Types of Hair Removal Methods

Surveys indicate that 80% of women and over 50% of men have unwanted hair in various body areas. Much of this unwanted hair is genetic, but sometimes it is the result of other causes, for example, testosterone treatments.

Humans have lost most of their body fur over the past few millions of years. Today, many still seek the "longest-lasting," "least painful," and "least expensive" methods for getting rid of unwanted hair. Hair removal salons report that men are increasingly interested in hair removal and that their male clientele ranges between 35% and 60% today.

There are three types of hairs you might see on your skin:

Vellus: sometimes called "peach fuzz," these are tiny colorless hairs.
Intermediate: hairs between vellus and terminal. Thin, but with some pigmentation.
Terminal: these are deep-rooted coarse hairs, either pigmented or gray (usually the hairs consumers want removed).

Types of Hair Removal Methods:

1. Temporary Hair Removal Method

Temporary hair removal can be achieved through depilation (removing part of the hair above the skin's surface) or epilation (removing the entire hair). For many consumers, temporary methods at regular intervals are acceptable. Right now we focus are on devices claiming permanence, but we'll be discussing temporary methods in the future.

Depilation lasting several hours to several days can be achieved by:

Shaving or trimming (manually or with electric shavers)
Depilatories (creams or "shaving powders" which chemically dissolve hair)
Friction (rough surfaces used to buff away hair)
Epilation lasting several days to several weeks can be achieved by:
Tweezing
Waxing (a hot or cold layer is applied and then removed with porous strips)
Sugaring (similar to waxing, but with a sticky paste)
Threading (also called fatlah or khite, in which a twisted thread catches hairs as it's rolled across the skin)
Rotary epilators (devices which rapidly grasp hairs and pull them out by the root)

2. Permanent Hair Removal Method

Most consumers assume "permanent" means lasting forever. Permanent hair removal can be generally defined as "the complete destruction of a treated hair follicle's ability to generate hair. Now we discussion permanent hair removal method

Electrolysis
Laser

Flashlamp
Prescription oral medications
Prescription topical preparation (Vaniqa)

X-ray (banned in the United States)
Photodynamic therapy (experimental)
Electric tweezers
"Transdermal electrolysis"
"Transcutaneous hair removal"
Photoepilators
Microwaves
Dietary supplements
Nonprescription topical preparations ("hair inhibitors")