This is probably the most often asked question and the most misunderstood. The FDA says that laser hair removal can be classified as a permanent hair reduction. Below is the FDA’s statement on this topic:
- Several manufacturers received FDA permission to claim, “permanent reduction,” NOT “permanent removal” for their lasers. This means that although laser treatments with these devices will permanently reduce the total number of body hairs, they will not result in a permanent removal of all hair. The specific claim granted is “intended to effect stable, long-term, or permanent reduction” through selective targeting of melanin in hair follicles. Permanent hair reduction is defined as the long-term, stable reduction in the number of hairs re-growing after a treatment regime, which may include several sessions. The number of hairs regrowing must be stable over time greater than the duration of the complete growth cycle of hair follicles, which varies from four to twelve months according to body location. Permanent hair reduction does not necessarily imply the elimination of all hairs in the treatment area.
So what does this really mean? Lets say you have your bikini line or underarms treated. After 7 treatments you probably will not have any hair. You’ll be able to throw away the razor and delete the waxing salon from your address book. But you will probably have a few hairs regrow over time. Maybe a few months after your last treatment you might have one or two hairs regrow. You wont see all the hair come back as thick as it was, but just an occasional hair. At that point make an appointment and come in for a touch up. Ideally you want to catch it when it first starts growing.
Hormonal changes can also cause new hair to grow as well. Puberty, pregnancy, menopause, men’s midlife crisis, etc. will cause brand new hair follicles to develop and grow new hairs. A very obvious example is when a man hits mid-life. All of a sudden hair starts growing like mad from his ears, nose, eyebrows, etc. (Women may have this too, but women will pluck, shave, or wax it so nobody will notice.) Because men have more testerone in their systems they will tend to grow back more hair than women – espically a man’s back. It won’t all grow back, but it is not common to see more regrow on the back vs the chest.
Hereditary can also make a difference in how your hair grows. Often people of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern decent have much more body and facial hair and it is denser and it might have a higher rate of regrowth. Does this mean that they shouldn’t even bother? No. We’ve seen excellent results, but a few have required frequent touch ups, but others haven’t – so it all depends on the individual.
In summary, you’ll see excellent results with laser hair removal but don’t believe anyone who says it is permanent, it isn’t, but even without touch ups you’d still be very happy.
If you live in the metro Denver area, please see us, Bella Pelle Laser for laser hair removal in Denver