White roots - is laser efficient?

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

Hey everyone. I have recently discovered I have white roots in some areas of my body. I started electrolysis on my face recently and it seems I have a lot of white roots. Going by this info, I plucked a few hairs from the areas of the body I wanted lasered and I noticed that the ones on my bikini line have lighter roots. The ones on my armpits and legs seem fine, though.

The thing is, despite the lighter roots I have rather pale skin and very dark hair. (The lighter roots could be a genetic thing I inherited from my father’s side, who is blond - or so my electrologyst told me.)

My electrologyst also does LHR - actually she combines Yag laser with IPL and she says it works well in people with dark blond hair and even on white roots. I wanted to know how accurate can that be? Regarding electrolysis and general knowledge she seems rather solid but I am still apprehensive at trying this out, especially as she says white roots have to be treated with high energy and I’m scared of being marked. I could always try electrolysis in my bikini line as well, if nothing else will work.

#2

No, it wont be effective.

Electrolysis might be a good option. I’ve found body work doesn’t take long and is really effective. By not long, I mean in five hours I cleared: snail trail, nipples, chest, underarms. I’m just growing these areas out now for the next round.
Keep in mind that everyone has different amounts of hair on their body. In the two months since I’ve had a small amount of hair growth and am waiting until there is enough to justify another round of sessions, maybe early January. So far my stomach hair has grown in considerably, while all other areas are still fairly clear (hair growth but minimal, and in the case of my armpits, not very noticeable.

I’d assume a bikini line would be pretty easy to treat!!

#3

Thanks for the explanation. Given that I never waxed this area, is it possible that I won’t face much “regrowth” with electrolysis? I just hope I can stand the pain of it in this area.
I have yet to start the sessions on my face, I only did a test.

I was also thinking of having some elctrolysis in my navel area - I have a few dark hairs there and I’m not looking to clear the whole area out, just to make it look natural.

#4

I get hairs like this often. I’m older, and parts are starting to grey. The frequency of finding these hairs is telling, because these would be the very same hairs that laser WAS NOT succesful in removing from my face.I think emilily is right, go with electrolysis.

And you will still see regrowth waxing or not. You may see less than if you HAD waxes, but it wont be that noticeable int he long run. Regrowth happens because of hair growth cycles, and is simply made to happen more because of things like waxing for 3-4 month after you stop waxing.

Seana

#5

Make sure you’re not confusing it with a white root that appears on dead hairs.

#6

Hm what do you mean ‘dead hairs’? If they’re attached to you, how can they be dead? Also, I know there’s supposed to be this tiny white dot at the end of a hair but the color near that white dot is definitely light and not dark.

#7

So, bottomline is, we’re constantly growing new hair even in places we never removed any from? I know that if an area was stimulated by laser, it will grow new hair for a while longer than other areas. (My electrologyst told me that my chin area was probably done growing new hair since my last laser session was in mid September and I hope she’s right but I am still feeling paranoid).

Well, guess I’ll ask my electrologyst to add my bikini line to the treatment. I know she does legs and that’s a larger area than bikini lines.

#8

Hair grows in cycles. It’s constantly cycling. So it grows, falls out, then grows in again. I was talking about the white bulb at the bottom of a dead hair (i.e. in telogen phase)

You can always get a test spot done with laser and see how shedding goes. If only some hairs have white roots, it will still probably be more efficient to do laser vs. electrolysis on an area with dense coarse growth.

#9

I see. Well, I guess I could try a laser session and see if it works. If it doesn’t I’ll do electrolysis in that area as well. Thanks for the info.

#10

Not even a session. Just a free test spot.

#11

I don’t know if my new laser tech does free test spots though (ando on small areas, to boot). I scheduled a session for three areas. I guess I can ask her in advance.