Some medical student (not a reason to trust him really) said that by removing hair (laser or electro) there will be some impact on the skin in the long term in terms of it aging much faster - maybe by depletion of collagen . He gave example of women who pluck the “mustache” area how they develop extreme wrinkling with time…
Laser has been here for 10 years. Electrolysis maybe 100.
Any thoughts on this ? Thanks
Although I am sure that I will be attacked as preaching anti-LASER for repeating this, I can say that I have heard from a few sources (Sorry, don’t have chapter and verse, I did not start this conversation) that LASER would have the same premature aging effect of repeated sunburns, while electrolysis actually tightens the skin.
The aesthetic treatment known as “Thermage” is an attempt to get the skin tightening effect of electrolysis without the hair removal.
My male clients who get full facial hair removal frequently report people accusing them of having had face lifts. There is a noticeable tightening of the skin when the course of treatment is finished.
Hopefully, this medical student is not going to specialize in dermatology. Very few doctors understand electrolysis or even know it is a great process for ridding their patients of unwanted hair.
There is no long term impact on the skin when electrolysis is administered by a skilled practitioner. We assume the same for laser, but for laser has been in use 125 years LESS than electrolysis, so I don’t know what the long-term track record will be for laser.
Women who tweeze their upper lip hair??? have wrinkles??? and thus, electrolysis can cause wrinkles?, Well… how does this medical student know if these women have done and still do other activities that cause wrinkling to the upper lip? Having a history of tanning causes sun damage and thus the skin looses elasticity. Smoking and even the act of drinking from a water bottle or with straws can cause wrinkling. Let’s not forget heredity. I wonder if she or he ever heard of a term called ‘rhagedes’ (linear lines). When clients are prone to rhagedes, activities that cause skin damage and heredity are the cause of wrinkling.
Poorly done electrolysis and continual overtreatment of a small area can cause long-term side effects, but it is rare. The client will know that something isn’t right as evidenced by poor healing and hopefully, will not continue with treatments. At least that is what we encourage and advise here.
Will you pass this information on to this medical student?
Thanks Dee for the info. Please don’t take it bad I doubted what the student said anyway. However my question was more about LASER.
James seems to suggest that this IS the case for LASER even though Gentlease seem to be used for skin purposes only. Do you guys agree with James ? ( Now it is not the student anymore it is James :)).
I know James does Electro. So again any comments on the laser would be helpful.
If you agree then this should be discussed.
James did NOT say that this IS the case with LASER, James said that he had read and heard a few things that postulated Long Term Side Effects.
James’ official stance is that there is NOT ENOUGH RESEARCH to say definitively one way or another.
I personally take the position that time has to pass and if certain patterns emerge, then the scientific community may arrive at certain conclusions, based on evidence. So, it doesn’t matter what I think or feel - what matters are facts, interpreted by the doctor / researcher types.
I am not hearing about laser clients stories related to premature ageing (British English) or aging (American or Canadian English) here on hairtell. Maybe once? but there are no patterns here that I can see. I hear about laser induced hair growth quite frequently, and see evidence of this in my practice, but not the premature aging stuff.
OK James thanks for clarifying. James said: he read something about that 
…sorry
anyone else ?
The fact that there aren’t any scientific studies about it suggest that it is probably too early to tell.
Hi:
Actually people do more damage through exposure to sun
than from laser or electrolysis.
I have had major laser and electrolysis done on my face
in the past but today my skin is excellent, soft and smooth.
The skin is resilient and will renew itself if given
time and proper care and nutrition.
Besides the aftercare of putting special lotions on after
my treatments, I have also tried to wear sunscreen or
a hat if I’m going to get too much sun exposure.
I have had two microdermabrasion treatments on my skin
since the completion of electrolysis and laser.
Alicia
There is NO evidence of ANY kind that laser has any negative impact on the skin. Hair removal lasers don’t emit any type of harmful radiation.
There is no more “evidence” of this happening from laser than from electrolysis. I’m sorry, but your claim that “some person you heard say that they feel their skin was affected in some undetermined way” is about as much evidence as anyone else saying that they once met a person who said their skin lost their elasticity after electrolysis (and we all know here that there are actual reports of this from past electrolysis customers both on this forum and otherwise out in the industry).
Wyo, I’ve had both done and haven’t had any negative impact. In fact, you would find that most laser customers claim that their skin has IMPROVED after laser with the lack of ingrowns etc.
A side effects of having the upper lip (and other areas) lased is…wrinkles fading. Oh no!
Both alexandrite and Nd:YAG lasers are used for skin rejuvenation and Nd:YAGs for skin tightening.
There are also applications for skin tightening with Diode laser.
Many thanks. Now I can go to treatment feeling better about it.
I will update you how my laser went. It’s going to be painful to do an hour session !
Thanks VERY much again.