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Do you know this too? The hair on your face and body grows faster than you would like and frequent shaving or epilating causes unpleasant skin irritations such as redness or even inflammation. This naturally raises the question of whether, and if so, how you can slow down hair growth in these areas.
The intensity of hair growth varies from person to person, as both are dependent on factors such as genetics, age and hormonal changes. However, nowadays there are extremely effective technologies that not only put a stop to the speed and density of hair growth and soften the unwanted stubble.
It is even possible not only to slow down hair growth, but to get rid of it completely! One of these modern methods is laser hair removal.
What determines the activity of hair growth?
In principle, hair on the body and face is completely normal for all people and varies depending on individual genetics. For example, people from the southern regions of the world such as Africa or South America usually have both thicker and darker body hair than people from Norway or Germany, for example. In this case, permanent hair removal often offers a big plus in terms of comfort and aesthetics. The hair grows more slowly and disappears after a certain number of treatments.
However, not only genetics, but also the individual hormone balance plays a major role in hair growth activity. If this increases sharply and hair growth changes from a light fluff to hard, dark bristles, this may indicate a hormonal imbalance in the body. Such hormonal imbalances include, for example, an excessive increase in the male sex hormone testosterone and, on the other hand, a deficit in the female hormone oestrogen.
In this case, it is highly advisable to consult an endocrinologist before using any cosmetics or hair removal procedures and, if necessary, to undergo hormone therapy in order to literally tackle the root of the problem.
How to make your body hair grow more slowly in the long term
For anyone suffering from rapid or very pronounced hair growth, laser hair removal is one of the most effective methods of getting rid of unwanted sprouts. Clear results are both visible and noticeable for a long time after just 3-4 procedures.
It is possible that darker hair may appear after the first few sessions, as the laser can only affect the hair bulbs during the anagen phase (active growth phase). Their destruction activates the so-called “dormant” hairs, which can appear as darker stubble. No need to panic: they can also be easily and permanently removed by the laser.
As a rule, however, the hair that appears after the first laser removal is significantly lighter, sparser and thinner and therefore less noticeable. If you want complete hair removal, several sessions are required – depending on the intensity of the hair, at least 8 to 12 procedures are usually necessary.
The great advantage of this is that you are then free of any hair growth for several years and only need a prophylactic treatment every one to two years to refresh your hair.
