How Laser Works for Hair Removal

Many people wonder how it is that a laser can remove hair from their body without burning them or having any negative side-effects.

The answer lies in the mechanism of how the light from the laser impacts the pigment in the human body.

Turning Light into Heat

Lasers work on unwanted hair by a process called photothermolysis, which is the process by which light is turned into heat.

Lasers are a better option for hair removal than IPL (intense Pulsed Light) because the light from a laser is one, strong focused colour (or ‘wavelength’) and the light emitted from an IPL device is many different colours and not as focused.

The beam of light from the laser passes harmlessly through the skin and targets the hair follicle, where the energy is absorbed. The heat then destroys the melanin, or pigment, in the hair follicle.

This destroys the hair follicle leaving the surrounding skin unaffected. After a series of treatments the follicles become sterile; this prevents the reproduction of further hair growth.

Series of Treatments

You need a series of treatments to target the hair when it is in a growth phase of the hair cycle, and all the hair on your body goes through different phases at different times.

It also takes a series of treatments to prevent any significant regrowth, and although it’s a case of ‘never say never’ when it comes to promising permanent hair removal, in many cases hair does not grow back after several treatments.