Ah, the Spa, Part III

As I mentioned yesterday, today I am going to be discussing IPL’s other use: hair removal. IPL has been praised for its fairly painless and effective permanent hair removal. Unlike the temporary solutions waxing and shaving provide, IPL can permanently remove unwanted hair.

It does so by sending light pulses targeted at the melanin in the hair shaft. The pulses then heat and destroy the hair follicle. Since the follicles are damaged or destroyed, they will not grow back hair. IPL can work on any area of the body including the back, arms, legs, bikini area, underarms, and more.

IPL hair removal is performed in a series of treatments because the hair has to be in its growing phase in order for the treatment to work. How many treatments you need is based on several factors. These same factors will also determine if you are a good candidate for IPL.

The best candidates for IPL are people with fair skin and dark hair. The light pulses used in the treatment are attracted to the melanin, or pigment, in the hair follicle. If you have fair skin and dark hair, the light pulses will be easily attracted to the pigment in the hair since your skin doesn’t contain as much pigment. Redheads with fair skin are also great candidates for hair removal. People with dark skin and dark hair are fairly good candidates for IPL because they still have a lot of melanin in their skin and hair. Poor candidates for IPL are people who have fair skin and fair hair. Since your hair doesn’t contain much pigment, the IPL cannot be attracted as easily to your hair.

I consulted my aesthetician about permanent hair removal on my legs, and she said not to even bother. I have fair skin and blonde hair. The IPL would never work, although here’s to hoping advancing technologies make it a possibility for me some day.

If you don’t fall into a category of prime candidate, that doesn’t mean you cannot get IPL done. It may just take more treatments. Some people can have immediate results, and others can have less noticeable but still good results. Even if IPL doesn’t completely get rid of your unwanted hair, it can definitely make it grow in lighter and finer.

The two questions that come to one’s mind when discussing a new treatment like this are usually: how much does it hurt, and how much does it cost. IPL can be painful. I have had the treatment performed, and even with numbing cream I felt awfully sensitive to the zap. My aesthetician has since discovered that icing down the area to be treated helps tremendously with the pain, so suggest that to whomever you choose to have do your treatment.

As with IPL facials, IPL hair removal can run you around $1000 for a series of treatments. If you are a religious waxer or shaver, you may be able to eventually offset your costs by not having to pay for waxing or shaving anymore. Or avoiding the hassle of shaving at home may be worth it for you too. No matter your reason, IPL can be a beneficial and rewarding experience for many.