Home laser hair removal for indian skin vs dark skin In this article, we are going to discuss the benefits of home laser hair removal for indian skin vs dark skin. There are many people who have started to use home laser hair removal as an alternative to traditional methods of removing unwanted hair.
Home laser hair removal is a treatment that uses a strong beam of light to target and destroy the hair follicle. This process can be done in the comfort of your own home and can be effective if done correctly. If you want to know more about home laser hair removal for indian skin vs dark skin, then keep reading this article.
Read on to learn more about Best Home Laser Hair Removal For Indian Skin Vs Dark Skin, Traditional Hair Removal Methods and Laser Hair Removal That Works for Dark Skin Tones
Best Home Laser Hair Removal For Indian Skin Vs Dark Skin
Thick facial hair is common amongst the women in my family. As a child, I’d watch my mom shave the stubble across her cheeks and chin every couple of days. Observing her slather shaving cream all over her face and remove every bit of hair that had come in recently was simultaneously fascinating and anxiety-inducing. Knowing what I did about genetics, it was clear to me early on in life that I, too, would eventually grow facial hair at one point or another.
“I thought I had more time before this happened,” I said (yes, literally out loud) in frustration to my 21-year-old self, as I stared in horror at the four or five strands of hair along my chin that had seemingly sprouted overnight. No matter how much I reassured myself it was totally normal for some women to grow facial hair, the sight of it mortified me. In my eyes, I was turning into a freakish caricature of myself, one that ought to remain inside lest someone find out about my shameful secret: my facial hair.
While facial hair in women can sometimes be a sign of a bigger medical issue like Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, a hormonal disorder which (according to the Mayo Clinic) can trigger excessive hair growth in women due to high levels of the male hormone androgen, my case was purely genetic, I discovered after getting my hormone levels checked. Knowing that, I tried embracing it, as more and more hairs would sprout up every few weeks. I event went weeks between shaving sessions. It was all a part of my master plan to bolster my self-confidence and shift my perspective on being a hairy woman. If countless women on social could learn to accept themselves as they are, why couldn’t I?
One of the defining qualities of self-image, though, is that it differs from person to person. What one person finds attractive or empowering, another might abhor. As much as I tried to come to terms that I was slowly but surely growing a beard akin to my mother’s, I hoped and wished for my body to stop producing hair entirely, especially on my cheeks and chin.
I ultimately made the personal choice to get laser hair removal. Shaving every few days wasn’t sustainable and waxing was far too painful and also required constant upkeep. Whereas, with laser hair removal — as I discovered through countless hours scouring the web — the treatment required one or two touch-ups a year after the initial rounds.
In theory, everything sounded perfect. Simply undergo a couple of in-office laser sessions so I could end up (mostly) hairless? My impatient self wanted to sign up immediately. But then I realized that wasn’t exactly an option for me.
As someone with medium-brown skin, it would be a disaster if I got laser hair removal from anyone other than a specialist with experience working with people with my complexion or darker or weren’t equipped with the right tools for my skin tone. And by disaster, I mean the treatment either (at “best”) wouldn’t yield any results, or (at worst) in the most severe cases, could cause “blistering, scarring and irregular skin color — [and] unfortunately, some of this can be permanent,” according to board-certified, San Francisco-based dermatologist, Dr. William Kwan. Talk about a nightmare. “The biggest mistake darker skin-tone patients make when considering hair removal is not doing enough research and vetting of the facility they are going to. You need to make sure the facility and provider have the appropriate training and credentials to do a safe treatment, but also interview them about how many ethnic patients they’ve seen and treated,” advises Dr. Kwan.
When an email from a publicist entered my inbox about trying out LaserAway, one company that offers the treatment, I was initially very skeptical. A medical spa with 40 locations nationwide that’s best known for laser hair and tattoo removal services, it gained mainstream popularity in 2010, when Kim and Khloé Kardashian visited one of its California locations on an episode of “Keeping Up With The Kardashians”.
