Unwanted facial hair affects at least 22 million American women who remove it at least once a week. It is caused by heredity, hormones or prescription drugs, such as birth control pills with progestins or high blood pressure medication. A laser emits a beam of invisible light about the size of a quarter that passes through the skin. Melanin, or pigment, in hair absorbs the light, which is transformed into heat that disables the hair follicle. Laser hair removal works best on people who have dark hair and white skin because their hair easily absorbs the light without damaging their skin.
Dark skin absorbs some of the light, which can cause burns.
Treatments often take six months, because hair grows in stages. Each stage must be attacked and hair killed at the papilla, where new growth is generated. Tadros, who has dark hair and fair skin, was an ideal candidate. However, when she decided to get treatments, her family had mixed feelings. Now he comes up, touches my face and tells me it feels so nice.