Not a day goes by without a slew of self appointed "beauty experts" advising both women and men on how to get smooth hairless skin so they can be toned, bronzed and beach ready for the summer.

These so called experts will frequently repeat the line about laser hair removal being permanent which the FDA expressly does not permit. The term approved by the FDA is - laser hair removal may PERMANENTLY REDUCE but does not eradicate hair permanently.

Beauty writers will get busy recommending to their readers other forms of hair removal. Some of these are far from skin safe and may not work at all for some people or at the other end of the spectrum, may damage your skin - sometimes permanently.

Many readers are smart enough to read between the lines and do not believe everything they read in these articles. However there are large numbers of impressionable young people, who are only just beginning to do some form of body grooming or hair removal, but do not know how to safely go about this task. They do not want to ask siblings or parents for guidance so they rely on hearsay, peersay and advertising. They are often exhorted to go in for invasive hair removal procedures at huge cost for undetermined results. That is not right!

One of the ways to spot an ill informed beauty writer is when they talk of electric shavers and safety razors in the same breath as though they were the same. As many know the difference is critical. The naked blade in any safety razor scrapes away the unwanted hair along with natural skin oils as well as the outer protective layer of skin - the epidermis. This is what causes the all too common shaver rash, itching, red bumps, skin dryness or tautness and ingrown hairs.

In the case of the electric shaver, the blades should never touch the skin if the foil pattern is correctly designed. So the skin surface is not scraped away and shaver rash, red bumps, skin dryness and ingrown hairs are rarely if ever, a problem.

Even if they know these facts themselves, no beauty writer ever seems to tell their readers that electric personal shavers are not the same as safety razors. Personal shavers require a totally different shaving technique, but can provide a smoother finish than shaving with a naked razor blade. They are also cheaper in the long run than safety razors. The results are immediate and comparable to waxing smoothness. There are no burns, skin infections, drying of skin, scarring or bruising that are quite commonplace with laser, epilators, waxing and hair removal cremes.

The really bad beauty writer will mention in their article that shaving causes hair to grow back thicker and faster. Sadly a great many people believe this utterly false myth. To tell others, let alone believe this yourself, is doing a great disservice to everyone. Any doctor knows you cannot affect hair growth by shaving but the myth still persists. Here is perhaps the proof positive from the Mayo Clinic.

Responsible beauty writers and editors should make it plain that hair CANNOT re grow thicker and faster as a result of shaving. Hair growth is determined by genetics and the hormone testosterone, which, although a male hormone, females possess this too. If hair really did change its essential biology and grew thicker simply by being shaved, the worlds first and only natural cure for baldness and thinning hair would have been discovered. Bald eagles of both sexes would be able to re grow a full lush head of hair simply by shaving.

If you wish to really know the reason behind this myth, often propagated by people selling other forms of more expensive and painful hair removal, the clinical rationale follows.

For longer lasting smooth skin you should always shave or trim dry, as shaving or trimming when the skin is wet produces a rough finish. This is because your skin absorbs water though a natural process called osmosis. The skin cells swell and become "turgid" with water. This causes the skin cells to ride up the shaft of the hair concealing some of the hair shaft at the base. At this time the shaver or trimmer can only cut the part of the hair shaft that is exposed that rises above skin level. When the water evaporates and skin cells deflate and contract, the uncut part of the hair shaft becomes exposed again. The reappearance of the hair shaft is what causes the roughness and explains why some think hair has grown back quickly after shaving.

This is real explanation for the illusion that shaved hair re grows faster and thicker, even though it is biologically impossible.

Sun Of A Beach! Get The Real Skinny On Being Bikini Ready For Summer

Tips And Hints For Removing Unwanted Body Hair

Equally important, we will shine a light on some not so safe hair removal methods that salons and TV adverts insist that you "must" have.

Not a day goes by without a slew of self appointed "beauty experts" advising both women and men on how to get smooth hairless skin so they can be toned, bronzed and beach ready for the summer.

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