How does laser hair removal work?

Laser hair removal works by directly targeting the follicle, where hair grows. How? A concentrated pulse of light –that's the laser–is harmlessly beamed through the skin into the hair follicle. The pigment in the hair absorbs the heat and light from the laser, which damages the follicle enough to curb hair growth. The laser only affects hair that is currently growing, and since not all of your hair is growing at the same time, laser hair removal takes multiple treatments to affect all of the hair in the treatment area.

Who are candidates for laser hair removal?

The perfect candidate for laser hair removal is someone with fair skin and dark hair. Since the laser is drawn to darker pigments, it can be more effective when the hair is much darker than the skin–more energy is concentrated on the hair follicles, which disables them more fully. However, with a skilled technician and current technology, just about anyone is a good candidate for laser hair removal, even darker skinned individuals. Laser is not effective on grey or very light hair, or on hair that is very close in color to your skin tone. Your provider will obtain a thorough health history, skin typing assessment, and evaluation of your goals at your initial consultation to make sure laser is right for you. Most people achieve excellent results with laser hair removal.

Who are candidates for hair removal?

The perfect candidate for laser hair removal is someone with fair skin and dark hair. Since the laser is drawn to darker pigments, it can be more effective when the hair is much darker than the skin–more energy is concentrated on the hair follicles, which disables them more fully. However, with a skilled technician and current technology, just about anyone is a good candidate for laser hair removal, even darker skinned individuals. Laser is not effective on grey or very light hair, or on hair that is very close in color to your skin tone. Your provider will obtain a thorough health history, skin typing assessment, and evaluation of your goals at your initial consultation to make sure laser is right for you. Most people achieve excellent results with laser hair removal.

Who may not be a good candidate for laser treatments?

• Candidates who suffer from skin disorders such as psoriasis, cystic acne, and dermatitis are not ideal candidates for laser hair removal.
• Candidates taking certain medications such as coumadin, certain antibiotics or cardiac drugs. Retin-A or Accutane would need to be stopped several weeks prior to treatment.
• Treatment is not appropriate for people who have a pacemaker, who are pregnant, who have a seizure disorder, or who have metal screws in the area where the procedure would be performed.

Hair Removal Methods

Laser hair removal isn't the only way to get rid of unwanted body hair. There are many other methods. Some are more invasive than others, some last longer than others, and you're probably familiar with most of them:

Shaving: Running a razor along the skin removes hair right at the surface.

• Benefits: Shaving is inexpensive, easy to do and portable.
• Drawbacks: Doesn't last long; can cause nicks, cuts and razor burn; those with dark hair might have a slight “shadow” even when legs are smooth.

Waxing: Using a hot wax compress to pull out hair at the root.

• Benefits: Fairly long-lasting—up to six weeks for some. Can often be done at home.
• Drawbacks: Painful, messy, can cause hair breakage which may lead to ingrown hairs, wax that is too hot may cause burns. Can become expensive over time. 

Tweezing: Using tweezers to pluck out individual hairs by the root.

• Benefits: Easy, inexpensive, extremely portable, good for precision work such as eyebrows or individual chin hairs. 
• Drawbacks: Painful, can't be used for large areas, can be hard to do effectively by yourself.

Depilatory creams and lotions: A chemical solution is spread over the skin and dissolves hair just below the skin's surface.

• Benefits: Easy, inexpensive, widely available, portable. 
• Drawbacks: Can be quite messy, may not work on coarse hair, not long-lasting, chemicals may cause skin irritation/burning/redness, chemicals may cause allergic reaction. NOTE: It's extremely important to test a small patch of skin and then wait 24 hours to see if you have a reaction before using a depilatory.

Sugaring: Similar to waxing; uses a sticky solution that is spread over the skin. A cloth strip is then placed over the solution and quickly pulled away, removing hairs from the root.

• Benefits: Inexpensive, can be done at home, easier to clean up than waxing. 
• Drawbacks: The solution can be difficult to apply and remove from the skin. Can be quite messy.

Electrolysis: A very fine needle is inserted into the hair follicle; then an electricity is sent through the needle, killing the follicle permanently.

