Although the procedure is often touted as a form of “permanent” hair removal, laser treatment only reduces the number of unwanted hairs in a given area. It doesn’t get rid of unwanted hairs completely.
According to the Mayo Clinic, this hair removal option tends to work best in people with light skin tones and darker hair. Also, for best results, the American Association of Dermatology (AAD) recommends that a board-certified dermatologist ought to perform the procedure.
How laser hair removal works
Laser therapy uses high-heat laser beams as a mild form of radiation. During the process, these laser beams heat up and damage your hair follicles.
Your hair follicles are located just below the skin. They’re responsible for producing new strands of hair. If the follicles are destroyed, then hair production is temporarily disabled.
By contrast, tweezing, shaving, and waxing all remove hair above the surface. These methods don’t target hair-producing follicles.
The AAD deems the following areas as appropriate for laser hair removal:
- chest
- back
- shoulders
- neck
- bikini line
- face (except for the eye area)
This form of hair removal works best with darker hair colors on light skin tones. This is because the lasers target hair melanin (color). Even if some hairs aren’t removed, the lightening of their color can reduce the appearance of hair on the skin.
Some of your hairs may also shed within a few days of your first treatment session.
Overall, laser hair removal is a relatively quick process. Smaller areas, such as the upper lip, can take just minutes. Larger areas of hair removal, like the back or chest, may take an hour or longer.
If your dermatologist applies a topical pain-relieving gel (anesthetic) first, you may expect to be at the office up to another full hour.
Despite the high success rate of laser hair removal, hair follicles eventually heal. This results in new hair production. To ensure the best results possible, you will need to undergo multiple treatment sessions.
Why follow-up sessions are needed
Follow-up treatments are necessary to get the most out of laser hair removal. The exact number of maintenance laser treatments varies by individual. According to the Mayo Clinic, most people need between four and six laser therapy sessions.
You also need to space these out by six weeks each — this means that the full treatment cycle can take up to nine months.
After each session, you’ll likely notice fewer hairs. Any hair that remains or regenerates will also be lighter in both texture and color. The AAD estimates that the number of hairs will reduce by 10 to 25 percent after your initial session. The rate of reduction thereafter will improve, but will also vary.
Additionally, for the best results, you’ll likely need occasional maintenance sessions. These help ensure that the hair follicles don’t regenerate. Depending on your individual needs, you may need a maintenance session once or twice a year after your full initial round of laser treatment.
The timeline for each session is the same as your initial laser hair removal treatment. Overall, the timing depends on the area of treatment. If you’re touching up just a few small areas during your maintenance sessions, then your appointment may be shorter.
The bottom line
Although laser hair removal isn’t exactly permanent, it’s still one of the best options for slowing hair growth over an extended period of time. Other long-term hair removal options you can discuss with a dermatologist include electrolysis and needle epilators.
If you don’t want to go through with the expense of medical procedures that aren’t really permanent anyway, there are numerous at-home hair removal options.
Talk to your dermatologist about:
- tweezer epilators
- waxing or sugaring
- threading
- proper shaving techniques
Miniature versions of laser hair treatments are available on the market for home use, but their safety and efficacy aren’t clear. The U. S. Food and Drug AdministrationTrusted Source doesn’t regulate at-home laser hair treatments as medical devices, so they aren’t tested as such. It’s best to leave laser hair removal up to the expert.
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4 Tips For Getting The Most Out of Your Laser Hair Removal
An excellent way to permanently get rid of your unwanted body hair is laser hair removal. This type of treatment can remove any dark, coarse hairs on your face, arms, underarms, legs, pubic area, etc. Laser hair removal involves the use of a laser to burn the hair follicles. After several treatments, this stops the hairs from growing back in, thus creating the permanent hair removal that many people desire. When you are going through your laser hair removal treatments, you want them to be as effective as possible. Thankfully, there are certain things that you can do to make this happen. Here are 4 great tips for getting the most out of your laser hair removal.
DON’T MISS A TREATMENT
Laser hair removal appointments are scheduled based on the growth cycles of your hair. During each hair growth cycle, certain hair follicles produce hair. The laser can only target the hairs follicles that are growing hairs during that particular growth cycle. Because of this, your appointments are generally placed about a month apart. If you were to miss one of these treatments, you would miss an entire growth cycle. This can set you way back in your treatments and lengthen the hair removal process.
AVOID TWEEZING OR WAXING
Since the laser burns your actual hair follicle, it is very important that this hair follicle is present. If you were to tweeze or wax any of the hairs that you are planning on removing, then the hair follicle would be removed in the process. By avoiding any tweezing or waxing several weeks before your laser hair removal treatments begin, you ensure that all hair follicles are present. However, this doesn’t mean that you can’t still shave your hair because this simply cuts your hair down to the surface of your skin and leaves the follicle intact.
SHAVE THE DAY BEFORE A TREATMENT
The day before your laser hair removal treatment, it is a good idea to shave. This can be effective for a couple different reasons. For one thing, it makes it easier for the laser to get to your hair follicles because there is less of the hair remaining above the skin’s surface. It is also a great way to reduce the amount of pain you feel from the laser. This is because there is less of the hair that essentially has to be burned off, thus decreasing the pain you feel from the laser. However, if you do still experience pain, aloe vera can be very helpful in soothing your skin.
LIMIT YOUR SUN EXPOSURE
It is important that you limit your sun exposure both before you begin laser hair removal treatments and in between each of your treatments. If your skin is burned from the sun, this can make it extra sensitive. Since your skin will become somewhat sensitive from the use of the laser, a sunburn may cause your skin to actually blister during the treatments. This is not only painful but can interfere with your treatments because you may have to miss treatments until your skin has properly healed from your sunburn.
Laser hair removal is an effective procedure that can provide you with great results when performed correctly. In order to get the most out of your treatment, it is important that you don’t miss a treatment, you avoid tweezing or waxing any of the hairs that are undergoing laser hair removal, you shave the day before a treatment, and you limit your sun exposure both before and during treatments.
How to Prepare for Laser Hair Removal
Before scrambling to online search “laser hair removal near me,” take some time to read through these guidelines to help prepare. These guidelines will help you get the most out of your treatment.
Stay Out of the Sun
Laser treatment cannot be performed on sunburned or recently tanned skin, so be sure to take at least two weeks off from soaking up the sun before your laser appointment.
Your skin will be particularly sensitive after treatments, so lather on SPF between your appointments and avoid the sun.
Be Careful with Skin Products
Some common skin products increase the photosensitivity of the skin. Because laser hair removal uses light to target the hair follicles, increased photosensitivity can increase the risk of the treatment burning your skin.
Ingredients to avoid include benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, and retinol. Stop using products with these ingredients 2-3 days before treatment and wait another 2-3 days after treatment before using them again.
Shave the Area
You will need to shave the area within 24 hours before laser treatment. You must arrive without any hair remaining in the area.
For the bikini area, don’t wait until the last minute to shave. The skin in this area is particularly sensitive (which is one reason why it’s a great idea to ditch the razors!), so you might want to leave some time for any irritation from shaving to subside.
Don’t Tweeze or Wax
This is an especially important guideline between appointments. The laser targets the pigment in the hair, so if you have damaged the follicle by tweezing or waxing, the treatment will not work.
Instead, you will see the hair that you removed by tweezing or waving grow back. Wait at least 4 weeks after your last waxing appointment before beginning laser hair removal treatment.
