What is Laser Therapy?
Laser therapy is a beauty therapy that uses focused light. The use of cosmetic lasers has significantly revolutionized the beauty industry, providing positive results with minimal invasiveness. Lasers work by using a wave of light to penetrate the pigment within the skin or hair.
Laser therapy has many uses. On one hand, it removes warts, moles, birthmarks, sun spots, unwanted hair and tattoos; it also reduces the appearance of wrinkles, blemishes or scars. On the other hand, laser therapy can treat muscular conditions such as sciatica, frozen shoulder and tennis elbow, to name a few.
How Does Laser Therapy Work?
Beauty laser therapy repairs damaged skin, rejuvenates ageing skin, speeds up the healing process of injured skin and clears out unwanted hair. Cosmetic lasers come in a variety of types, primarily distinguished by their wavelength and the mode of delivering light. The following are the common types of cosmetic lasers used for addressing a variety of skin conditions:
- Ablative lasers focus on removing the skin's outer layer to stimulate collagen formation for new skin regeneration.
- Non-Ablative lasers safely pass through the skin's outer layer to penetrate the tissue underneath.
- Fractional lasers send out a narrow beam of light to treat a small area of the skin, hence the healing process is fast.
- Carbon Dioxide (Co2) lasers emit a beam of infrared light with a wavelength of 10600nm to treat the affected area of skin without damaging the surrounding areas.
- Erbium Yttrium-Aluminum-Garnet (Er:YAG) promotes collagen production by removing the top layer of the skin or heating the underlying skin.
- Pulsed dye lasers convert light into heat to treat broken blood vessels.
- Nd: Yag lasers emit infrared light to heat the deep layers of skin tissues to treat scars, discoloration and wrinkles.
- Alexandrite lasers produce infrared light through an alexandrite crystal to work on larger areas of the skin.
What are the Benefits of Laser Therapy?
Contrary to common misconception, laser therapy is not only for aesthetic purposes. There is a wide range of treatments available to address all kinds of skin issues and health conditions.
Laser acupuncture is essentially the same as the traditional acupuncture but instead of the traditional needles, a laser is used to penetrate the skin. This type of therapy uses low powered lasers to target specific acupuncture points because of their impact on endorphins and the body's ability to detoxify and heal. It's totally pain-free.
Laser acupuncture is used to help people quit their addictions to alcohol and smoking as well as manage withdrawal syndrome.
Laser hair removal is another type of treatment service that is recommended for people who want to get rid of unwanted facial and body hair. It uses controlled light pulses to destroy the hair follicles and produces quick and lasting results.
Laser skin treatment is the most popular procedure as everyone from teenagers to senior citizens can benefit from it. It uses short, concentrated pulsating beams of light on the irregular skin, removing skin layer by layer precisely. This type of treatment offers the following benefits:
- Reduces fine lines and wrinkles
- Removes hyperpigmentation
- Gets rid of stretch marks
- Treats acne scars or blemishes
- Removes sunspots
- Treats spider veins
What Can You Expect From Laser Therapy?
Beauty laser therapy is a nondrug and nonsurgical procedure that enhances the appearance of the skin with minimal to no side effects. Most people see immediate results after the first or second treatment, which usually take 5 to 10 minutes. On the other hand, receiving treatment twice or thrice a week is beneficial for long long-standing skin conditions.
Before the session begins, the laser therapist will assess the health of the client, look at their medical history and medications, and may even ask them to fill out a consent form. Both practitioner and client will wear protective glasses or goggles throughout the procedure to protect their eyes from getting exposed to high-intensity light.
The recovery time depends on the depth of the surface treated, but most people reported achieving complete recovery after a week. After treatment, the treated area may appear pinkish or reddish and may last for a couple of hours. Clients should avoid the sun for at least two weeks because its UV rays may cause irreversible hyperpigmentation.
Is Laser Therapy Safe?
Laser therapy doesn't involve the use of drugs or any surgical procedures, so it's generally safe for everyone. However, it's important to choose a highly trained laser therapy provider to avoid infections or injuries.
