Tips to Prevent Ingrown Hair
Whenever you shave, wax, pluck, or use a depilatory, you are at risk for developing ingrown hairs. Also known as razor bumps, ingrown hairs occur when the bristle grows back yet gets trapped underneath the skin. This unsightly condition can be painful, and it can lead to infections. Thus, it is important that you work to avoid ingrown hairs.
An ingrown hair occurs when the new hair grows sideways into the skin or back down into the skin rather than breaking through the surface and growing freely. This happens more often for people that have curly hair because the bristles naturally want to curve towards the skin.
Additionally, there are certain types of hair removal that can increase your chances of developing razor bumps. First, if you shave while your hair is dry, the razor creates a sharp edge on the hair as well, which is able to pierce the skin and grow downwards. Next, if you pull your skin tight as you shave, this forces the hair to extend to meet the razor blade then retract underneath the surface of the skin. Lastly, if you use a multiple-bladed razor, the first blades pull the hair up out of the skin while the other blades cut it. After retraction, the hair lays below the skin.
All of these allow hair to retract back into the skin, so when it re-grows, it is more likely to stay under the skin and cause a razor bump. Thus, if you shave softly and gently, allowing a tiny portion of the hair to stay above the surface of the skin, you can avoid ingrown hairs. Other things you can do to prevent ingrown hairs include:
Exfoliating your skin before and after shaving to soften skin
Using salicylic acid as a chemical exfoliate to weaken the surface of the skin
Shaving with the grain and using a single-bladed razor
Unfortunately, it is difficult to avoid razor bumps forever. Instead, you should consider laser hair removal to permanently avoid ingrown hairs. Also, laser hair removal may be expensive at first, but it saves you from buying razors, shaving cream, and other hair-removal devices in the future. To learn more about laser hair removal, please contact the Houston medical spa Dermagenix today.
By Anonymous
http://ezinearticles.com/?Tips-to-Prevent-Ingrown-Hair&id=5191543
Razor Bumps