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Laser Hair Removal
Can I Shave Before I Have my IPL Hair Removal?
It is usually recommended that you shave the day of or the day before your treatment. As mentioned previously, if the hairs are too long, they may absorb the energy from the IPL and increase chances of complications and possibly make the treatment more uncomfortable. In between treatments, you may shave, trim, or leave the hairs alone. It is not recommended to wax, pluck, or thread hairs in between treatments.
Clinical Context
IPL and laser hair removal work by targeting melanin (pigment) in the hair, which conducts heat down into the follicle beneath the skin. Only hairs in an active growth phase have enough pigment to respond well, which is why results build gradually over several sessions. Shaving keeps the hair shaft short so light reaches the skin efficiently without excess heat at the surface. Waxing or plucking removes the hair itself, leaving nothing for the light to target until a new hair grows in, which is why it's avoided between sessions.
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