Get Rid of Hair- The Facts part4

Get Rid of Hair- The Facts part4 is the last in a series on hair removal terminology. This series should clear up vague definitions thrown around that pertain to hair removal so that you will have a better understanding of what to expect when that particular term is being used.

Part 4 is on hair reduction. What does hair reduction mean? Several lasers have proven that they can reduce coarseness and also lighten hair on a permanent basis and they call this hair reduction.

Some consumers experience permanent hair reduction while others do not. The perfect candidate would be someone with light skin and dark hair. You see the laser can lighten skin as it does hair and cause discoloration in dark skinned individuals creating uneven skin tones which is just as bad, if not worse, than unwanted hair. However, even the ideal client isn't guaranteed to experience permanent hair reduction and it's still unknown as to why.

The FDA started out accepting the definition of reduction as a stable reduction of coarse dark hairs. Then changed it to: "Permanent hair reduction is defined as long-term, stable reduction in the number of hairs regrowing after a treatment regime. The number of hairs regrowing must be stable over a time greater than the complete growth cycle of hair, which varies from 4-12 months according to body location. Permanent hair reduction does not necessarily imply the elimination of all hairs in the treatment area.

The reason they had to change their definition was due to abuse of terminology during advertising that led to unrealistic expectations. Many consumers were disappointed when results didn't match their expectations.

All the same concerns that were explained in The Facts part2 on lasers apply here as well. After all, a laser treatment is a laser treatment whether, you're going for permanent hair removal or reduction. Advertisers say after three or four treatments the hair isn't going to return, but as you know now, as you've read here, that there's always a chance it may.

This is the last in the series Get Rid of Hair- The Facts. Hopefully, you're more knowledgeable on definitions of hair removal and what they mean so that you can make better, more informed hair removal/reduction decisions.