What Hair Removal Laser Is Right For Me?

By: Eric Bernstein M.D.

First of all, what is a laser?

A laser is a device that produces light of a single color or wavelength. In dermatology, these lasers produce pulses of high-energy light that is taken up by the desired target. In the case of hair removal, the target is the melanin pigment contained within the hair shaft. The tricky part of laser hair removal is targeting the hair shaft without damaging the melanin pigment in the surface of the skin. Thus the laser light has to be on long enough to heat the hair, but not too long to allow that heat to spread to the surrounding skin causing damage.

What laser is right for me?

The right laser for an individual patient depends upon the thickness of the hair and the patient's skin type. Some lasers are faster than others, so for treating very large surface areas one may choose a laser that is able to treat large areas in a reasonable period of time.

In addition, if the hair on an individual patient becomes thinner and less dense following laser treatments, I often switch lasers to accommodate the change in the hair type and texture. There are a number of parameters that can be selected on a given laser. While each laser gives a unique color, or wavelength of light, other settings such as the energy, and how long the light stays on (the pulse duration) can be selected by the user. Because there are a number of settings which can be chosen during a treatment session, it is very important to have an experienced laser operater who understands how lasers work and the risks and benefits of various settings.

Is laser different for people with darker or tanned skin?

In my opinion, very dark skinned patients often do better with the Nd:YAG laser, while lighter skinned patients may respond better to the diode or alexandrite lasers.

Lasering people with dark skin is much more tricky than lasering people with light skin. However, the hair must be dark in order to be 'seen' by the laser. Lasers are absorbed by the pigmentation in the hair shaft which produces heat that then results in inflammation which sends a signal to the hair to go into a long-term resting period. The ideal laser patient that would be easiest to treat and respond best would be someone with very light skin and dark hair. However, people have all different degrees of skin and hair pigmentation. The trick with laser hair removal is to avoid injuring the surface of the skin where the melanin pigment lives, while effecting the pigmentation in the hair shaft. The problem is, your skin and hair don't know whether they are supposed to absorb the laser light or not. Therefore, any dark pigmentation will absorb most forms of laser light. Certain lasers are somewhat less 'noticed' by epidermal melanin pigment. The laser that is most commonly used on very dark skin would be the Nd:YAG laser. This laser has the longest wavelength of any of the hair removal lasers, and thus is less absorbed by melanin pigmentation over-all. Because is it less absorbed by the melanin pigment in the surface of the skin, it runs less of a risk of injuring the surface of the skin.

It's important that before any cosmetic procedure you contact your personal physician to discuss whether a particular treatment may be right for you. Make sure you consult your physician first prior to treatment.

Ways to Get Rid of Those Manly Hairs

By: Sashi

If you are a hirsute women and looking for treatment of excessive and facial body hair here you are at the threshold of experiencing a new phenomenon. Today, when people are looking for cure for baldness or hair removal, hirsutism has been causing stress for many women across the globe. Growth of long coarse hair on the face and body of women in a pattern similar to that found in men is termed as hirsutism. Hirsutism is the growth of excessive hair in women on parts of the body where hair is usually not found.

The exact cause of Hirsutism cannot be specified but dermatologists have concluded that it is primarily a result of hormonal imbalance. Abnormally high levels of androgens or male hormones are found in the blood of hirsute women. Androgens are present in both men and women, but men have much higher levels. These hormones cause hairs to change from vellus to terminal. Once a vellus hair has been transformed to the coarser terminal hair, it usually does not change back. Androgens also cause terminal hairs to grow faster and thicker. Both the ovaries and the adrenals produce androgens. To some degree, estrogens and progesterone, female hormones, prevent the effect of androgens. Hirsutism is sometimes an indication of a serious medical problem. It can also have cosmetic effects that may be very hard to manage psychologically. If you have hirsutism, you may feel very self-conscious, and this is a perfectly normal reaction.
It has been revealed that small quantities of androgens are normally made by both the ovaries and the adrenal glands in women. The adrenal glands are located above the kidneys. Adrenal androgens cause normal growth of pubic and axillary hair that comes before the onset of menstruation. It has generally been seen by that hirsutism usually occurs at puberty, that is, at the time of sexual development. If there is an abnormality in either your ovaries or adrenal glands, you may secrete excessive quantities of androgens and develop hirsutism before puberty. Pre-pubertal hirsutism may be the result of an inherited defect in hormone synthesis (the production of hormones) or an adrenal or ovarian malignancy (cancerous growth).

