Laser hair removal removes unwanted body hair—usually on the legs, back, underarms, or face—by permanently damaging or destroying hair follicles with light energy.
The goal of a series of laser hair removal treatments is to leave skin smooth and hair-free. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says laser hair removal effectively reduces the amount of hair in the treated area by about 70%.
The treatment doesn’t entirely remove hair, but most patients see a significant reduction in hair after a full series of treatment sessions. You can expect about 70% hair reduction once you complete a series of treatments. Follow up visits may be needed to treat regrowth and to maintain the results.
With each treatment, the actively growing hair follicle is destroyed. Less blood flows to the follicle, and the hair that does grow back will gradually become weaker and thinner.
Your hair won’t always fall out immediately, but it will eventually. Some hairs are ejected as soon as they’re lasered, while others continue to grow and fall out over time.
Laser hair removal permanently reduces hair growth. It doesn’t permanently remove all hair, but it makes any remaining hair finer and less noticeable.
Any hair the laser can’t destroy can be removed with electroysis.i
Most people need 6 to 8 laser hair removal treatments every 4 to 8 weeks to see results, plus an annual maintenance session. That said, everyone is different, so you may find that you need fewer sessions (or more).
Different body parts require different schedules: we recommend waiting four to six weeks in between laser hair removal treatments for the face and up to eight weeks for anywhere else on the body, where the hair growth cycles are longer.
The whole process can take a year or more, so it’s smart to start a series of treatments in the fall to have smoother skin by summer.