Seeing as I was serious about getting laser hair removal, I began researching the tools LaserAway uses, and was pleasantly surprised to learn that for patients with darker skin tones, the facility uses the brand Cynosure Apogee Elite — and the wavelength Nd:YAG, specifically — which is highly recommended by Dr. Kwan and other dermatologists I’d spoken to. “The Cynosure Apogee Elite [is] a dual-wavelength laser, so it has the capability of using one wavelength for our lighter skin types and a separated wavelength for our darker skin types,” Morgan Wolf, a nurse practitioner at LaserAway, explains.
Relieved that I would be in good hands, I went ahead and scheduled my first appointment. As with all other kinds of laser treatments, it’s advised that you only shave the treatment area 24 hours prior (no tweezing or waxing) and stay away from tanning beds or self-tanners. During my first visit, the nurse on-site administering the laser that day prepped my face with a makeup remover wipe to get rid of anything lingering on my skin’s surface. Then came an important safety precaution: a spot test. “We do test pulses off to the side of the face just to double-check that everything looks good and that the energy is coming out properly — and then we watch the effect on the hair,” says Wolf.
When lasers first rose to popularity, the original devices often had difficulty distinguish between one’s hair follicles and the surrounding skin if the patient was dark-complected. But in the years since the early aughts, the technology has advanced tremendously. “We can actually adjust the parameters so that the laser just hits the melanin, which is generally darker in the hair follicle, and preserve that surrounding healthy skin tissue,” explains Wolf.
Fast forward three sessions later, I’ve had nothing but great results thus far.
Since the beginning of this journey, I was told I’d require about seven to eight treatments in order to see a significant difference. “On average, each person, regardless of skin type, [sees] about a 10 to 15 percent reduction [in hair growth] with each treatment. Typically, if you’re adding those up, the ideal outcome would be 70 to 90 percent reduction from when you started your treatments,” says Wolf.
While I still have a long way to go before I’m completely finished with my specific laser hair removal plan, I’ve already noticed a tremendous difference. Not only does my facial hair grow back more slowly than it ever did in the past, but it’s also thinner and less noticeable. All in all, I’m confident that it was the right decision for me. So yes, if you’re a woman of color, you can have a successful, safe experience with laser hair removal. Just be sure to use caution and do some thorough investigation before you choose your treatment provider.
Traditional Hair Removal Methods
If you have dark skin, then your hair removal options are limited. Bleaching doesn’t work, plucking depends on the thickness and texture, and shaving is both labor intensive and simply not recommended for certain parts of the body such as for facial or arm hair removal. These methods are more affordable than laser hair removal but require more of a commitment. Most people simply do not have the time or patience for treatments that only “sort of work”, or cause pain and discomfort.
Laser hair removal might not be considered “traditional” but it’s certainly been around a long time. The treatment dates to 1960 when a slow and inefficient ruby laser was used to curb hair growth. It works by transmitting a focused beam of light on your skin to heat and kill follicles, releasing the hair. Every iteration has been safer, stronger and more effective.
The benefit of laser and other light-based hair removal is that it can be a long-term solution to dealing with body and facial hair removal. Despite its modern trappings, there are drawbacks and limits to the use of lasers to remove hair, one being that it can only treat certain types of pigmentation.
Whatever method you choose to explore, if you have dark skin, we recommend doing patch testing. This is where you test a small area to determine effectiveness and whether it is safe for your specific skin type, and worth doing a full treatment.
The Pros and Cons of Laser Hair Removal Treatments
Laser hair removal treatments use a process where skin is exposed to a penetrating laser to remove hair at the root. In addition to treating hair beneath the skin’s surface, the idea is to disrupt the hair growth cycle so that results can last longer.
