I was advised that laser was only effective if you had dark hairs? As I am nearly 50 many of my hair are white lacking pigment. Electrolysis will be my best option. Unfortunately expensive and time consuming! Don't think or know if I would get treatment on the national health service  here in the uk

Thank you.  I've been spending weeks looking up both laser and electrolysis for answers, and kept getting conflicting answers.  Some places say that it is permanent, especially if you have dark hair (which I do) and fairly light skin.   Meanwhile plenty of places claim that Laser isn't permanent, and you shouldn't waste money since you'll just need get it all removed again with electrolysis.

However the price and the duration of electrolysis was holding me.

You've all been very helpful and made some great points for giving laser a try and then cleaning the rest with electrolysis.  And thanks to Jessica for starting the thread.

Several manufacturers received FDA permission to claim, "permanent reduction," NOT "permanent removal" for their lasers. This means that although laser treatments with these devices will permanently reduce the total number of body hairs, they will not result in a permanent removal of all hair. The specific claim granted is "intended to effect stable, long-term, or permanent reduction" through selective targeting of melanin in hair follicles. Permanent hair reduction is defined as the long-term, stable reduction in the number of hairs re-growing after a treatment regime, which may include several sessions. The number of hairs regrowing must be stable over time greater than the duration of the complete growth cycle of hair follicles, which varies from four to twelve months according to body location. Permanent hair reduction does not necessarily imply the elimination of all hairs in the treatment area.

Electrolysis is considered a permanent hair removal method, since it destroys the hair follicle. It requires a series of appointments over a period of time.

Some information taken from the FDA web site http://www.fda.gov/radiation-emittingproducts/resourcesforyouradiationemittingproducts/ucm252761.htm
and http://www.fda.gov/forconsumers/consumerupdates/ucm048995.htm

I had professional laser done on my face in 2004. Still to this day i have to have electrolysis to help keep it clear.

So if you do laser plan to either follow up with more laser later when things start to regrow or electrolysis.

Isabell.

Incidentally, if it helps, I also did the math on assuming for the sake of argument that laser was *not* permanent - it was still much cheaper and much less time investment to do laser every 10 years (hypothetically) than electro once, unless I lived to be like 120. And that's back when laser cost considerably more than it seems to these days!

Isabell : What that's saying, though, is that what's removed DOES stay gone/dead. Nothing will regrow after laser kills it. Laser just doesn't remove everything. However, for someone who's a good candidate (like me, light skin/dark hair), they can get results like mine, and I have maybe a dozen hairs left surviving. The remainder are killed off for good, and I'm content with this result.

Good to know.  Thanks Jenna and Isabell