These days, there are a variety of ways made available to us when it comes to removing unwanted body hairs. We’re not limited to razors anymore, we’re talking about shaving, waxing, tweezing, and zapping to name a few.

So what type of hair removal is best for you?

SHAVING: During World War II, shaving became quite popular due to the shortage of nylon stockings at the height of the “bare legs” trend. Shaving is considered to be the most convenient way of getting rid of unwanted body hair. It’s cheap and fast. Shaving is recommended on your legs and underarms. This method is usually pain- free when you use a sharp blade and a shaving cream, oil, or lotion. The effect usually lasts up to 3 days then stubble starts to appear on the shaved area.

WAXING: Waxing is another famous hair removal method. Waxing involves putting warm wax on a portion of the skin and letting it cool to make the hairs attach to the wax. The wax is then pulled off in the opposite direction that the hair is growing resulting to pulling out of hairs by their roots. This process can be done at home or in the salon depending on your preference.

The advantages of waxing are that it can be done quickly and it is affordable if you choose to do it at home. The effect can last up to two weeks or longer, making it one of the hair removal methods that have longer effects. The drawback is that for this method to be effective, your hair should be at least 1/4 inch long to ensure that they would have a firmer grip on the wax.

TWEEZING: Tweezing is the method that is highly recommended for the eyebrows. This method is usually done in- between waxing or threading to remove growing hairs. For this method to be effective, the hair should be long enough to be grasped by your tweezers so you better invest on reliable tweezers for best results.

THREADING: Threading is a famous method patronized by beauty experts and highly recommend for the brows. This method is usually done by an aesthetician who uses a double stranded thread made of cotton to twist and twirl around hairs then pull them out from the roots. This process usually takes 5 to 10 minutes to get done. The chin, eyebrows, and upper lip are considered to be the best sites for threading.

ELECTROLYSIS: Electrolysis focuses on zapping one hair at a time which guarantees that it is far more effective in removing unwanted body hair compared to lasers. Although it is more expensive, more painful, and takes longer to perform compared to laser treatments, most customers who undergo this procedure are quite satisfied with the results.

LASER: Laser treatment is not recommended for everyone. Lasers are only effective on people who have dark hair and light skin because lasers target the melanin on our skin which are mostly found on people with dark hair. Laser treatments aren’t as painful when compared to waxing but are more painful than tweezing and depilatory creams. After laser treatments, there is about 80% of reduction on hair growth. This treatment should be done under the supervision of an experienced technician to avoid any lasting side effects from occurring.

Men are also now realizing the benefits of laser hair removal treatments for themselves.  Shaving every morning can get tedious at best but using laser removal you will still portray that clean cut professional appearance without the daily ritual.   Related benefits include the end to razor bumps and cuts that all men experience.

The newest equipment is able to treat areas without growing out the hairs as in the past. The hair is removed below and above the surface so the shadow of a beard is also gone.

Before you consider pursuing treatment, you should talk to your health care professional to ask his opinion on whether he thinks you are a good candidate for laser hair removal.  He should also be able to give a personal recommendation to help your search of a reputable facility.

The average time for a session is 20 minutes and you may resume normal activity immediately.  The best candidates are clients with dark hair.  Blondes and gray hair are the most difficult to treat. Skin tone is not a factor with the newest lasers.  Medical spas with the latest technology should have one laser – the Yag – to target people with darker skin tone and a second laser that is designed specifically to work on lighter skinned people.

Laser hair removal is classified as a medical procedure and should be administered by a trained professional.

Laser hair removal is never guaranteed to be permanent and you should be aware of the realistic statistics. Treatments of the face usually require maintenance for complete removal. A realistic expectation is a 50-70 % reduction of facial hair after three sessions.  Healing time between sessions is 6 weeks so as not to irritate the skin.

Prices vary depending on many factors.  It is dependent on the area you live in and possibly the number of medical spas offering the service.  The more competition, the better the pricing.

An overall average across the country for facial laser removal is between $150 and $350 per session.  Your first appointment often includes an evaluation and price for your individual situation.

In 2008 the FDA finally approved the very first at home laser hair removal system. Since then a few more have come on the scene. All the products basically do the same job as their cousins in the bigger doctor’s offices or med spas. They all work by having a light zap the hair follicle causing enough damage to  make the hair fall out and even preventing future hair from growing in that area.

The at home laser treatments have the same restrictions and warnings as well. The treatment works best on people with light skin and dark hair; although people with dark skin or light hair can still use the product they will just not be as effective. The laser is dangerous to the eyes so taking precautions such as wearing shades or tanning booth goggles will help prevent damage.

One of the best reasons to have the at home kit rather than just going to the doctor is that the kit costs about as much as one treatment session. The at home version will have similar results and only cost you a fraction of what it would cost at the spa. That could equal about a thousand dollars. Besides saving money with the at home version you also save time that you would have otherwise lost waiting in a doctor’s office and having to take off from work.

It is no secret that people want smooth skin. We also hate those wild, unruly hairs that sprout up in the oddest places. Thankfully now with the advancements in hair removal we can enjoy the laser hair removal results in the comfort of our own home at a fraction of the laser hair removal prices at the laser centers.

Great Reasons for Men to Consider Hair Remover
One of the biggest reasons for men to consider having hair removed is if he is altering how he lives his life because he is embarrassed by his body hair. For example, if a man wears a shirt at the beach on a hot day because he is ashamed of his body hair, that is a good reason to consider having it removed. If he is having a difficult time keeping trouble areas of his body clean, that is another really good reason for having the offending hair removed. The biggest reason for me though, is if a man is avoiding intimacy in his life because he doesn’t want to show his body to his partner. To me, that is an absolute must deal with issue, how can you enjoy life if your body hair is affecting that much of it?

Great Reasons for Women to Consider Hair Remover
Women typically don’t have the kind of sanitation issues that men can have with their body hair, but will obsess over it ten times as much none the less. Keeping your bikini line neat and clean can be a real bear, and the irritation which comes with shaving makes this one of the more popular places for hair removal for women. Being sick to death of shaving your legs, carving yourself up like a Christmas ham every time you climb into the shower is another great reason for having unwanted hair removed. Or maybe a lady just wants a little less hair under her nose, after all, we all have some, some of us have a little more than others, and as you get older it doesn’t exactly disappear. No woman wants to feel like she belongs under the big top, and hair remover is a great way to rid yourself of the problem.

These methods are not perfect (no method is) but at least they offer a solution if you can afford the time and the money for them.

Laser or IPL hair removal involves treating the hair with beams of high intensity light. This targets the color pigment in the hair and aims to damage the hair badly enough right down to the follicle so that it will not grow back. It has to make sure that the hair is treated with sufficient power while the surrounding skin is left undamaged however so it is a tricky process. And it means that laser hair removal is much less effective for those with light hair (such as blond, gray or red) or dark skin.

In electrolysis, each hair is treated with a current of electricity by inserting a probe near the base of the hair. The process has the same aim of damaging the hair follicle to such an extent that the hair does not grow back.

When comparing the two methods, laser hair removal is faster than electrolysis as several hairs can be treated at one time whereas with electrolysis each hair has to be treated individually. With electrolysis however you have a proven method of permanent hair removal and with laser hair removal just a proven method of hair reduction which can be significant if you want to be sure no hair will grow back.

The best thing is to use electrolysis for the smaller areas of the body such as the face and try laser hair removal for a larger area such as the legs to give the best combination of time required and effectiveness.