Waxing and shaving are temporary hair removal methods. They remove the hair shaft but leave the hair follicles and hair roots intact.
Permanent hair removal methods target areas regulating hair growth resulting in destruction of the follicles and hair roots.
There are 2 groups of Permanent hair removal treatments:
1. Lasers
Lasers make use of a powerful and specific wavelength of light to heat up and destroy the hair follicle selectively. The laser energy is absorbed by the pigment within the follicle and the heat generated in the process is enough to “burn” the hair follicle without causing much injury to surrounding tissues.
Current lasers have epidermal cooling systems incorporated to allow for use of higher fluences whilst reducing pain and side-effects especially in darker skin types.
Long Pulsed Nd YAG (1064nm) is particularly safe for all skin types especially those with darker skin.
Lasers are only available in MOH-licensed Medical Clinics.
2. Intense Pulsed Light (IPL)
IPL uses a very bright light consisting of several wavelengths which is converted to heat energy that travels through the tissue of the skin until it strikes the hair shafts or the bulb (root) of the hair and destroys them.
Although occasionally marketed as "Laser hair removal", IPL is not a true laser technology as it emits multiple wavelengths of light in a single pulse.
SHR works by repetitive short energy pulses, rather than a single pulse of high energy. These pulses minimize the risk of burning to the skin and maximises patient comfort.
This makes SHR one of the safest laser hair removal options, including for dark skinned patients.
Laser and SHR are both good options. Other factors to consider would be price and experience of the doctor/clinic in offering this services.
Hope that this helps!
Best regards,
Dr Justin Boey
