You’re tired of shaving or going to the spa for a wax every few weeks. Or maybe you have facial hair that just isn’t well controlled with any method you’ve found. If you’re ready for permanent hair removal, it’s time for intense pulsed light (IPL).
Intense pulsed light (IPL) is a form of non-invasive energy therapy that can do everything from creating a clearer, more toned complexion to removing unwanted hair from your face and body.
If you’re ready for a more permanent solution to unwanted facial or body hair,
Joon Lee, MD, and our team of aesthetics specialists at SeeBeyond Beauty in Scarsdale, New York, recommend IPL hair removal. Without blades, tweezers, or chemicals, your unwanted hair is whisked away — in some cases, forever. Here’s how and why it works.
IPL targets excess pigment
Many aestheticians use IPL to target the excessive pigment in facial lesions, such as age spots, freckles, and visible veins. That same pigment-recognition capability comes in handy for removing unwanted hairs.
No matter what your hair looks like on the surface, underneath your skin, at the bottom of your follicle where the hair develops, the root of the hair is darker. Your aesthetician calibrates the IPL device to target those areas of concentrated pigment (melanin).
Once the energy reaches the root, it destroys the growing hair and damages the follicle that contains and grows it. After about a week or two, the hair falls out.
If the follicle is sufficiently damaged, it won’t grow another hair. If the follicle is only slightly damaged, it may grow another hair, but it should be lighter and finer. To reach all of your hairs in their growth stage and to sufficiently damage all of the follicles, you need a series of IPL treatments.
IPL is ideal for treating large areas
Whether you want to remove a facial mustache or all of the hair on your legs, arms, underarms, or elsewhere, IPL makes the task faster and easier. Unlike lasers, IPL has more diffuse energy with multiple wavelengths, so it covers a greater surface area with each pass.
Because it’s less time-intensive, you can treat multiple areas in one session. Choose IPL hair removal to treat:
- Sideburns
- Mustache area
- Beard
- Underarms
- Arms
- Back
- Legs
- Abdomen
- Chest
Another plus is that IPL stimulates your skin to strengthen itself with new collagen and elastin, so your treatment areas both look and feel better and healthier.
IPL lets you stay smooth
Unlike other hair removal options, you can shave between your IPL hair removal sessions to catch stragglers. Over time, you have less and less hair.
In addition, you don’t have to let your hair grow out again before your next IPL session. You can stay smooth and hair-free between IPL sessions until you can ditch the razor altogether.
IPL minimizes the chance of ingrown hairs
Shaving is time-consuming. Waxing is painful. But both of these two hair removal methods have another downside: They can cause painful ingrown hairs that can become infected. With IPL, the entire treated hair falls out. It can’t grow under or into your skin, causing a bump or lesion.
Is IPL right for you?
One drawback with IPL is that some complexions and hair colors aren’t easily treatable. If your skin color and hair color are too similar, for instance, the energy can’t be directed solely at the hair root. IPL hair removal may not work as well for you if you have:
- Very dark skin
- Very pale hair
- Gray hair
- Red hair
If you’re not sure whether IPL would work for your hair color and skin tone, book a hair removal consultation with us at SeeBeyond Beauty. If you’re not a candidate for IPL, we can make other recommendations to help you reach your goal of silky, hair-free skin.
Book your IPL hair removal consultation today by contacting our aesthetics team. Phone our helpful staff during office hours, or request an appointment online anytime.