1064 Hair Removal Effect,

Why It Differs for Deep Hair Like Beards

Last Wednesday,

a man in his early 30s came to the clinic, stressed because his shaving shadow was very dark.

"At another place, I had Alexandrite

done 6 times, but

my beard didn't really reduce."

This line, in fact,

I hear several times a month in the clinic.

And inside this question,

the core of the 1064 hair removal effect is all there.

755nm and 1064nm,

same hair removal, so why are they different?

1064nm is the wavelength of an Nd:YAG laser,

and 755nm is the wavelength of an Alexandrite laser.

Both are common devices used for hair removal.

If 755nm has a high melanin absorption rate

and responds quickly to shallow, fine hair,

1064nm has a lower absorption rate but

reaches much deeper layers.

The recently popular

GentleMax Pro Plus

combines these two wavelengths in one device

and lets you choose which one to use by area.

Why does 1064nm reach so deep into

beards? The principle makes it clear

Key point of this article

1064nm is invisible infrared light,

so it goes deeper, like orthopedic knee treatment.

That is why it is more effective than 755nm for hair removal on deep-rooted hair like male beards.

When you hear this,

you may be a little surprised.

Last month, a 30-year-old man came in,

and because the beard under his chin was so dense,

he said he was bothered by the bluish

shadow even after shaving.

When he had 4 sessions at another clinic,

"It did shrink a bit, but the key point is

the shaving shadow is still there"

was how he put it.

1064nm is a wavelength in the

invisible infrared range.

The wavelength used in orthopedics for treating

deep soft tissue in the knee

is in a similar range,

and the reason is the same.

The longer the wavelength, the deeper

it penetrates into the tissue.

Male beard follicles are usually

about 4-5 mm deep,

which is clearly deeper than leg hair (2-3 mm)

or underarm hair.

755nm effectively reaches about

2 mm or so,

but 1064nm can deliver heat

down to a depth of 5 mm.

What surprised me a bit

in this 30-year-old man's case was that,

when he came back after the second session,

he said, "Shaving definitely feels lighter."

To be honest,

I expected it would take about 4 sessions

before he really felt the difference,

but using 1064nm as the main wavelength

and pushing the output a bit more

than 755nm made a big difference.

For areas with deep roots like beards,

just changing the wavelength

can make the effect per session noticeably different.

Director Wi Youngjin's key summary

Even when you get the same hair-removal device,

the reason the effect differs by area

is often not the device itself, but

the choice of wavelength.

For beards, bikini areas, and thick, deep hair,

you need to increase the share of 1064nm

to feel the result session by session.

On dual-wavelength devices,

how you mix them by area

determines the effect.

So if I get 1064 hair removal,

does that mean I'm done?

If you look at this at a glance,

it becomes clearer.

To briefly go over the session-by-session timeline,

in sessions 1-2, it's just, "Oh, did it reduce a bit?"

by sessions 3-4, thickness and density noticeably decrease,

and after session 5

you move into the maintenance phase.

But it's not all

good news.

1064nm feels a bit more heavy

than 755nm in terms of pain,

and because the output settings are tricky, even with the same device

results vary a lot depending on the practitioner.

That said, for deep-rooted areas like beards and bikinis,

it's well worth putting up with that drawback.

If you've read this far,

this is probably what you're wondering

Q1. I heard that if you have a dark skin tone,

you can't get hair removal. Is 1064nm possible?

This is a bit tricky,

and I can't say, "It is absolutely possible,"

but compared with 755nm, it is much safer

for you to receive.

Because 755nm has a high melanin absorption rate,

the risk of burns and hyperpigmentation increases

on tanned or dark skin tones.

1064nm has a relatively low

melanin absorption rate, so it affects the epidermis less

and makes it easier to target only the follicle.

Last month, a 26-year-old came in,

and because she was outdoors a lot, her skin tone was quite dark,

and she said she had given up on

hair removal.

We started conservatively with

1064nm output,

and she has been progressing well through session 3

without pigment issues.

Q2. I got a 6-session package, but if the effect is insufficient,

how much extra will it cost?

The variation really depends

on the area and hair thickness.

For male beards, it is realistic to start

with an average of 8-10 sessions.

Some people are satisfied with 6 sessions,

but if you want a level where you don't need to shave,

you often need about 4 more sessions.

Fine hair like on the legs and arms

is mostly cleared with 5-7 sessions.

For maintenance, we recommend

1-2 sessions per year.

Additional session costs are set as a per-session rate

depending on the area size,

so before starting a package, it's best to

get a thorough consultation about the expected number of sessions for your area,

which helps reduce mistakes.

Q3. They say folliculitis often happens after the procedure,

does 1064nm cause that too?

To be honest, it has more to do with

the area and aftercare than with the wavelength.

In areas with a lot of sebum and deep follicles,

like beards and bikini areas, folliculitis can appear

within 2-3 days after treatment, regardless of the wavelength used.

As heat energy concentrates in the follicle,

a temporary inflammatory response appears.

It usually calms down in a few days,

but if you squeeze it by hand

or take a sauna or hot shower on the same day, it lasts longer.

For 2-3 days after treatment, just stick to lukewarm cleansing and sunscreen,

and most people get through it

without any trouble.

If you take away just one thing today,

— even with the same hair-removal device, whether the wavelength

reaches deep into the root is what makes the difference.

In the next post, I'll explain 'the difference between men whose beard hair removal is

fully covered by a 6-session package and those who need to go up to 10 sessions.'

Even among men in their 30s, depending on follicle density and depth,

I'll show how the number of sessions changes

with cases.

This has been Wi Youngjin.

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