Both males and females have hair follicles present on the face. At puberty hair follicles on the cheeks, chin, and upper lip regions of the male face transition from vellus to terminal hair, as characterized by an increase in hair follicle diameter and pigmentation. This transition is driven by systemic androgen activity as well as […]

1.4.1 Hair Follicle Structure, Growth Characteristics, and Regulation Human body hair can be defined as three major types: lanugo, vellus, and terminal hair. Lanugo hair is present on infants and is lost shortly after birth. In contrast, vellus and ter­minal hair remain as the major hair type on the human body. There are clear physical […]

Unlike the methods of hair removal discussed earlier, laser hair removal has the capacity to destroy the cells in the hair follicle bulb and provide a longer lasting, and in some cases, permanent effect. The potential for eliminating hair growth on the face is especially impor­tant, as the process of managing facial hair has strong […]

It is well-known that androgens have a potent influence on hair growth and the overall physical characteristics of hair [8,9]. For example, at the onset of puberty vellus hairs are converted to terminal hair in various body regions such as the axilla, genital area, legs, chest, and face—the latter two occurring preferentially in males. The […]

Electrolysis was considered to be the first method available to obtain permanent hair removal. A fine-wired probe is placed into the hair follicle and a weak electric current is applied in an attempt to destroy the hair bulb region [7]. This method is time consuming and the rate of success is largely dependent upon the […]

Removal of hair by plucking is often the first method employed, and can be performed on a spot-treatment basis with tweezers, or over a larger area using an electronic device. With this technique, hair is removed at the root as the entire shaft and bulb are removed from the skin. Although the effect typically lasts […]

Another common approach to facial hair removal as evidenced by the recent growth of products is depilation. Depilatories (typically thioglycolates in an alkaline formulation) remove the hair by chemically dissolving the disulfide bonds found between cysteine resi­dues that make up the keratinized hair shaft [7]. This approach can be efficacious on an acute scale and […]

Shaving represents a fast and inexpensive method of facial hair removal with minimal side effects. Although there is no evidence to suggest that shaving influences the density of the hair, there is a common perception that hair regrowth after shaving is thicker [7]. This perception may be the result of the blunt ends that are […]

There are several means of removing facial hair that are currently practiced with shav­ing, plucking, waxing, and depilation being the main methods. While each method has certain advantageous attributes, the duration and acceptability vary and all these methods possess significant shortcomings in the context of a beauty regimen. Figures 6.1 and 6.2 show the distribution […]