Preparations for the summer season are in full swing! Time to epilate your legs and bikini area. But which hair removal method is more effective? WDay.ru asked Alexander Ponomarev, a hair removal master at the BaroN beauty salon.
Electrolysis effective for hair of any color and for all skin types. During the electrolysis procedure, a thin needle, an electrode, is inserted into the hair follicle. An electrical impulse applied to the needle produces a very high temperature micro-spark. The spark enters the lower, “sprout” part of the follicle (responsible for hair regrowth) and destroys it.
Number of sessions: from 3 to 9, depending on the area of the skin. Interval: 1-1,5 months.
Pros: the oldest and most tested epilation method… It is considered harmless.
Cons: not the most effective method, very painful, often leaves inflammation, micro-scars and spots on the skin. It takes a long time to complete the procedure.
Enzymatic (thermochemical) hair removal works as follows: a composition containing plant-derived enzymes – papain is applied to the hair removal area. The area is then exposed to infrared heat for a specified time. Enzymes penetrate the hair follicle, gradually slowing down hair growth.
And the last stage of the procedure is wax hair removal. After such epilation, hair begins to grow one and a half times slower than after bioepilation – on average after 1,5 months.
Number of sessions: from 7 to 9, depending on the area of the skin. Interval: 3 weeks – 1 month.
Pros: the procedure is absolutely painless.
Cons: the applied preparations can cause severe allergies. In addition, enzyme hair removal has contraindications: severe cardiovascular diseases, inflammatory processes, oncology, bleeding, pregnancy.
Ultrasonic hair removal – destruction of active follicles using ultrasound and special gels. A gel of a special composition is applied to the previously depilated area of the skin. Ultrasonic action “delivers” molecules and ions of this composition to the deep layers of the skin at the level of hair follicles. Here they slow down the process of division of germ cells and even partially disrupt the hair follicle due to the alkaline pH.
Number of sessions: from 6 to 9, depending on the area of the skin. Interval: 1 month.
Pros: painless, does not leave wounds, scars and age spots.
Cons: ultrasonic hair removal slows down Hair Growthbut does not stop him completely. In addition, the drugs destroy the cells surrounding the hair.
Photoepilation – works with filtered pulsed light (IPL) and is based on the effect of photothermolysis – the ability of the melanin pigment contained in the hair to absorb the energy of a light pulse of a certain frequency spectrum and, therefore, to heat up. In this case, heat is transferred to the growth zone of the hair follicle and destroys it. Hair falls out either immediately or shortly after the procedure, its growth does not resume. The light pulse absorbed by the hair is not absorbed by the water contained in the skin tissues, which makes the photoepilation procedure practically painless.
During the procedure, a special applicator is applied to the patient’s skin in the treated area, through which a sequence of very short light pulses of a certain frequency (from a pulsed light lamp or laser) is directed to the skin.
Number of sessions: from 4 to 8, depending on the area of the skin. Interval: 1-1,5 months.
Pros: the procedure is quite comfortable. The method is suitable even for those whose skin and hair do not have much contrast. Photoepilation can be done for swarthy ladies with dark hair. Photoepilation removes both vellus and coarse hairs of any color.
Cons: not suitable for those with lighter hairs than skin.
Laser Hair Removal – removal of unwanted hair using a special laser. Light radiation is selectively absorbed by the pigment-containing part of the hair melanin… At the same time, the hair follicle heats up, which destroys it without significant damage to the surrounding tissues. The well of the former hair follicle is completely overgrown, and the skin becomes smooth.
Number of sessions: from 4 to 6, depending on the area of the skin. Interval: 1,5-2 months.
Pros: the procedure is not very painful. The skin is not damaged during laser treatment, so the risk of infection or scarring is practically excluded. In addition, with the help of a laser device, it is possible to process a large surface, for example, thighs and lower legs, in one session.
Cons: Since the main target of the laser is the melanin pigment, a good contrast of the skin and hair is required. After all, if both the skin and the hairs are dark, the laser will affect all the pigments at once. Therefore, the ideal option for laser hair removal is dark hairs on very light skin. The laser is not suitable for those with lighter hair than skin.
Epilation Elos carried out with the help of an apparatus that acts on the hair in two ways – with the help of radio frequency and light pulses. First, light energy is applied to the hair. It is absorbed by the pigment melanin contained in the hair. However, the light energy of the device is too low to destroy the hair follicle and remove hair, so a radio frequency pulse is also used to amplify the effect of light. According to the principle of action, Elos-epilation is similar to photo-epilation, but the latter is much more effective.
Number of sessions: from 6 to 8, depending on the area of the skin. Interval: 1,5-2 months.
Pros: no side effects and low chance of ingrown hairs. Suitable for all skin types and hair colors.
Cons: does not guarantee complete hair removal with a large number of procedures and can give redness of the skin.