Both laser and photoepilation use light energy to act on melanin (the pigment found inside the hair). The hair is heated, the hair follicle is destroyed. Thus, with each subsequent procedure, more and more new, actively growing curls die off. At the end of the course of procedures, the client receives the absence of bristle growth for a long period of time. This article will answer the question of which is better - a photoepilator or a laser epilator.
How long does the effect of the procedure last
Ten years ago it was believed that hair removal with wax or sugar paste is a temporary method, while laser and photoepilation are forever. Unfortunately, practice has shown that the hopes pinned on hardware methods did not materialize. Hair is not removed all and not forever.
The American organization FDA, which is an honest and independent body for evaluating the effectiveness and safety of all the most advanced techniques, devices and drugs, clearly defines two terms - permanent hair redaction and permanent hair removal. Just hardware correction (that is, hair removal with a photoepilator or a laser epilator) refers to permanent hair redaction. The term in translation means the permanent reduction of hair, but not the removal of them forever. Permanent hair removal is permanent hair removal.
According to FDA regulations, no manufacturer of hair removal devices can claim that laser or photoepilation is painless or permanent. Because there is no data showing such results. Therefore, to the question of which epilator is better - laser or photoepilator, one can answer that neither one nor the other removes 100% of hair for life. And if the word “forever” is written on the clinic’s website, this is deliberately false information. The result can be considered excellent when it was possible to get rid of 90% of the hair for five years.
Types of lasers
Laser hair removal is carried out on three types of devices: diode, neodymium and alexandrite. Both diode and alexandrite have a similar wavelength - 805 and 755 nanometers. But the alexandrite laser is more efficient because it has more power. Both types of laser are designed for people with high contrast between skin and hair. They are fair-skinned or slightly tanned with dark hair color.
The neodymium laser is designed specifically for fair-skinned blonds and redheads, as well as for dark-skinned people with dark hair. In addition, it removes gray and vellus hair. Its wavelength is 1064 nanometers.
Laser hair removal. The essence of the procedure
What is better laser epilator or photoepilator? The operation of the first system is based on the radiation of electromagnetic waves of a fixed length. This allows the laser beam to act strictly on the bulb and the hair growth zone. Due to the constant wavelength, the radiation scatters very little and is focused on the hair and not on the surrounding tissues. All this allows you to get a long-term effect in a relatively small number of procedures.
The energy of the neodymium laser, compared with the other two types of laser, is dissipated more. Therefore, it is often not enough to coagulate (“seal”) the vessels that feed the bulb. This means more treatments will be needed on the neodymium system to fight unwanted hair.
The interval between the first two treatments is 4 to 7 weeks. With each subsequent visit to the beautician, dormant follicles wake up much more slowly. The phases of hair growth for each patient are individual, so for someone between the first and second procedure, it should take 6 weeks, and for another - all 10.
Which is better laser hair removal or photoepilation in terms of discomfort? Light pain, more precisely tingling, is the same for both methods. If the patient is hot during the procedure, this isabnormal. It is noticed that with each subsequent epilation, pain decreases. This is due to the fact that if the intervals are chosen correctly, the amount of hair decreases with each visit.
Feeling also depends on the type of skin and hair, because these parameters affect the thermal relaxation time. This is the period required for complete cooling of the laser treated area. It is believed that the alexandrite laser is the most tolerant, and it is a little more difficult to transfer the procedure on a neodymium or diode laser. This is due to the fact that the alexandrite laser is much better absorbed by melanin, and the other two lasers, in addition to hair, are also absorbed by skin vessels. If only the hair follicles are heated, the skin cools faster. If both the follicles and the vessels are heated, then it will take more time for the skin to return to its original state.
The thermal relaxation time is also related to the size of the spot, that is, the area of exposure to radiation. If the procedure is done with a handpiece with a diameter of 5 mm, then this will be tolerable when compared with a handpiece that is twice as large. But the procedure will take longer, so balance is important here.
The thermal relaxation time can be reduced by using additional cooling factors - cryogas, the temperature of the handpiece itself or the flow of cold air. At the request of the client, the doctor can apply topical anesthesia in the form of an anesthetic cream or additionally apply a cold pack.
I must say that the procedure is slower on the alexandrite and neodymium lasers than on the diodeor the latest generation alexandrite laser (Moveo technology). The time depends on the capacity charge rate needed to generate the flash.
The essence of photoepilation
Photoepilators use krypton lamps, their principle of operation is similar to a flashlight. A photoepilator is a cheap replacement for a laser. It should cost significantly less, since the machine itself, its production costs much less.
A photosystem, unlike a laser, produces not one constant wavelength, but many waves in the range from ultraviolet to infrared. Since the wavelength is very different, the radiation is absorbed by different parts of the skin. Most of it is simply lost, scattered, so the flash of a photoepilator is much brighter than that of a laser. Photosystems are therefore less efficient and more dangerous.
What is better photoepilator or laser epilator? Important question. Although manufacturers put different filters on photosystems to cut off harmful ultraviolet waves, they cannot compare the radiation with the efficiency of laser radiation. Photoepilators by themselves are not very effective, and even more so for light, gray hair. This is due to the fact that a large amount of radiation is simply scattered, and what remains can only be absorbed by hair with melanin, that is, dark hair.
Photoepilator or laser epilator - which is better?
Reviews and further arguments clearly show that the first is inferior to the second. Therefore, the choice is obvious. Consider the disadvantages of photoepilator hair removal:
- fits onlyowners of dark hair and fair skin;
- due to the large scattering of radiation, the device passes hair;
- due to low efficiency, more procedures will be needed;
- causes burns if parameters are incorrectly selected;
- contraindicated in people with suspected cancer, people with melanomas;
- if the flash hits the eyes, it harms the eyesight.
Home photoepilator or laser epilator?
Now both devices can be used independently. In a home photoepilator, manufacturers install a cheap emitter lamp, so the effectiveness of such a device is doubtful. When it comes to security, it also has its drawbacks. A cheap photoepilator is equipped with the same cheap filters that should cut off harmful radiation. They do not do their job well, so flashlights can cause irreparable damage to both skin and vision.