• Benefits: Almost always permanent, proven results, safe. 
• Drawbacks: Can be quite painful, takes many sessions to complete treatment, very time consuming, can be quite expensive, can be difficult for large treatment areas, when not done correctly can cause irritation, infection and re-growth of hair.

About Laser Hair Removal

Laser hair removal is increasing in popularity throughout the world. As more men and women seek permanent solutions to removing unwanted hair, laser hair removal centers are becoming more prevalent and the practice is spreading to even suburban and rural communities. The lasting effects of this process, as well as the minimal amount of discomfort, are two key motivators for many people who choose to undergo laser hair removal.

Learn more about Laser Hair Removal

Before you commit to any cosmetic procedure, it is vital that you learn as much as you can about it and how it will affect you. Laser hair removal is a process that works by targeting hair follicles at the roots with a laser (a concentrated light pulse). The laser hits the pigment in the hair, which in turn absorbs the heat. This causes enough damage to impede the follicle from growing, but not to burn your skin or harm you in any way.

Laser hair removal is typically ideal for people who have fair skin and dark hair. This is because the laser is attracted to the dark pigment of the hair in contrast to the light skin. 

Where will it work

• Bikini line: Imagine being able to dash off to the beach at a moment's notice–no worries about having to “prepare:” your legs and bikini area first by shaving! When you use laser hair removal on your bikini line, you'll be smooth and hair-free, without the uncomfortable (and unattractive) razor burn or ingrown hairs that are so common with other treatments.
• Facial hair: Unwanted facial hair can be an unsightly embarrassment. Plucking, creams, waxing and even shaving will rid you of upper lip, chin hairs and sideburns temporarily, but sooner or later they'll be back. With laser hair removal you can count on a smooth, hairless appearance.
• Underarms: If you're a little bit nervous about starting laser hair removal treatments, your underarms are a good place to start. They're most always out of sight and the skin isn't too sensitive.
• Legs: Wouldn't you love to kiss your razor goodbye forever? Most women shave their legs virtually every day, resulting in stubble, nicks and cuts and dreaded razor burn. Laser hair removal on your legs means no more shaving, no more rough stubble and smooth skin for good.
• Chest and abdominal hair: For men who would prefer a smooth, hairless chest and abdomen, laser hair removal is a great choice. Again, you won't experience itching, irritating razor burn or ingrown hairs as you can with shaving or waxing.
• Back: Laser hair removal is, frankly, one of your best options for removing unwanted hair on your back. Shaving your back yourself is virtually impossible, and getting someone else to do it could be difficult (not to say embarrassing). Waxing such a large area is not only time-consuming, but quite painful. You might find, in fact, that compared to waxing, laser hair removal on the back is not only practically painless but much faster. Razor burn and/or ingrown hairs are common with regrowth from other methods–something you won't experience with laser hair removal.
• Arms: For large areas such as your arms, laser hair removal is an excellent choice. 

Laser Hair Removal for men

More and more men are opting for laser hair removal. It's no longer just for women! Whether you're looking for a completely smooth and hairless appearance or you just want to reduce the amount of body hair in a specific area, laser hair removal is a great choice. Do you dread taking off your shirt at the beach or the gym? For large areas such as the chest and back, laser hair removal actually makes more sense than any other hair removal method. No painful, messy waxing. No ugly razor bumps, nicks or cuts. Besides, shaving your own back is virtually impossible. And since it's permanent, you'll enjoy the results for a lifetime.

Laser hair removal can be an excellent option for other parts of your body as well–the backs of your hands and feet, the back of your neck, your sideburns, even your mustache and beard.

Laser hair removal treatments are also very effective in eliminating folliculitis, or the unattractive ingrown hairs on the face and neck that many men get from shaving. When the hair follicle is targeted and disabled, the folliculitis will “shed” along with any treated hair in the area–getting rid of those painful and ugly red bumps forever.

Beard shaping

For men with heavy facial hair growth, laser hair removal can be used to help “clean up” and shape the beard and mustache by using the laser to pinpoint the areas on the face and neck where hair growth is to be to eliminated, while leaving the rest to grow. For men whose facial hair grows up onto the cheeks or down onto the neck, this can be particularly effective, leaving a sharp, clean line–no more precision trimming or shaving necessary.

