How Much Does Laser Hair Removal Cost Facts

When you have excess hair to remove the biggest question you have is how much does laser hair removal cost.  The is important but the other side of the coin is does it work and is it safe.  No matter what the cost it is not going to be a good deal if you find you spent the money and you still have ugly hair in places where it shouldn't be.  There are lots of places that offer laser hair removal, and there are even at home units you can use, but the reality is you have hair growing in places that you don't want it and you are looking for the best way to get rid of it.

The human body is very good at protecting itself from the elements which is where growth comes from in the first place.  We have hair on our heads in order to keep our brains warm during the winter.  The brain is a massive user of energy and we need to be sure to keep it from getting too cold and shutting down.

The pubic area is also important to keep warm which is why we have hair there.  The problem is sometimes the hair grows where we don't really want it to for fashion reasons.  At that point it is time to find some way to get rid of the excess hair.  The newest way is to use highly targeted laser light to inhibit the hair follicles ability to grow hair shafts.  This light beam is very, very tiny and thus can be targeted to a very small area like the base of a hair shaft where the hair bulb or follicle is.

When the hair follicle is excited by the laser it heats up to a point that it can no longer convert the nutrients found in the blood supply into the hair shaft material.  Thus the hair dies and falls out.  It usually takes several treatments depending on the size of the area that needs to have hair removed because of the cyclical nature of how hair grows.  During one treatment some hair is not growing so these are missed with the laser application.

The way laser hair removal works is the laser energy is absorbed by the hair follicle which in turn heats up the follicle and kills it.  The question a lot of people have is how much does it hurt when the laser is pointed at the hair and operated.  In reality there is very little pain involved in the procedure generally.  There are some variations that can cause different levels of discomfort though.

One of the big factors is the skill level of the medical professional who is doing the work.  Like anything the more experience and skill the operator has the better able he or she will be to give you a pleasant experience.  Other factors include things like skin type and thickness of the hair.  Some skin tends to be more easily irritated by this procedure than others.  Numbing creams can be applied if you find the procedure to be too irritating for your skin type.

It really goes without saying that the thickness of the hair will make a difference.  The thicker the hair shaft the more energy that is required from the laser light.  Thus there can be more heating of the surrounding area.  Another variable is the area of the body that is being treated.  Some areas are just more sensitive to pain and discomfort than others.

Scarring is another concern people have.  Again one of the big variable here is the skill of the person using the laser.  Another is the ability of your skin in this area to heal.  Some people have skin that heals very easily and does not scar and other people will show a scar for any type of skin irritation.

The color or tint of the skin also plays a part in the potential for scarring.  People with darker skin tend to have a greater risk than people with light tinted skin.  The reason for this is the scattering of the laser light as it shines through the skin.  The darker the skin the more diffusing that will take place.  Often times people will have a pigmentation change when the process is performed but this usually only lasts for a few weeks.

The two main variable here are how many treatments are needed and the cost of each treatment.  Many people think you only need to go to the cosmetic surgeon one time in order to get your hair removed with this method.  Generally this is not the case.  The average person needs at least three visits for treatments and usually four to seven.  One of the reasons for this is the cyclical growing cycle of hair.  Not all hair is growing all the time.  Depending where the hair is found on the body it can be dormant anywhere from 20% to 50% of the time.  This dormancy has an affect on the use of the laser.

As far as treatment prices go they vary depending on the area of the country in which you are looking for a doctor.  The cheapest average cost per treatment can be found in the South at about $400 a treatment.  The most expensive on average is the Midwest at $450 per treatment visit.  There is also a wide variation within these geographical locations.

The last major factor is the size of the area to be treated and the number of hairs to be removed.  This is only a natural realization as the longer the laser needs to be used the more expensive it will be.