Understanding the Cycles Of Hair Growth When It Comes To Hair Removal

It is important when talking about permanent hair removal that we understand what that means and the cycles of hair growth that accompanies this process. While most products like laser hair removal and IPL (intense pulse light) hair removal treatments are great in overall hair removal, they only have a success rate of 40% to 80% of removing hair. While the Food and Drug Administration only recognizes electrolysis as a solution to permanent hair removal, even this treatment does not work on all patients the same. The key to understanding why this works or doesn’t work comes down to understanding your hair’s growth cycles.

After hair is removed from the body, there are three stages of regrowth that occur after any treatment is tried. It is during these stages that determine whether or not the techniques used in permanent hair removal actually take as your hair will go through these stages at least twenty times in your lifetime.
The first phase in the cycle of hair growth is the Anagen phase. This is also known as the growing phase and it is the prominent phase that your hair lives in most of your life. During the Anagen phase, your hair is in a constant state of growth and this growth can continue for up to seven years. It is during this phase that your hair will look thick and well-nourished and will grow at a rate of about a half inch a month. It is during this phase of hair growth that your hair gets the most nutrients and supplies the pigmentation from the hair bulb.

The second phase is called the Catagen phase. When the lengthy Anagen phase comes to an end, your hair will enter this transitional phase which can last around a month. During the Catagen phase, your hair will detach from the blood supply that gives it nutrients and will begin to shrink its size. As it shrinks, it will be pushed upwards t to the surface as new hair forms underneath.

The last phase is the Telogen phase. This is the final phase in the life of your hair. In fact, about 15% of the hair on your head is in this phase right now. The Telogen phase can last about three months as new hair begins to emerge, pushing the weak and brittle hairs out. During this phase, you can expect to lose around 50 to 100 hairs a day and even pull loose hairs directly from the scalp.

When it comes to permanent hair removal, it is important to target hairs while they are in the Anagen phase. Because hair is in a constant state of flux between these three phases during your life, it is hard to get all the hairs because of the various phases. That is why multiple treatments become necessary as hairs come back. That is why no procedure can guarantee any true state of permanent hair removal as only your body can decide the stages of hair growth.