The pros of laser hair removal include:
- The reduction of hair growth
- Long lasting results
- Treatments are relatively painless
- Ability to treat most body areas
The cons include:
- Laser hair removal can be pricy
- Be prepared to pay hundreds or even thousands depending on how many areas you wish to treat
- Requires a long-term time commitment
Why Laser Hair Removal Doesn’t Work on Dark Skin?
This technology works by detecting the contrast in tone between skin and hair. Unless the targeted hair is incredibly light in comparison to the skin tone, the laser will not be able to detect its presence against dark skin. The optimal condition for effective treatment is fair skin and darker hair follicles as this allows the laser to easily spot the hair and remove it.
While at-home hair removal devices employ better technologies and offer superior benefits, unfortunately, they don’t work on darker skin tones. While the technology could be different or even better, at this stage in their evolution, they still require a certain level of skin and hair contrast to effectively scan, target and remove hair. If you still feel compelled to try laser hair removal on your dark skin, be careful as you could be more prone to the negative side effects.
Hair removal requires research so whatever treatment method you choose, do your homework and base your expectation on the reality of your chosen treatment. The point being, keep your expectations realistic.
The Fitzpatrick Scale
Also known as the Fitzpatrick Skin Typing Test, the Fitzpatrick scale is a classification schema to grade human skin color, taking genetic makeup and sunlight exposure into account. Doctors and aestheticians use this scale to determine skin cancer risks. In addition, the scale is used to figure out if laser treatment would work, and if so, what setting, and length are necessary to achieve results. Read the hair removal section of our Resource Center to find out where you fall on the scale. Then, you can decide if laser hair removal is worth your time.
Laser Hair Removal That Works for Dark Skin Tones
At the moment, the only real option for laser hair removal with darker skin tones would be something like the Triton Duo Dark hair removal workstation which uses nd: YAG laser and is safe for dark skin up to skin type VI and tanned skin, which can be used for both fine and coarse hair. This hair removal device uses three different laser wavelengths, in multiple outputs, which allows practitioners to treat patients in a highly customized way.
All this means is it has been proven to be extremely effective for a broad range of skin tones.
Other Options for Dark Skin Tone Hair Removal
It’s easy to dismiss some of the more traditional hair removal methods like shaving, plucking or waxing. If certain technologies won’t work with your skin tone, then you need to consider these as options. We know they take more time and can cost more in the long run but if the goal is getting rid of pesky body and facial hair one of them could work even if it’s only temporary.
Let’s review three solutions and gauge their viability:
Waxing
This is a fast and cheap way to remove hair. There are several brands to choose from and some target hair on a specific part of your body. It is a rather painful process but it does work on every skin tone and type. It also lasts 6-8 weeks, which is good compared to some of the other traditional hair removal options.
Tweezing
This is a tedious but inexpensive process. Its efficiency is based on your own ability to handle tweezers and perform the treatment on yourself. Another con is that the hair grows back rather quickly as the same texture. This is the best option to remove hair just before a night out or a professional event.
Shaving
Shaving unwanted body hair is always an option and women have been doing it for a long time. There are a lot of drawbacks, though, like having to regularly replace blades, the fact that hair grows quickly and often darker than before, and shaving can spur the onset of in-grown hairs and can lead to razor burn. So, shaving is always an interim option if you accept the negative side effects.
Summary
As you can see, there are options for people with dark skin tones but it can be challenging. Hopefully this article has provided some information that you didn’t have before, and that you don’t feel helpless with respect to hair removal. There are options, you just need to discover what will work best for you.
You might want to browse the line of Silk’n at home hair removal devices, just so you know what the devices are capable of, as well as reading the hair removal section of the Resource Center, where we provide an in-depth look at how the devices work, how the hair growth cycle works, and details on the Fitzpatrick scale, so you can determine where your skin tone lives, which is important to know with any light based hair removal device.
If you have questions about how to build a proper hair removal plan, we recommend you take advantage of our website’s live chat feature. During hours of operation, you can speak to a Silk’n representative who can answer your questions about hair removal, hair removal devices and what treatment might work best for your skin.