Say NO to Waxing, Sugaring, Depilatories, Epilating, Electrolysis & IPL
Learn About The Side Effects Here!
Waxing
Redness and Irritation: This is the most common side effect of waxing. Most people will have at least some redness after the procedure. The amount of irritation will depend on the sensitivity of the skin and the area being treated. For example, bikini usually causes more redness than eyebrow waxing. Not only is the hair being removed from the follicle, but your skin is also being pulled quite hard when the cloth strip is ripped off. This tugging may result in redness and minor swelling.
Rashes, Bleeding, or Bruising: If you have very sensitive skin, you may develop a slight rash or notice some bruising. There may also be some minor bleeding on more delicate body parts.
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Ingrown Hairs: This is a possible side effect for many forms of hair removal. As a hair regrows, it can curl around and become trapped in the follicle or push sideways into the skin. This is called an ingrown hair. This can cause redness, rashes, or pain. With waxing, hair is removed in the opposite direction of growth. This provides a smoother result, but also increases the chances of ingrown hairs. People with sensitive skin may be more susceptible to it.
Burns & Discolouration: If the wax is too hot, it can burn your skin. This may result in redness, swelling, or even blisters. Also, using overheated wax can cause dark spots to appear on the skin. This is called post-inflammatory pigmentation. It is more common on certain skin types. In some cases it can take months, or even up to a year, for this pigmentation to fade.
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Infections: At times, an infection can develop on areas where there was bleeding or a lot of irritation. Occasionally, a piece of skin may get torn during waxing and this can become inflamed. In rare cases, a condition called folliculitis may occur. This happens when the hair follicle becomes infected. Sometimes medications are needed to treat this issue. Infections are very rare, but are more common in people who have sensitive skin or health problems such as diabetes. If you are prone to skin infections, you may want to avoid waxing. Infections can also happen if waxing products are unclean or contaminated.
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Allergic Reaction: Some people may have an allergy to the ingredients of the wax. Allergic reactions may vary from very mild to quite severe. If you are new to waxing or if you are trying a new product, it is recommended that you test a small area first.
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Loss of Elasticity: Waxing involves pulling and tugging on the skin. Over time, this action can cause the skin to become less resilient. This loss of elasticity can result in more wrinkles around the time and again treated areas.
Analysis: Painful | Sticky | Messy | Time Consuming | Not Permanent
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Sugaring
This method is similar to waxing, but a cold or lukewarm paste of sugar, water, and lemon juice is applied to the skin rather than wax. Some prefer sugaring over waxing because the paste sticks to the hair, not to the skin, which causes less redness, pain, and inflammation.
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Since the mixture is made of natural ingredients, there's less irritation and it washes off easily. If your skin isn't held tightly when pulling off the strips, it could result in bruising. Just like waxing, sugaring can lead to painful or infected ingrown hairs.
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Analysis: Painful | Sticky | Messy | Time Consuming | Not Permanent
Depilatories
The chemicals in a depilatory may irritate the skin causing burning, redness, inflammation, blisters, peeling, or a rash, especially if the cream is left on too long.
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Popular depilatory creams such as Nair and Veet remove hair by essentially melting the hair away. The creams contain chemicals that attack hair and break down its natural structure. While easy and usually painless, the process is not without risk. The use of depilatory creams involves putting harsh chemicals on your skin.
Skin Irritation: Skin irritation and sensitivity are common with depilatory creams. During the application, the skin tingles and stings mildly. The sensations usually stop after rinsing, but people with sensitive skin may continue to have unpleasant sensations for hours after application. Dryness, itching, rash and sensitivity are common. Also common is the feeling of having slight sunburn. To avoid irritation, always use the correct cream for the job. Creams are formulated according to skin type, hair type and the removal area.
Chemical Burns: Severe chemical burns can occur with the use of hair-removal creams. Both hair and skin are made up of the same proteins and amino acids. Hair breaks down much more quickly than skin, which makes it possible to remove hair without removing skin. However, if the product is allowed to remain on the skin for too long, or if it is not rinsed away completely, the skin will begin to break down, resulting in a chemical burn.
Allergic Reaction: In rare circumstances, an allergic reaction can occur. An allergic reaction is identified by swelling, redness and intense pain or burning at the application site. All depilatory products recommend that a patch test at least 24 hours before application. To perform a patch test, apply a small amount of product to an inconspicuous area. Follow the instructions and rinse the product away. Check your skin the next day for irritation and signs of allergic reaction.
Lingering Odour: Although companies have taken great measures to sweeten the smell of their hair-removal products, most products still have an unpleasant odor. The odor, caused by the chemical component of the product, often lingers after application, much like the smell of a permanent wave. While you can apply lotions, creams and body sprays to cover up the smell, your skin will continue to have a peculiar odor for a few hours after treatment.
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Analysis: Odour | Time Consuming | Risk of Burns | Not Permanent
Threading
Used mostly on the face, a thin piece of thread is twisted and rolled along your skin's surface, entwining the hairs in the thread and quickly lifting them from the root. There is no use of harmful products, just thread, so it's a natural way to get rid of unwanted hair. And unlike waxing or using depilatories, the skin is not at risk for peeling or burning. Threading is a quick process, but it's not pain-free — think of it like tweezing. Slight redness or puffiness can occur afterward, but it quickly subsides. Just like with waxing or sugaring, ingrown hairs are a possible side effect.
Analysis: Painful | Possibilities of Cuts & Pinched Skin | Time Consuming | Bumps | Whiteheads | Not Permanent
Epilators
These electronic devices remove hair by yanking multiple hairs from the root at one time. This is a pretty harsh method of hair removal, so it shouldn't be used on sensitive areas such as your face. Since the hairs are plucked at the root, it's painful and can lead to redness, irritation, or rashes. As the hairs grow back, you may experience ingrown hairs. Epilators may end up breaking hairs at the skin's surface instead of pulling them from the root, so you might have to pair this hair removal with another method, which could result in even more skin irritation.