Laser vs. Electrolysis

Laser hair removal treatments are advancements over the methods of electrolysis. Electrolysis is an older technique, in which each individual hair is treated separately. Because of this key distinction, laser versus electrolysis treatments are much faster. While electrolysis is only truly feasible on small areas, such as eyebrows and fingers, laser treatments can be used over the entire body.

Both treatment methods require multiple sessions. While with electrolysis, one small patch can be completely treated in a session; many sessions are needed to completely remove the hair from a single area. Lasers also require return visits, but results are visible all over the treated area. Hair becomes thinner and lighter, and many hair follicles (those that were in an active growth phase) shed their hairs completely. Currently, the only times when electrolysis is preferred is when an individual wants to remove light hairs, which all current laser formats have a difficult time targeting effectively.

The most critical difference in the question of laser versus electrolysis is that of comfort. Electrolysis can be quite uncomfortable, requiring a local anesthetic. In contrast, most people are able to undergo laser treatments without the aid of anesthesia; the process is considered only mildly uncomfortable. Topical anesthetics can be used, though, for those with very sensitive skin. Post-treatment effects include mild irritation-similar to a sunburn-which then fades within a few days.

What is the difference between a Laser and an IPL?

Laser hair removal machines are lasers tuned to very specific wavelengths, to achieve the process of selective photothermolysis (the absorption of light into hair but not skin tissue) to permanently get rid of unwanted hair. Hair removal machines work best on growing hair follicles though, so a cycle of treatments is usually needed to eradicate all hairs in a given area. Because laser hair treatments are only effective on those hair follicles that are in the anagen or active phase of growth most people need anywhere from six to eight sessions to see long lasting success. Hairs that are in the catagen (regressive) phase or telogen (resting) phase don't respond to laser light. Because about 30% of our hair is in the active stage at any given time, that is why repeated treatments help to ensure that the clinician catches all hair in its active phase eventually. 

Hair removal lasers range in wavelength from 694 nanometers to 1064 nanometers. The longer the wavelength, the more intense the light used to destroy the hair follicle. There are advantages of each level of wavelength, and only a trained professional can evaluate your skin and hair to match it with the correct laser. Alexandrite, diode and Nd:YAG skin lasers have broadened the spectrum of individuals who can benefit from laser hair removal. These newer methods still rely on skin to hair contrast, but are better targeted to different skin tones. If you're interested in permanent laser hair removal, it's a good idea to talk to a professional about the best laser type for your skin and hair tone.

IPL Characteristics

An IPL (intense pulsed light) is not a laser. It is characterized by a wide beam of broad spectrum light and is less specific. It can be used to treat large areas of the body like the back and shoulders. It also treats multiple hairs at a time (up to 100 per second) and works well on any skin type, even ethnic and tanned skin. However, because it is nonspecific, it may take many more treatment sessions than a laser treatment would to achieve the desired goal. IPL treatment is relatively painless and effective. Most people see permanent hair removal, while some others see at least a dramatic thinning of unwanted hair.

IPL treatments can be used on the face, back, chest, bikini area, arms, legs, and pretty much anywhere else you'd like to remove hair. It is a gentle process with few side effects, which makes it increasing popular among men and women alike. The costs are steep though, at up to $800 per session, so you have to take this into account before making your decision about which hair removal method is best for you.

FDA approved lasers

Due to massive public interest in permanently removing unwanted hair, the popularity of laser hair removal has significantly grown over the past decade. This popularity prompted the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to require research on certain lasers and then, when appropriate, approve these lasers for use. Laser manufacturers certainly want their products to be approved by the FDA, and will often seek such clearance.

Find a clinician who uses FDA approved lasers

When you seek out a laser hair removal specialist, it's wise to choose one who uses FDA approved lasers. This means that all the lasers he or she uses have been approved by the FDA for hair removal use. FDA approved lasers are those that have been cleared by the FDA to be safe as well as effective at hair removal.

With FDA approved lasers, laser hair removal is a safe process, provided patients follow the pre- and post-treatment instructions given to them. Like most medical procedures, there are some possible side effects that can occur; however, they are not common. All participants should expect their skin to be pinkish and slightly aggravated directly after the treatment, but this irritation should subside within a few hours. In rare instances, people may experience more significant side effects, even when FDA approved lasers are used. These side effects can include blistering, skin discoloration or swelling.