What are eyebrows for?

Here’s what Professor Hallux has to say:

Wiggling of course! Well, that’s what I do with them!

Only joking. Scientists think that whilst humans lost the hair off their bodies as they evolved, they kept their eyebrows for a very good reason – and it’s all to do water.

Eyebrows help keep water – like rainwater, away from our eyes. The curved shape and thick hair directs the water sideways off our faces. “So why not just use an umbrella?” you might be thinking. Well, if you imagine our cavemen ancestors, they wouldn’t have had umbrellas and so anything that helped give them a clear view would have been an advantage.

It’s not just rainwater – when its hot, eyebrows help keep salty sweat out of the eyes. Salty sweat can sting, so that’s something even we can be thankful for! Let’s hear it for eyebrows and give them a wiggle!