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Top : Skin Hair Nails : Hair Removal

Learn About Hair Removal:

Sometimes people feel the need to remove hair from their bodies. There is no normal medical reason for the removal of human body hair. Hair is believed to be unwanted from the body for social reasons related to the role of hair in human society. For example, many women in Western cultures shave their body hair in the belief that body hair is not feminine, or in the belief that it makes them look ugly. However, the removing of body hair has also been sometimes used in attempts to eradicate lice or to minimize body odor due to accumulation of perspiration in hair.

Hair grows on most areas of the human body, except for the palms of the hands and the feet, but hair is most noticeable in most people in a small number of areas that are most commonly trimmed, plucked, or shaved. Thes areas are: facial hair, hair on the head, eyebrows, eyelashes, pubic hair, leg hair, and armpit hair. There are many different methods to use when it comes to remvoing hair. The most common methods are:

• Depliatories - When hair is removed at the skin line. The most common form of depilation is shaving.
• Electric tweezers
• Electrolysis - Destruction of living tissue, especially of hair roots, by means of an electric current applied with a needle-shaped electrode.
• Epilators - This is an electrical device used to remove hair by mechanically grasping multiple hairs simultaneously and pulling them out. The way in which epilators pull out hair is similar to waxing and pulls the hair by the root.
• Flashlamp - A permanent method of hair removal intended to cause thermal and/or mechanical damage to a hair follicle while sparing surrounding tissues.
• Foods and Dietary supplements
• Laser - This method removes hair by causing thermal and/or mechanical damage to a hair follicle while sparing surrounding tissues.
• Microwaves
• Nonprescription topical preparations (aka "hair inhibitors," "hair retardants," or "hair growth inhibitors")
• Photodynamic therapy (experimental)
• Photoepilators
• Prescription oral medications
• Prescription topical preparation (Vaniqa)
• Restricted methods
• Rotary epilators - these are devices which rapidly grasp hairs and pull them out by the root
• Shaving
• Sugaring - this is similar to waxing, but with a sticky paste
• Threading - when a twisted thread catches hairs as it's rolled across the skin
• "Transcutaneous hair removal"
• "Transdermal electrolysis"
• Tweezing
• Waxing - this is when a hot or cold layer is applied and then removed with porous strips
• X-ray (banned in the United States)

Causes of Hair Removal:

Excess body or facial hair, a condition known as hirsutism, can be caused by a number of factors including heredity, certain drugs, and several medical conditions. Drugs that can cause excess hair growth include hormones such as testosterone, certain birth control pills, and some seizure medicines such as phenytoin

Treatment for Hair Removal:

Over-the-counter methods of removing excess hair include shaving, waxing, plucking, bleaching, and using depilatories are ways to temporarily remove excess hair. Other more expensive methods include laser hair removal and electrolysis. Laser treatment usually lasts at least three months but can cause skin color changes or scarring. Electrolysis is usually permanent but can be painful.