Hair Removal Risks & Laser Hair Removal

Hair Removal Risks

Overall, there are very few side effects or hair removal risks associated with any hair removal procedures. However, before undergoing any type of hair removal, you should familiarize yourself with any possible negative consequences. Consult with your doctor or skin removal technician before undergoing treatment.

Laser Hair Removal

In the predominance of cases, there are no side effects associated with laser hair removal, an FDA-approved procedure for permanent hair removal. Rarely, changes in the pigment of the skin treated can occur, including either dark or light areas. Although these changes may persist for months, they are almost always temporary and are very rare in patients with fair, untanned skin. Having a tan increases your risk of side effects such as blistering, scarring and discoloration since, on tanned skin, the laser tends to aim at the surrounding skin rather than the hair. With this in mind, you should not go for laser hair removal treatments if you are tan, either from the sun or tanning facility. In addition, patients interested in the best results from laser hair removal should limit eating all forms of beta-carotene, which is found in Vitamin A supplements, carrots, squash and some other vegetable. Blisters and burns are very rare, but occur occasionally in patients with darker skin tones. Another common problem seen in darker skinned patients, particularly when the hair is curly, is pseudofolliculitis, bumps in the area where the hair is. This condition actually improves very rapidly following laser treatment; after a single laser treatment pseudofolliculitis can improve tremendously, although all of the hair may not be removed. If you suffer from cold sores or genital herpes, you should start on your medications before beginning laser hair removal treatments.

Electrolysis

Although using electrolysis for the permanent removal of hair is considered very safe and is approved by the FDA, there are some minor risks associated with the procedure. Some patients undergoing electrolysis report mild to moderate pain during the procedures. If done improperly, there can be partial or full re-growth of the hair, permanent skin damage and risk of infection. Some people, for a variety of reasons, simply do not respond well to electrolysis treatments.

Shaving

Shaving is the most commonly used method of hair removal and has virtually no risks associated with it. It is considered to be painless hair removal. The only side effects may be minor nicks and/or irritation, especially in people with sensitive skin. Some African-American men experience ingrown hairs on the face from shaving as do women, in their bikini area.

Waxing

In this form of hair removal, hot wax is applied to the skin and a strip of cloth or paper is pressed into the wax. The strip is then quickly pulled away, taking hairs with it. Waxing is considered to be very safe although it can be messy and entails a certain amount of pain.

Depilatories

Depilatories are a very popular, cost-effective manner of hair removal that carry no risk except that of possible skin and/or eye irritation due to the chemical that actually dissolves the hair. People with very sensitive skin should do a test of a small area before using the product on large parts of the body to test for sensitivity. Depilatory creams have become gentler over the past few years.

Tweezing

Tweezing of hairs on the face, chin or other parts of the body are associated with few adverse side effects. These may include site pain, ingrown hairs and possible scarring.

Prescription Medications

There are oral prescription medications that have been found to reduce the rate of hair growth in some users. However, these may carry the risk of significant negative side effects. Vaniqa® is a topical cream used to reduce hair growth and is available by prescription only. It usually takes about two months of treatment before hair reduction is obvious. Hair growth may return to previous levels within two months after stopping. Only about 58% of women showed improvement while taking this medication. Vaniqa® should not be used by men or by women under the age of 12. It should only be used on the face and should not be used in the eyes, nose, mouth or vagina or on skin that is broken out.

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