Pain: Epilation involves pulling out hair from the root, so it can hurt quite a lot, especially when done for the first time. Make sure you epilate correctly, pulling the skin taut and going against the direction of hair growth. Try taking a painkiller or applying a numbing cream before you begin.
Redness: A big side effect of epilation is redness and inflammation, because the hair has been pulled out with some force. You will see redness right after epilation, and it may take a couple of hours to subside. Redness is increased if you remove coarser, thicker hair or if your skin is sensitive. Do not epilate if you have to leave the house soon – do it in the evening if you are going out the next morning.
Bumps: People with sensitive skin can get histamine bumps after epilation. Those epilating for the first time will certainly get red bumps soon after. The bumps usually subside in a couple of hours, but you can apply some antihistamine cream to get some quick relief.
Whiteheads: Pimples are caused after hair removal, but these can be avoided if you take care to cleanse the skin after hair removal. The pimples are caused when bacteria enter the empty hair follicle and cause an infection. After epilation, stay away from infection-causing activities like swimming, steaming in the sauna or even excessive sweating.
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Swelling: Some people with sensitive skin can suffer swelling in certain areas of the body post-epilation. This normally happens in the areas such as the chin, upper lip, underarms, or bikini area.
Analysis: Painful | Irritation| Missed Hairs | Time Consuming | Not Permanent
Electrolysis
The device used in electrolysis places a thin probe inside the hair follicle and destroys it with a shortwave radio frequency. This method is time-consuming, expensive, and there's a risk of infection if the needle used isn't sterile, but many describe the procedure as not being too painful. If the person doing the procedure isn't skilled, expect scarring of the skin.
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Generally takes 1-2 minutes to destroy a single hair follicle. Well, being one of the most common hair removal processes, most of the people opt for this process. Before considering this hair removal treatment, you should know the side effects of it.
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Skin damage: This is one among the most common side effects; you can suffer due to electrolysis hair removal treatment. Skin damage can happen after electrolysis hair removal treatment was performed by an unexperienced technician. It can also happen if you do it at home.
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Blisters: These basically look like acne, is quite common after you undergo the surgery. These blisters may typically appear on the skin for 24-48 hours and will eventually fade away. However, you should avoid scratching or scrubbing your face for a few days. Consult the doctor in any case.
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Swelling on the face: If you have electrolysis hair removal treatment done on the face, then, there are high chances that you will observe swelling on the face. If you get a very large area treated at once, then, there are chances that you may experience swelling and inflammation on the face. You can treat the slight inflammation on the skin by applying ice on the face. Swelling may fade away after 36 hours of the treatment.
Acne: Yes, acne is one among the most common problems that a person may suffer from, after electrolysis hair removal treatment. If your skin is prone to breakouts, you should consider using mild lotions, cleansers or toners to keep your skin healthy. It is important to avoid using those products which may make the condition worse. Acne or breakouts on the skin may be quite frequent for 5-10 days after the treatment. It all depends on your skin.
Burning: Undergoing pain or burning sensation is another side effect that you may observe after electrolysis hair removal treatment. Burning sensation or pain may be highly probable, if the procedure is done by an inexperienced technician or if it is done incorrectly. If you happen to experience pain after the first session, you should speak to your expert about this. If needed, you can discontinue the process and find another good and certified expert for this treatment.
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Skin Discoloration: You may suffer from this problem especially if you have sensitive skin. This may be in the form of dark or brown spots on the face, which can be treated using a skin lightening cream. Discoloration of skin is quite common and you don’t need to panic about this.
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Ingrown Hair: Electrolysis can lead to formation of ingrown hair. These form when the hair follicle is damaged instead of getting destroyed completely. Ingrown hair may lead to irritation or itching, but ingrown hairs should be easy to remove by using a good exfoliator.
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Skin Damage: This the worst side effect of electrolysis. You can count on a certain amount of redness, swelling, welts, tiny blisters, scabs, dryness, and ingrown’s between treatments.
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Analysis: Painful | Primitive | Very Time Consuming | Not Permanent
IPL (Intense Pulsed Light)
Skin: Redness, tenderness & swelling will occur. This will last 48 hours to 1 week post-treatment
Damage: Bruising, Blisters and burns (rare, but do happen)
Pigmentation: Unwanted changes in pigmentation (white or dark patches), more likely to occur in dark-skinned or tanned individuals
Scabbing: Common with brown spots, which are supposed to rise to the surface, crust over and eventually flake off
Analysis: Painful | Mid-90’s Technology | Time Consuming | Still Expensive | Not Permanent
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Pre-2019 SHR Laser Hair Machines
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Mild swelling around the hair follicles.
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Pigment changes may occur, especially in those with darker skin. These changes are usually temporary.
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Slight redness of the skin.
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Temporary irritation resulting in blistering, crusting, scarring or other changes in skin texture.
Analysis: Difficult to Find the Right Machine for Your Skin Tone| Quick | Multiple Sessions Required | Permanent Hair Reduction
2019 Technology: USHR Trio-Clustered Diode with 3 in 1 (755nm/808nm/1064nm) – ZENSER Infinite ICE
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Zero to very low swelling around the hair follicles.
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Possible, temporary pigment change may occur, especially in those with darker skin
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Low to very mild redness of the skin.
Analysis: Highly Efficient | All Skin Tones | All Hair Colour & Coarseness | Effective | Quick & Clean | Fewer Sessions Required | Cost Effective | Permanent Hair Removal