s very disturbing. We are seeing lots more cases of genital herpes than we saw 20 years ago.”

In addition to answering the common question what is herpes, be sure to stop by Devin Brindinshire’s site where you’ll also learn about the leading cold sore remedies for the treatment of oral herpes.?

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