More body hair than my dad

[Jericho14]

I'm only 16 (and have started puberty almost 5 years ago) and I just realized im already hairier than my dad. I have hair in almost all parts of my body. Arms, legs (including thighs), armpit, some in chest and stomach right now. While he only has a bit of facial hair and happy trail and decent amount of leg hair but still less than what i have.

I wonder if anyone is in the same case. Im actually quiet hairy but my dad isn't much. He’s only 41 and im taller than him

[ska8er]

Its possible u may b carrying the inherit gene for
hairiness from ur Grandfather or even an Uncle if
u have one, Do u have any older brothers? R they
the same as u? A lot of guys would envy u.

[justa16yearoldaussie]

As Ska8er said the genes might not be coming from your dads side of the family, you might even get your hairiness from your mum or grandmother

[InternetTeen]

Maybe you got genes from another Male in your family? I got my hairy genes from my Mums Granddad

[scott2002]

16, Filipino guy living in Australia,
By being of Filipino descent I'm thinking that most males are not very hairy like you're mentioning. Is your mom Filipino, too? How about the men on her side of the family? Your grandpa, uncles, cousins, etc?

[NoLimitGuy]

How old is your dad?

[pauly]

Although most of your "hairiness" is inherited genetically - which may or may not skip a generation or even two - a certain amount is down purely to your own hormones and amount of testosterone in your system...which is not necessarily inherited.

[Hermes]

This is perfectly normal. While my dad has more armpit hair than me I have chest hair which he doesn't and no, he doesn't shave.

The pattern is inherited but, while those genes are only expressed in males they are carried by females too. The way it works is that the genes determine the extent to which hair follicles in various parts of your body are sensitive to testosterone. That sensitivity would exist in a girl/woman too, but without a significant amount of testosterone to stimulate those follicles, they don't grow (much) hair.

And yes, it does interact with your testosterone level. The areas that start to grow hair when you first start puberty and your testosterone is rising but not that high yet are the ones that are the most sensitive to it. These are also the ones where girls/women get hair for example pubes and pits or may get it, like legs, so while some may have faint moustache, which is where facial hair grows first on a boy, it is less common to have chin, neck and chest hair as these areas are not so sensitive and require a much higher testosterone level to respond.

And on inheriting genes you have presumably heard that the XY chromosomes are a bit different but as it is the Y that is inherited from your father that means there are no genes inherited only from your father but there are some genes that are inherited only from your mother, if you're a boy. For girls it's a pair for everything.

So if you your own level of hairiness does not match your father, perhaps you have got it from your mother and you might see it expressed in your maternal grandfather or an uncle on your mothers side. And, as people have said, sometimes characteristics can skip a generation. In a gross oversimplification, if a characteristic is due to a recessive gene it cas be expressed in one generation when two copies of it are present, repressed in the next generation when it has been trumped by a dominant gene, only to reappear a generation later when paired with a second copy of the recessive gene. Red hair is an example of a characteristic for which this is true.

[Jericho14]

By being of Filipino descent I'm thinking that most males are not very hairy like you're mentioning. Is your mom Filipino, too? How about the men on her side of the family? Your grandpa, uncles, cousins, etc?

Both my parents, grandparents and even great grandparents are Filipinos including uncles and cousins. My grandfather, uncles, grand uncles and even my male cousins on my mom’s side have more body hair genetically.

Only my great grandfather is of European descent (Spanish). Since Filipino (incl. other Asian) men on average are not that hairy compared to Caucasians. I most likely inherited the trait from him.

[Jericho14]

How old is your dad?

My dad is only 41

[NoLimitGuy]

My dad is only 41

Well, I'm hairier than my father too... Some men start loosing their body hair by age 35-40.... Normally it would be at age 50-60... Either your father has had a lot of stresses in his life and work, either you indeed have some genes of other male predescesor of your family...

[JonnyH]

We have the same case mate. This is because of our genes from our ancestors.

[Falcons_11]

Hair, like height, and other body characteristics are genetic and inherited from our moms and dads. Are you taller than your dad? Sometimes other factors like diet and fitness will alter our physical appearances from those of our parents. You never can predict what nature has in store for us.

[jamie_n5]

That is normal. You most likely are the same as your dad in many ways like your penis' and testicles especially. The hairiness could come from your moms side of family too. Look at your uncles on your moms side or your maternal grandpa and see if they seem hairy.

[Hermes]

Well, I'm hairier than my father too... Some men start loosing their body hair by age 35-40....

I had never heard that one before. Men do start losing the hair on their heads and that is because those hair follicles also respond to testosterone (via it's metabolite dihydrotestosterone) but while those on the body respond by growing, those on the head respond by not growing. The rate at which this happens varies a lot such that some men can be virtually bald in their twenties and some men can have plenty of hair in their 80s.

[NoLimitGuy]

I had never heard that one before. Men do start losing the hair on their heads and that is because those hair follicles also respond to testosterone (via it's metabolite dihydrotestosterone) but while those on the body respond by growing, those on the head respond by not growing. The rate at which this happens varies a lot such that some men can be virtually bald in their twenties and some men can have plenty of hair in their 80s.
Body hairness is closly linked to hormones. Women who happen to be quite smooth have a lot of estrogen in their body. Males who happen to be much hairier have a lot of testosterone. The more hormones you have the less/more body hair you will get. Also there is a role for genetics. If your father is very hairy, then you will likely to be as much hairy as your father is (obviously if you carry full spectrum of your father's genes, meaning, you are "father's" son. But it also is a fact that when men age, they start loosing their body hair - some more and some less. It's also a genetical factor and not only that but also enviromental and caused of hormone levels. And hairs get thiner as well, since hairs don't get enough nutrients, kolagen, melanin as they used to when the human was younger. And baldness is much more of a genetical kind. If your father is bald at age 40, you will be bald at age 40 by 70-80% of chance. And that is again if you are your "father's son"...

[Hermes]

Body hairness is closly linked to hormones...

There has to be more to this than testosterone level. It is generally believed that black men have higher testosterone and, crucially, higher levels of dihydrotestosterone, than white men so why don't they have the most body hair? The patter of sensitivity of the hair follicles has to be a big part of it.

[Connordude]

Is your mom’s side known for being hirsute?

[chetbonare]

Same here man, I have more body hair than all my family other than 1 brother. They have light hair, I have moderate body hair, and my brother is like a bear :P