How to Stop Hair From Growing on the Belly if You've Shaved It

Hair on your belly is unsightly in a swimsuit, but if you've tried to shave it off, you know it can come back coarse and dark. Although hair growing back thicker generally is a myth, the American Academy of Family Physicians notes that stubble, the blunt edges of hair that has been shaved off, will show up. Stubble often looks darker or coarser than other hair. To get rid of belly hair permanently, you'll need a prescription hair-growth inhibitor from your doctor.

Consult your doctor about your excess body hair. Sometimes body hair is the result of a condition called hirsutism, the AAFP says. Hirsutism is excessive hair growth and can affect men and women alike, although the clinical use of the term usually refers to women. If the hair on your belly and body is bothering you so much that you shave it off or want to remove it altogether, your doctor can prescribe an eflornithine HCl 13.9 percent cream, called Vaniqa, that can stop hair from growing back, says a report published in "Current Medical Research and Opinion." If your hair growth is not severe, your might recommend other ways to minimize it, such as bleaching, waxing or laser removal 1.

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Exfoliate your skin so ingrown hairs don't occur after shaving. You can use a store-bough exfoliating cream, or make your own by mixing olive oil and brown sugar to make a paste. Rub the exfoliant over your belly in a circular motion, then rinse away before moisturizing.

If you want to remove belly hair with wax, it should be at least an eighth of an inch long. You can wax it at home with a wax kit, or visit a salon to have it waxed by a professional. Either way, waxing removes hair at the roots, so you're stopping its growth at the source, rather than cutting it bluntly with a razor.

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If you wax away belly hair yourself, heat the wax in the microwave until it is slightly runny. Apply the wax in the same direction of the hair growth, and lay the fabric strip over the wax. Press firmly, then grip a corner of the strip and yank the strip off in the opposite direction of the hair growth. This should leave you with smooth skin.

Apply the eflornithine HCl cream to your belly each day as part of your regular skin-care routine. The Vaniqa website says it takes four to eight weeks to see results, but the cream must be applied daily to prevent regrowth.