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Should I Wax Before Laser Hair Removal Treatments?

asked 3 years ago by anon
Latest answer by David Shafer, MD
Question viewed 24,183 times
Tags: waxing

Have you ever heard of, or have any feedback on laser clinics, waxing a patient immediately before they use the laser? I went to a clinic where they say they do this as the hair follicle is open and more receptive to the laser. Their reasoning for this was because when shaving the area to be lasered, 'baby' hairs that are also shaved now in-turn come back stubbly and thicker. I have done a lot of research and it all says that waxing should be stopped months or so before getting laser treatments. I've had a patch test done (waxing first and the laser IPL) and it's been 2 months and it seems it has worked.

13 answers to Should I Wax Before Laser Hair Removal Treatments?

+2

Laser Hair Removal

Waxing should not be done prior to laser hair removal period. You should not wax for at least 4 weeks prior to your treatment.
Sonia Badreshia-Bansal, MD

San Francisco Dermatologic Surgeon

www.elitemdspa.com

+2

Do not wax before laser hair removal

The laser works best by identifying the dark root of the hair in the follicle, differentiating it as a target from the lighter color tissue around the follicle. If the hair is pulled completely out, there won't be as much heat generated in the root bulb of the follicle, so the laser treatment might not be as effective, and you will feel like it is not working. Shaving before laser hair removal is fine, and even helpful.
Jessica J. Krant, MD, MPH

Manhattan Dermatologic Surgeon

www.ArtofDermatology.com

+1

Waxing before Laser Hair Removal

No, you should not wax for several weeks before laser hair removal. The reason is that the laser is attracted to the dark pigment in the hair. So, if the hair has already been removed through waxing, the laser will not have a "target" and will not be effective. Good Luck.
David Shafer, MD

New York Plastic Surgeon
+1

Waxing hair can interfere with laser hair removal

I have never heard of waxing being recommended prior to laser hair removal. As others here have pointed out, it may removed the pigmented target of the laser. Also, it can burn and irritate the skin, which the laser treatment can worsen. I suggest doing what the majority recommends and shaving, not waxing, prior to treatment.
Daryl K. Hoffman, MD

Los Gatos Plastic Surgeon
+1

Waxing Immediately Prior to Laser Hair Removal Not Recommended

Thank you for your question. In short, waxing immediately prior to laser hair removal will likely decrease the effectiveness of the laser providing short term, rather than long term, reduction in hair. More specifically, lasers target the pigment of hairs at the base of the follicle (in the growth phase), which allows the follicle to be destroyed and inhibits new hair growth. Waxing removes hair from the follicle (including hairs at the base) Without the hair, and thus... more
Steven H. Williams, MD

San Francisco Plastic Surgeon
+1

No waxing before laser hair removal

When you wax, you remove or disturb the target that the laser needs in order to decrease hair growth.  There is a small area of the hair follicle, called the bulge, where the follicular stem cells, cells that generate the new hair, reside.  The laser heats the hair shaft, which is the visible,pigmented target, and that heat spreads to affect the nearby bulge to decrease new hair growth or stop it all together. When you remove the hair by waxing, there is no target in the... more
Emily Altman, MD

Short Hills Dermatologic Surgeon
+1

Waxing prior to laser hair removal

The practice of waxing on the day of the laser removal flies in the face of everything we know about how laser hair removal works. I would advise against waxing for 2-4 weeks prior to treatment so that the target hair is situated in the follicle so that the laser energy can travel to its final destination where the stem cells for the hair follicle live and the blood supply to the hair bulb is located. I would be interested in your longterm results after 2-3 months following your last... more
Shawn Allen, MD

Boulder Dermatologist
+1

Waxing prior to Laser Hair Removal?

Waxing prior to Laser Hair Removal should be avoided in my opinion.  Having said that, I'd love to hear if your experience with waxing prior to laser treatments works long-term for you-please post and let us know!  It's the melanin in the hair shaft that attracts the light energy.  Should the hair shaft be removed during waxing, epilation, or plucking, the laser will search for a target and may not effectively treat the now empty hair follicle.  Usually, we... more
Amir Moradi, MD

San Diego Facial Plastic Surgeon
+1

Shave don't wax before laser hair removal.

You should not wax immediately before laser hair removal. The explanation you received does not make any sense. The target of the laser is the color of the hair in the follicle. Waxing pulls out the target, while shaving just cuts the hair at the surface, leaving the brown or black hair in the follicle beneath the skin. We do want you to shave before each treatment, because hair on the surface blocks the laser beam from reaching its target. It is also okay to wax up... more
Todd Minars, MD

Miami Dermatologist
+1

Waxing before Laser Hair Removal

There are also many lasers, (not all), that are attracted to the pigment of the hair in the follicle. So if you wax or tweeze, leaving no hair in the follicle, there is nothing for the laser to "pick up".  
Alan M. Gardner, MD

Atlanta Dermatologist
+1

Waxing before laser hair removal not recommended

The hair grows in the three different cycles. In order for the laser to be effective the follicle needs to be in the first anagen, or active stage of growing. When you wax, you remove the follicle or the root of the hair and leave no target for the laser to attract. If you wax, it is better to wait 4-6 weeks for the face areas and 8-10 weeks for the body areas for the hair to return in the right stage again. You can simply shave before and in between the treatments or use any depilatory... more
Gregory Turowski, MD, PhD

Chicago Plastic Surgeon
+1

Waxing and Laser Hair Removal: Practical Tips and Instructions before laser hair removal

Laser Hair Removal and Waxing prior to treatment Laser hair removal works by a process of photothermolysis whereby a specific wavelength of light is focused on an area of skin. The light wavelength emitted from the laser is set at a color which is directly absorbed by the pigment in the hair follicle. The theory is that the hair follicle contains a bulb of concentrated pigment which selectively absorbs the energy from the laser and heats up. The heat generated causes the hair follicle... more
Raffy Karamanoukian, MD

Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon
+1

Possibly

Greetings MJ, While I have no experience with waxing before laser hair removal, part of the concept seems prudent. IPL for hair removal works by transmitting a bright pulse of light with its associated energy to the dark pigment cells in the skin, or in this case, the hair follicle. If there are several hairs with dark pigment which can be seen, these will absorb the energy instead of the follicle and will likely not destroy the follicle. This is also why IPL laser hair removal does not... more
D.J. Verret, MD

Dallas Facial Plastic Surgeon

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