The treatment of hirsutism is carried out with an aim of correcting the root cause of the problem. If the problem of hirsutism is due to anovulation due to polycystic ovarian syndrome or infertility, the primary goal will be to induce ovulation. Steroids like dexamethasone or prednisone may also be prescribed in low doses if the adrenal gland is overactive. This medicine is usually taken at bedtime and serves to suppress production of the ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone) hormone which stimulates the adrenal gland.
The effect of treatment is evident only after a period of six months and if the results are found to be effective it may be continued indefinitely with patience. However, terminal hairs that are already present will not fall out or disappear with hormonal therapy and must be removed by other hair removal means. Many women with mild hirsutism often opt for various hair removal methods such as shaving, depilatories, electrolysis and even laser hair removal.

If you are a hirsute woman, do undergo a thorough investigation for your androgen levels under the guidance of a qualified expert and then follow the given treatment in the prescribed manner to attain desired results.

Bikini Area Hair Removal - Is Laser The Best Option?

By: C.D. Mohatta

You can remove unwanted hair using different methods. When it comes to bikini area, it becomes tricky for many reasons. The site is sensitive. Self-shaving becomes difficult. Waxing may be very painful. Electrolysis may be time consuming? Laser may be costly. What should a girl do? Let us discuss.

Shaving-

With shaving, there are possibilities of bikini bumps. Shaving has to be repeated frequently and the stubble that grows after shaving may be irritating. There are also chances of cutting yourself with shaving.

Electrolysis-

With electrolysis the removal is practically permanent. But some people find it painful. It is also quite time taking. You have to expose yourself unlike shaving but that also applies to waxing and laser.

Waxing-

Waxing can be very painful. If you are taking Vitamin A derivatives or using them your skin can become very sensitive and tear. Waxing is also not permanent and it is reported that some parlors reuse the wax.

Laser-

This is a permanent method of removal. The hair may grow again but will be finer and less. Except cost, everything goes in favor of laser hair removal from bikini area. To know more about laser hair removal please click here- Laser Hair Removal

This article is only for informative purposes. This article is not intended to be a medical advice and it is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult your doctor for all your medical concerns. Please follow any information given in this article only after consulting your doctor or qualified medical professional. The author is not liable for any outcome or damage resulting from any information obtained from this article.

Remove Unwanted Hair

By: Tania Jain

Are you carrying extra hair under your armpit, on your face or any other part of the body? If yes, then definitely you would like to remove them and you are doing that quite some time. But you are irritated with the routine of removing these on a regular interval of 2 to 3 days. Do you need a permanent solution for the removal of these unwanted hairs?
If answer to all of the above questions is yes, then read this article, identify the different sections and sub sections of your body, where you are carrying extra hair and get the rid of these.

Why hairs are unwanted?

Though all the hairs are not unwanted but at the same time either you need to get them done with the help of a hairdresser or totally remove them. If hairs on legs of a woman are undesirable, then hair of nostrils and armpits are undesirable for both men and women. Some time removing is for looking gorgeous and cool and some time it's the demand, because we cannot carry them all along. A cool looking wonder boy, especially in his teens will not like to carry hairs of beard, at the same time a hot babe would not like to carry hairs on her legs, especially below knees. More importantly, less hair means less bacteria.

So here are few tips for you, if you want to get rid of those unwanted hairs:
1.Shave it. Yes, shave your hair but this is only temporary, you need to shave at an interval of 2 to 3 days. Shaving facial hair is not for women; so, if you are a woman carrying some facial hair, get professional help.

2.Tweeze it. Tweezing unwanted hair is better but painful. Tweezing facial hair is not recommended for ladies.

3.Use creams, gels or lotions that contain a special type of chemical. Its effect makes the hair removal less painful and easy. This may cause irritation, so use only good quality products. Before applying, do a small test on a small area of your face, if fell comfortable, then only use otherwise not.

4.Do waxing every 4 to 6 weeks. Apply hot wax or cold wax in the area of your body from where you want to remove the hair. The hair will be glued to the wax, and when you pull the wax, this will take out the hair with it. Before applying wax in full, apply it on a small area of your skin to do the allergic test. Your skin may be extra sensitive towards wax and this may harm you.

5.Electrolysis is a permanent method of hair removal. This method requires several treatments over a period of time.

6.Laser it. It is a permanent method of unwanted hair removal. But must go for professional help and that to only with a licensed professional.

Important:

1.Discuss the hair removal with your physician.

2.All kind of hair removal techniques cause some discomfort, so be sure to consider what will be best for you before applying any method.