Laser or Razor?
Rare is the day we don’t hear someone asking about laser hair removal as they are just SICK of constant upkeep with their normal hair removal techniques, and can you blame them? Everyone knows how annoying it can be to have to shave their legs almost daily or wait for hair to grow long enough to book in for a wax.
But is laser hair removal really that much better? Well the simple answer is yes, and by no small fraction. Laser or IPL hair removal is a much longer term solution to stray and unwanted hairs when compared to shaving, it can help skin texture and tone, reduce folliculitis in your intimate areas and overall boost your confidence.
How does Laser hair removal work?
The longer version is that, unlike using a normal razor, Laser hair removal targets the follicles themselves rather than the hair that grows from them, meaning we kill off the cause rather than effect giving you much longer lasting results then you can get with shaving. As the practitioners here are so fond of explaining, our laser is set to target a specific wavelength of light, where darker hair on lighter skin gets the best results as the laser has an easier time targeting the dark hair. We also try to get your hair during its most active stage in its cycle, when the melanin and hair root is at peak.
The hair cycle is separated into 3 phases, Anagen, Catagen and Telogen. Anagen is the first phase, dubbed the active phase, and is when we usually do laser as it is most effective since the hair follicle is the largest and it has the most abundance of melanin, this phase usually lasts around 2-3 weeks before moving onto the next phase, Catagen. Catagen is where the hair follicle begins transitioning, hence the “transition phase” title, into the final phase. This is where the hair begins to stop growing and disconnects from the dermal papilla which supplies it with nutrients. This will only last a few days before going into the telogen phase where the laser is completely ineffective as the root is completely detached from the hair. The Telogen phase can last anywhere from a week to a year with no way to predict it so that can make lasers a little difficult as well.
This is why we will say to wait a month before each session as we want as much of the hair to have gone into the anagen phase as possible so that you get the best results.
Why Laser hair removal is so much better?
Now having explained how it works we can better explain why it’s so much more preferable to razors. As said earlier, laser targets the root of the problem, killing it so that growth is delayed and when it does come back it is much finer and so much easier to shave, although with multiple sessions, a quick top up is all you need to never have to deal with shaving again. But this is not the only thing that laser can be used with. As it targets melanin, it also can catch onto pigment in your skin that may be a little uneven and actually stimulate your skin into repairing and clearing it up as well as helping with your skin texture.
This alone makes it much more preferable to shaving which many women complain causes the opposite with constant dryness, itching and irritation, not to mention those annoying ingrown hairs. Since you’re not taking a blade to your skin, your hair won’t be getting stuck becoming ingrown. If this doesn’t convince you, though, we have many more good comparisons.
Did you know that the average woman spends around £23,000 during a lifetime managing unwanted hairs and almost 8 weeks of their life on shaving? With laser, that can drop dramatically, with only a quick 30 minute session every month and cheap laser hair removal prices that start from as little as £25 for small areas. So rather then spending hours every day shaving you can be spending so much more time and money on the things you love. Once finishing a course of laser hair removal, expect to shave less or not at all with an occasional top-up.
Another fun fact is that even though we do ask you to wait up to a month before getting your next session, you don’t actually need to wait for a specific length of hair like waxing so you can keep your legs smooth and clean in between your sessions. (to be fair you won’t really experience that much visible growth anyway so).
This also means you don’t need to worry about doing a last minute shave that you’ve been procrastinating the past week since, well there isn’t anything to shave. So get your favourite bikini on, or that skirt you’ve had tucked away for months and have a carefree day out with your friends without worrying you’ve missed a spot.
So, is Laser hair removal safe?
Once upon a time, removing dark hair from darker skin types was undertaken with caution however with technology nowadays Laser hair removal and IPL hair removal have developed tremendously and has never been more safer especially on darker skin types and thicker hair.
Is there any downtime with Laser Hair removal?
Well to be quite honest, there isn’t really any, unlike waxing and shaving you don’t have the added risk of ingrowns, you may feel a slight pain like a rubber band against your skin but nowhere near waxing for most people, you can get some slight redness and dry skin but this only lasts for a day so it’s nothing worse than razor burns.
Really the only true downside is that the price can look like a lot on first glance but when you start thinking about how much you spend on razor blades, waxing sessions, special aftercare products, it’s barely anything for an actual permanent difference in how your hair grows. Seriously, with new technologies like the technology offered at Arden Clinic Bradford, it’s a wonder people even bother with the constant annoyance and irritation that comes gift wrapped with blades.
