Calling for theories on an evolutionary principle...

OK - getting a bit more intellectual now.

I have a question to throw out there. If you believe in intelligent design or creationism, go away - this won't interest you.

Being pregnant brings about lots of bodily changes. For example: breasts get larger; nipples start to change shape a bit and practice making milk (ie start to leak colustrum - the pre-milk that is produced before the baby's sucking action "turns on" the actual production of breast milk). The biological reason for these things are obvious.

Another interesting change is that if your nipples are pale or skin coloured, they are likely to get some darker pigment in them and become more defined visibly. It is thought that this helps baby to find nipples in poor light! How cool! As Seagreen put it, it's like flowers evolving bright colours or dots leading to the nectar and pollen, to attract birds and pollinating insects.

One thing that's got me a bit curious though - what is the purpose of women having hair on their nipples? I haven't got any more or less than I always had since being pregnant. But I do wonder what they are doing there? This is one of those mildly awkward questions that I never ask other women, but often wonder. Kind of like discussing bikini waxing. I know men have nipple hairs, and that chest hair growth for them usually starts around the nipple (I used to swim in a squad as a teenager and therefore saw many boys go through puberty...). But women have generally evolved to have less hair. Do you think that:

a) nipple hair on women is a vestigial trait that will probably eventually disappear from the female gene pool along with chin and upper lip hair?
b) it has some biological function, such as providing friction for baby when feeding?
c) you have a freaky mind - just let it go? or
d) other?

Curious to hear what you think.