[monetize id=”1″]
Should I Burn My Leg Hair Off?
Before you go running for a lighter and some inflammable fluid, let's make it clear that this title was just a way of calling your attention to a well-known hair removal system that uses laser light to burn the hair follicles and stop hair from growing back. Or at least, make it go from dark and fast growing into almost invisible and slow-growing hair. While you will be burning your leg hair off, laser is a considerably safer alternative to trying to get third-degree burns yourself, and much less painful.
Laser hair removal is a minor cosmetic procedure where a qualified technician, or yourself if you choose to use one of the home laser hair removal machines approved for that purpose, beams small areas of your skin with high energy laser light. This energy is absorbed by the melanin in the skin and hair, heating them up and burning the hair follicle to deactivate or kill it. Since the skin has less melanin than the hair, the skin only gets uncomfortably hot and no blistering or burning occurs (unless the safety procedures are disregarded). The result: body and facial hair that falls on its own after a few days, and is replaced by either no hair, or a thinner and lighter version.
The decision of whether you should let laser burn your leg hair off comes down to three factors:
Not all skin types are suitable for laser hair treatment, and while the best clinics have access to equipment that can burn dark hair on dark skin, the best results are usually accomplished on dark hair set against fair skin. So if the hair you want to remove is very light, or your skin is medium to dark, laser hair removal may not be suitable for you. If you tan easily, but your original skin tone is fair, you will need to let that tan fade in order to start your treatment. This may mean keeping your pins under wraps during the entire summer, or using sunscreen.
You will also need to take into account the cost and requirements of an extended laser hair removal treatment, as legs often require at least 6 to 8 sessions, split about 6 weeks apart. That can mean both quite a lot of money, and about 8 months where your legs aren't allowed to be exposed to sunlight. You are also not allowed to remove leg hair by waxing or plucking or even worse, bleaching it, as the laser needs dark hair to function. This can be quite inconvenient if you enjoy sports such as swimming or want to wear short clothes during the summer, so keep it in mind before committing to it.
For many, the rewards of laser depilation far outweigh the cost and discomfort. It also beats other hair removal methods such as waxing senseless in terms of convenience and, while some discomfort is to be expected, it is considerably less painless than other permanent hair removal methods such as electrolysis. If you are so tired of the hair on your legs to consider burning it off, check out laser hair removal clinics in your area and you may be pleasantly surprised.
[monetize id=”2″]
