Laser Hair Removal - How Does it Really Work & What's Different About It?

Laser hair removal is an advanced method for getting rid of excessive hair growth on your body. Previously the standard method for hair removal was electrolysis, which could only treat one hair at a time. One of the greatest breakthroughs of laser hair removal is that it can treat multiple hairs at the same time.

This alone was a huge step forward as it greatly sped up the hair removal process. What used to take hundreds of hours can now be done in a fraction of the time and with greater effectiveness.

You may wonder, though, what precisely is the process that the laser uses on hair? A laser is merely a beam of light, its strength rooted in the narrow band of wavelengths it generates. Years of research and scientific studies discovered the wavelengths that, when concentrated on hair, destroyed the hair shaft(s). The lasers were then developed to not only perform the removal of hair, but also do it safely and with a minimum of discomfort.

THE KEY TO LASER HAIR REMOVAL: WAVELENGTHS

The wavelengths used by the laser in treatments are absorbed by the melanin, or pigment, in the hair itself. The precise targeting on those certain wavelengths eliminates the hair, leaving your skin unaffected. All the energy is focused on the hair shaft.

The laser's wavelength focus is made even more precise by the fact that the laser can be adjusted for your individual case and treatment. Your body and your hairs have unique characteristics. Therefore they respond best to a certain subset of those wavelengths that eliminate hair. The plastic surgeon or his staff will adjust the laser to fit your specific case and get you the best results possible from your sessions.

Although there is heat generated by the laser, there are cooling attachments, which counter it during the session. They also negate any heat that is produced within the hair shafts as they are treated. This is yet another advancement in cosmetic technology that has made laser hair removal very popular and easy to undergo.

Article written by J Cook, courtesy of Asia Pacific Plastic Surgery, offering drshimching.com/skin/skin_hairremoval.html Hawaii Hair Removal. Any reprint or use of article must contain the above link and credit.