Am I a Good Candidate for Laser Hair Removal?

Laser hair removal’s results on your body depend greatly on whether or not you are a good candidate for laser hair removal. Several factors dictate just how successful you will be with laser hair removal including your skin color, the coarseness of your hair, your pain threshold and the color of your hair. Knowing if you are a good candidate is important because if you are, you will save money and time through the laser hair removal process. If you are not a good candidate, you could find you end up paying more because the process takes longer to complete on you. So, how do you know if you are a good candidate for laser hair removal?

Step 1: The first thing you need to do is look at your skin color. If you have light skin, then you have the best candidate skin type because it is much easier for the laser to target hair on light skin than to target hair on dark skin. This means you will have fewer treatments and therefore save money. If you have medium skin, it will depend greatly on your hair color. If you have dark skin, then you will need more treatments and the results will not be as good.

Step 2: Now, look at your hair color. If you have dark hair, then it is much easier to treat because the laser technician can target the dark hair much more easily than other hair colors. As well, dark hair is usually coarse, which means it is better for laser hair removal. Brown hair is also a good candidate hair color but you should be aware that brown hair is often fine and thin, which can mean more treatments. Light hair, blond for example, is harder to target and treat and that means more time to remove the hair. If you have white or grey hair, then you are not a candidate for laser hair removal.

Step 3: If you tan or get a lot of exposure to the sun, then you may not be a good candidate for laser hair removal. Your skin should be as light as possible and that is why you are not allowed to tan six weeks before you go for laser hair removal. Using a bleaching cream can help you if you tan easily, or work out in the sun.

Step 4: Have you had a history of herpes? The laser light heat can cause herpes infection to become active depending on the area of your body being treated. If you have had herpes, then you may not be a great candidate for laser hair removal.

Step 5: If you have had a history of scarring, then there is a good chance the laser hair removal will lead to scarring. This means you are not a good candidate for laser hair removal. Talk with your technician first about this as they may be able to work around the scarring with a lighter laser.

Read more answers to your questions at our laser hair removal FAQ page.