Laser hair removal is a safe and effective solution to unwanted hair removal for both men and women, being quick, straightforward, and relatively pain-free.
Laser treatment works best on dark hair and skin as the pigments absorb light energy emitted by the laser tool, but it is still an excellent solution for people with lighter hair or skin tones.
The Number of Sessions
Laser hair removal offers an effective alternative to shaving – and more importantly, less hassle – than waxing or creams. Lasers offer fast, painless hair removal for men and women of any skin color or hair length without harming sensitive areas like the ears or underarms.
Laser hair removal uses a concentrated beam of light to dismantle hair follicles in the treatment area. The light targets melanin pigmentation in hair follicles and heats them, killing off each individual one until, over several sessions, your follicles will have been permanently disabled resulting in smooth and hair-free skin.
The number of sessions required will depend on many different factors, but generally speaking you’ll require six to eight sessions in order to achieve satisfactory results. Your number of treatment sessions could also depend on which laser you use; different lasers work better on various skin tones than others and your hormone levels could impact how quickly or slowly hair grows back.
When it comes to estimating how many sessions will be necessary, the first step should be visiting your medical aesthetician for a patch test. This will enable them to determine whether laser treatment is safe for your skin tone and can effectively target hair follicles.
Be mindful that darker hair and lighter skin tones require additional treatment sessions as laser beams target melanin in hair follicles more effectively and it is more challenging for them to penetrate lighter strands.
Laser technology has come a long way, offering permanent results to suit every skin tone and hair color. Though laser hair removal remains effective on lighter-colored hair and lighter skin tones, its results remain most desirable when dealing with darker-haired individuals and lighter skin tones. If your lighter locks require electrolysis treatment instead, more frequent visits or alternative options (like electrolysis ) might be required in order to see results quickly enough. Nonetheless, laser hair removal remains one of the most sought-after procedures that offer lasting solutions and permanent results which make its use an attractive permanent treatment.
The Area of the Body
Laser hair removal sessions depend on several variables to successfully eliminate unwanted hair. These factors include the area being treated, rate of hair growth and color. Melanin in your hair absorbs laser light to produce heat that destroys hair follicles thereby stopping future hair growth. Laser treatment is highly effective on many parts of the body including face, legs and arms and can even be used as part of Brazilian bikini wax procedures.
Laser hair removal is a non-invasive treatment, making it quick and painless to complete. Smaller areas like the upper lip may take as little as several minutes while larger ones like your back may require up to an hour to treat effectively. Please keep in mind, though, that laser hair removal won’t work on people with dark skin or thick, coarse hair.
Most people desire permanent hair reduction, yet not every area can be treated in one session due to differing growth phases of each area’s follicles. Therefore, multiple treatments spaced out over time should allow your medical aesthetician to effectively target each growth phase through damage of individual follicles.
On areas that grow quickly, like lips or cheeks, repeat treatments may need to be repeated every four to eight weeks; but for areas like backs that grow hair slowly (for instance) treatments might only need to be administered every 12-16 weeks.
Reason for difference in intervals lies with hair follicles cycling between anagen (growing) and catagen (dormant) phases, for effective laser beam application to destroy each anagen stage follicle, it is essential that these treatment schedules remain regular so all phases can be targeted effectively, thus increasing chances of permanent hair reduction.
The Type of Laser
Laser hair removal works by targeting dark target matter (melanin) while leaving surrounding skin undamaged. Melanin absorbs light energy, damaging hair follicles and stopping their further growth – this process is known as photothermolysis. Which laser you choose depends on both your skin color and location of unwanted hair growth.
Alexandrite laser hair removal systems are among the most widely-used, capable of effectively targeting large areas like legs or back. Furthermore, smaller areas like bikini lines or faces may be targeted as well as less densely packed patches of lighter or finer hair. Although safe to use on all skin colors including tanned ones, its effectiveness may decrease depending on their density of fine hair growth.
Nd:YAG lasers can also be effective on any part of the body. This laser works well for all skin types and tanned skin tones; it may take additional treatments before reaching peak effectiveness; fine or lighter hair types may not respond as favorably but thicker darker hair could benefit more from its effects.
Before your initial session, it is advisable to refrain from waxing or plucking hairs for four to six weeks in advance, as these activities temporarily remove hair follicles and their roots, rendering laser treatment ineffective. Furthermore, self-tanner and excessive sun exposure should also be limited prior to starting laser therapy treatment.
Many people find laser hair removal relatively painless, though coarse or darker hair may cause discomfort. Most often it feels similar to shaving or waxing – though any discomfort usually lasts only briefly and diminishes over time.
Select a qualified and experienced medical provider when seeking laser hair removal treatments to minimize risk of unwanted side effects, which could include hyper- or hypo-pigmentation, scarring, inflammation and changes to skin tone. In rare instances, such side effects could even result in infection.
Preparation
Before beginning laser hair removal sessions, there are a number of preparation steps you must take in order to be prepared. First and foremost, stop plucking and waxing the area that will be treated as this may damage hair follicles and compromise its effectiveness. Furthermore, make sure that at least 24 hours before your appointment you shave this part of your body to ensure most hair remains below its surface and can be targeted by laser.
At each laser hair removal session, medical specialists will first clean and numb the treatment area before pressing a handheld device against your skin to trigger the laser beams. Depending on the size of the area to be treated, treatment could take anywhere between an hour or more; occasionally holding an ice pack against it may help alleviate symptoms in some instances.
Avoid exposure of the area that will be treated to sunlight as this can cause extreme pain and even burns. Furthermore, self-tanners should be used at least two weeks before your appointment with laser professionals as this may result in discolored skin post treatment and might prevent permanent results from being achieved.
Your skin tone plays an integral part in how successful laser hair removal treatments will be. In general, treatments work best on those with lighter hair and darker skin tones; treatments for those with darker locks but lighter complexions tend to be less successful due to not being able to target pigment effectively within hair follicles.
Laser hair removal is a safe and effective method for permanently eliminating unwanted body or facial hair, although multiple sessions will likely be necessary to achieve maximum effectiveness. Before booking your first treatment session, ensure you understand its cost implications as well as any commitment it requires from you and what sessions will need to be completed before booking one.
