Michael Russell asked: Most societies have ideas about what sorts of body hair are appropriate and desired and which are not. In the United States, we are trained from a young age to think that hair on certain body parts is disgusting and unnatural. And, sometimes, even beyond this cultural taboo, a person finds a need for hair removal. For instance, swimmers and other athletes find it improves their performance.
For whatever reason you want to get rid of hair, hair removal is a tedious and, often expensive, part of our lives.
And, as with other things, such as weight loss, there are those who would take advantage of our disgust for body hair and our desire to make things quick and easy.
Because of this, there are many products on the market that profess to be the last and greatest answer for hair removal. Quite often, they also claim to be permanent, or just about permanent.
Unfortunately, quite a few of these do not live up to their claims.
While some are already banned in the United States (x-ray therapy) and others are still experimental and not necessarily safe (photodynamic therapy…similar to the idea of chemotherapy, which also can result in hair loss), there are many that are still being sold to an unsuspecting public.
For instance, non-prescription topical ointments that claim to be “hair growth inhibitors” or “hair retardants”. These products say they will slow down the growth of hair where they are applied or stop it completely.
Truthfully, there is no scientific fact to back up these supposed results. (The only one that has been shown to work in, some people, is the prescription ointment Vaniqa.) In addition, many people have come forward with complaints that some of these products have actually harmed them, including 2nd degree chemical burns and the like.
Microwave hair removal is another product that makes untrue claims. It is a handheld device that supposedly delivers a selective pulse of microwaves that heat up the fat and water in your skin, causing permanent damage to the hair follicle, killing the hair and preventing it from growing again.
In reality, the device is not selective and so is also cooking skin cells and components needed for healthy skin and for proper functioning of the skin. While these devices have been approved for sale in the US, they have been explicitly said to be not approved for the face, as they can actually result in eye damage.
Electric tweezer products (also known as no-needle electrolysis or tweezer electrolysis) purport to be permanent, more effective than traditional electrolysis, painless and clinically proven.
This couldn’t be further from the truth. Not only are they more expensive (they are often sold as professional versions or touted to be on par with Laser and other more expensive options), they are also less likely to work.
The claim is that electricity travels down the hair to the root, killing it. This has not been clinically proven and, in fact, it has been shown that it is very unlikely that it’s possible for hair to carry enough current to even make it plausible.
Some methods truly work but not with the same results for every person. Laser and Flashlamp usually give a reduction of hair for some users. Electrolysis generally gives permanent removal for most users.
Vaniqa and prescription oral medications can give many users a lasting reduction in hair growth. But these methods are not permanent and require continuous use.
The non-permanent methods work well for most everyone and are usually less expensive, but they need to be done periodically. “Rubbing” the hair away with a rough surface may result in hair removal for a few days. Creams (depilatories) and shaving will also result in a few days or more of no hair.
The longer lasting, but still temporary methods are tweezing, sugaring, waxing and threading. These methods have the advantage of potentially lasting for several weeks. And many people find different ones less painful than others.
Hair removal is a tricky situation for many people. For the most part, you might only lose some money if you buy into some of the false promises out there. At the worst, you might wind up with permanent damage and scarring. If money is an object, your best bet is to stay with the tried and temporary options available. Find a product that works for you and stick with it.
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