History

• The concept of lasers dates back to the 1950s, and the first working laser prototype was introduced in the early 1960s. The first commercial laser hair removal device was on the market by 1969, and new advances have made laser hair removal one of the top five most popular non-invasive cosmetic procedures among women in 2009, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.
  
  

Types

• There are a wide variety of types of lasers used for laser hair removal, including the diode laser, the ruby laser, the alexandrite laser and the Nd:Yag laser, according to the Laser Hair Removal Review. Each type of laser has benefits and drawbacks, depending on the hair and skin type of the patient. Since redheads typically have fair skin, they usually are candidates for treatment with the ruby laser, the alexandrite laser and the Nd:Yag laser, according to HairLaser.com.
  
  

Function

• Laser hair removal works by applying focused laser light to the unwanted hair follicle. The light energy created by the laser travels down the hair shaft to the melanin, or color pigment, in the hair follicle where it is converted into heat energy. The heat energy effectively destroys the hair follicle. Laser hair removal can be more challenging for redheads because their hair follicles have a lack of melanin, which inhibits the laser's ability to convert to heat energy, according to HairRemovalForum.com.
  
  

Considerations

• Most redhead have sufficient brown pigment in their hair follicles to allow laser hair removal to be effective, although it may require a skilled practitioner to get the most satisfactory results, according to HairRemovalForum.com. Redheads will typically need a greater number of treatments to achieve the same results as individuals with darker colored hair. Because of the combination of light melanin and fair skin, additional precautions should be taken to prevent burns during treatment.
  
  

Time Frame

• Treatments may take from a few minutes to an hour, depending upon the location of the unwanted hair, the density of unwanted hair, and the size of the body part being treated. The Mayo Clinic recommends four to six treatments spaced several weeks apart in order to achieve the optimum results. Due to the challenges associated with red hair, redheads may need additional or more frequent treatments.