Figuring Out if Laser Hair Removal is Right for You

Laser hair removal is a clinical hair removal treatment that offers an alternative to at-home hair removal techniques like shaving. If you are tired of quick hair regrowth, accidentally missing some hairs while shaving or the general inconvenience of at-home techniques like waxing and shaving, it may be right for you. However, it is not the perfect choice for everyone. The following information can help you figure out if it is right for you.

Why Laser Hair Removal is Popular

The reason laser hair removal procedures have been so popular, particularly in the last 10 years, is they are highly efficient. Not only can a laser treat a quarter-sized area on your skin in less than a second, but it can do so without missing a single hair. Also, lasers are able to treat every hair in the treatment area in its entirety. The same cannot be said for techniques like shaving.

When you shave away unwanted hair at home, you essentially chop part of each hair off. You do not remove the remaining portion of the hair under your skin. It remains connected to the root, or follicle, and continues to grow. When hairs are removed with hair-removal devices, the hairs are weakened all the way down to the roots. Eventually, they fall out completely. Therefore, regrowth takes far longer than after surface treatments like shaving.

Uses for Laser Hair Removal Procedures

Laser hair removal can be used to remove hair from almost anywhere on your body. There are no limitations regarding the amount of hair you have treated. However, treating a few stray hairs using a laser is often considered unnecessary. Methods like electrolysis or simply plucking those hairs out at home with tweezers are more useful in such situations. 

Lasers can treat many hairs at once. Therefore, you can use them to effectively remove hair from your bikini line or underarms. You can also treat other areas with a lot of hair quickly, such as your legs. The treatments can help you achieve convenient long-term hair removal. For example, if you plan to spend the summer going to the beach, preparing with laser treatment can help you have an embarrassment-free summer vacation.

Laser Hair Removal Targets Melanin in the Hairs

Melanin is a substance that gives your skin and hair its colour. Hairs are weakened when melanin absorbs laser light and heat. That process often takes several treatment sessions. It can also have mixed results due to the varying growth patterns of hair. For example, hair goes through dormant periods of no growth. The growth rates also vary for hairs growing from different parts of your body. For those and other reasons, laser hair removal can remove some hairs permanently, but not consistently.

A more accurate way to describe laser hair removal is it is a treatment that treats every hair fully and weakens it. After the hairs are weakened enough, they fall out. Some never regrow, but most do. They just take longer to do so than they would after other hair removal methods. Often, hairs removed with laser treatment do not return for weeks or months. However, each case is different.

Who Can Have Laser Hair Removal Done?

Almost anyone can have laser hair removal done these days. However, some skin types and hair colors respond better to treatment or come with fewer risks than others. Lighter skin and darker hair is the preferred combination that typically responds best to treatment. Your laser hair removal candidacy may also be affected by your skin type or other conditions you have, such as acne. Your clinician can review your candidacy and risk factors with you before you make your first laser hair removal appointment.

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