If you carefully study the history of hair removal, you will find that human beings have been trying to remove hair since they were hairy. Neanderthals practiced the primitive form of shaving and shearing, probably to avoid lice or long and big hair, because they would block the way of mammoths when hunting. In addition, the elders with more hair in the tribe will die "earlier" than the young people with less hair, so there is a wrong connection between the length of hair and beard and life expectancy. With the evolution of human beings, growing a beard has become a fashionable saying, so to achieve the popular effect, it is necessary to shave off part of the beard.

Women in many parts of the world are required to keep their legs and armpits hairless, and a neat bikini line is also necessary when wearing swimsuits. Nowadays, hair removal is usually considered as a beauty problem, removing a hairy back or an embarrassing female beard.

Most cultures have acceptable and unacceptable hair areas and quantities, so it is necessary to enforce these unwritten rules to avoid exclusion. We will review five methods of hair removal in history, from grinding tools used by Neanderthals to modern laser technology.

1. Worn

For a long time, people have been using grinding or rubbing to remove excess hair. It is believed that ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans used dull stones such as pumice and sharp volcanic glass to remove hair. This process is inexpensive and relatively painless, and the fine body hair on the skin surface is "ground" into a rough surface. Pumice is still used as a popular abrasive, which can not only remove hair from the body, but also remove dead skin cells and calluses. And gloves with built-in abrasive surfaces. Using gloves to do circular motion in problematic places will remove fine hairs, exfoliate in the process and make the skin smooth.

Step 2 comb your hair with thin thread

Cotton thread is another ancient depilation technique, which is popular again now. It needs a ring to pull the hair out of the root, which is usually used to shape the eyebrows. It is said that the method of putting a lasso around unwanted hair and pulling it out is relatively less painful than plucking it. It's also very cheap and can be used for six weeks. A beauty salon in Chicago costs $5 for two eyebrows. American beauticians are still very popular in India and the Middle East, although they have not been trained in the technique of trimming eyebrows with cotton thread, and this technique is also found in salons in Indian and Muslim communities in big American cities.

Hair removal with sugar enzyme

Although it sounds like some kind of medieval torture method, it is actually very mild. Glucoamylase first appeared in the field of hair removal in ancient Egypt, and now it reappears in high-end spas and salons. Just like waxing, apply the warm mixture to the skin and then wipe it off with a cotton swab. The difference lies in the pain point of user experience. This soft candy paste only sticks to the hair, not the skin. This makes the parts removed in the process more tolerable. The sugar mixture is also cooled to a comfortable room temperature, instead of the hotter wax. Finally, sugar paste is all natural, so it is easier to skin than many petroleum-based waxes.

4. Electric hair removal

If temporary hair removal doesn't work for you, and you want to permanently remove the back hair on your neck, electrolysis may be a good choice. This technique uses a thin metal needle to reach the bottom of the hair follicle and apply an electric shock there. If done correctly, this can effectively burn hair follicles and prevent future hair growth. The disadvantage is that if you want to cover a large area, the cost may be high and it may be very painful. And because each hair is powered separately, it is also quite time-consuming. On the positive side, this method has been proved since Dr. Charles Michel first used this method to remove endogenous eyelashes in 1875. Just make sure that you are looking for experienced and reputable technicians, so as to achieve the expected results.

5. Laser

When you talk about permanent hair removal, laser hair removal is a common alternative to electrolysis. This method is to project the laser on the skin and finally aim at the hair follicle in the form of heat. This will lead to inflammation, and the hair follicle will enter the static stage permanently. Although optical fiber repair was started from 1969, it was not until 1995 that the US Food and Drug Administration approved the first laser cleaning system. Although many consumers claim that hair regeneration is rare, data on how long laser treatment can last are still not available. If you have light skin and dark hair, you are the best candidate for this technology, because the laser is aimed at dark areas of the body. It is non-invasive and can treat a large area in one treatment. However, it is also expensive, and if it is not handled properly, it may lead to burns, skin discoloration and plaque regeneration. So just like electrolysis, do some homework and find an experienced and reputable technician.