It was once considered the calling card of hippies and hardcore feminists, but a Medway student is growing her armpit hair for charity.

Molly Pike, a journalism student at the University of Kent, will not shave or wax her armpits for a whole month as part of Armpits4August.

“Body hair is a taboo subject,” the 20-year-old said.

“It is natural for human beings to have underarm hair but a lot of women don’t, so I’m going to grow mine for a month.”

The challenge will be raising funds for Verity, a charity for those with polycystic ovary syndrome, which affects how a woman’s ovaries work and can lead to excessive body hair.

Molly, of Clifton Road, Gillingham, said: “My friends said I’m brave, but my family haven’t been so supportive. My sister refused to share the justgiving page because she found it embarrassing.”

A week into the challenge, Molly admitted she was already feeling “uncomfortable.”

“I went to a party at the weekend and covered up my arms even though I didn’t even have much underarm hair yet.

"I think I will make it to the end because people have been donating to this so I don’t want to let people down. Having body hair isn’t the end of the world.”

To donate to Molly visit: http://www.justgiving.com/mlaytakeabow