After receiving so many queries ingrown hairs, I am finally coming up with a new post on the topic to clear all your doubts on ingrown hairs. How the ingrown hairs and formed and how the problem can be prevented. And later on we will discuss how they cause pimples and will let you know how to cure them too. So stay tuned till the end (Tip included).
First of all, let’s find out that
How the ingrown hair develop?
Basically, ingrown hair is those shaved or tweezed hair that grow sideways and curl back into the skin surface. These are more likely to turn into skin bumps and, in some scenarios, painful pimples.
There can be many reasons which cause ingrown hair. And you will read the most prominent ones in this blog post.
Now, let’s dive into the juice of this topic.
What causes ingrown hair?
According to the Mayo Clinic, ingrown hairs are generally normal in African-American men who shave. You may notice that commonly they have thick and curly hairs.
Dark Coarse hair
People who usually have thick, dark, and curled hair growth are more likely to encounter the hair ingrowth problem. As sharp hair ends are more likely to penetrate the skin surface and grow sideways. In such a scenario, opting for reliable hair removal methods such as laser treatment is always best.
Dead skin
Dead skin not only causes acne but ingrowth as well. As dead skin build-up clogs our skin pores, it blocks the breathing of pores and locks the sebum in pores, which turns out in acne or pimple.
On our body, dead skin gets build up around the hair follicle, and due to this, our hair doesn’t get way to grow outwards, so it grows sideways and turns into ingrowth.
Improper shaving method
Running razors in the opposite direction of hair growth often causes hair ingrowth. Also, it irritates the skin as well.
Other hair removal techniques
Waxing, epilating, hair removal creams, and laser are some of the ways which often get used by people to get rid of body hair. Whereas hair removal creams come up with a risk of side effects due to high chemical content, it may or may not cause hair ingrowth depending as per your hair type.
Talking about other hair removal methods, waxing is the most common and a bit painful way to get rid of body hair. As waxing and epilating removes the hair from the root. There occurs a high probability of ingrowth due to dead skin build-up. So you better exfoliate your body if you opt for any method which removes the hair from the root.
See Also: Love flawless skin? Simply follow these beauty rules!
Meantime, laser hair treatment is the best way to get rid of body hair while eliminating the risk of hair ingrowth.
How to prevent Ingrown hair?
Exfoliation
Exfoliation is key to prevent ingrown hair growth because dead skin is one of the prominent reasons for this skin problem. As dead skin clogs the pore which does not let the hair grow upwards, and this results in hair curling up and growing sideways in the skin surface.
Therefore, to prevent such a situation, you better exfoliate your skin at least twice a week.
Work on your shaving techniques
How you shave your body parts determine the high probability of sideways hair growth. You should never shave your skin in the opposite direction of hair growth. Always shave in the direction of hair growth.
Because when you shave the hair in the opposite direction, the razor blades make the hair ends sharp, which are more likely to curl up and penetrate the skin surface. In such a situation, hair grows back into the skin surface. So always make sure you run razors in the direction of hair growth only.
See Also: Shaving: Best guide for Hair Removal!
How to get rid of existing ingrown hair?
There can be two cases for such a scenario
- The ingrown hair can turn into a painful pimple
- The hair can turn into a painless bump
In case if your ingrown hair has turned into an unpleasant pimple situation, then make sure you touch that area with clean hands only. You can gently clean the affected area with a warm wet cloth to make the affected skin soft.
Now, if there is pus in that area that gently put pressure all around that pimple and let the pus come out, then wipe it gently with a damp cotton ball and try to pluck out the hair by holding the hair from the surface, not from the tip. After that, clean the area with a mild antibacterial solution and let it heal naturally. Don’t touch the area until unless it’s mandatory.
Please note, if the hair plucking process becomes unusually painful, then stop the things right away. In such situations, knocking down the dermatologist’s door is always a wise step.
But if you relate to the second case where your ingrown hair has turned into a painless bump. Where the hair follicle is just curled up in the top surface of your skin, then you don’t need to worry as you can handle this situation on your own. There can be two outcomes:
A. These bumps will fade away eventually as these generally get normal with time and do not cause any skin problem.
B. You can take charge and try to get rid of these by taking care of your skin. Just exfoliate that area with a good body scrub. As exfoliation can help in soften and removing the dead skin layer from that ingrown hair, which going to free up the hair.
Personal Tip
If your ingrown hair bumps are really tiny, covered with a very thin layer of skin and visible through the skin layer, then you can shave that area, be it legs, arms, or thighs. This method has worked for me. Maybe it can work for you guys as well.
So this was a piece of precise information for you all. I hope this will help you out.
We will be going to talk about more skin problems, so stay tuned. 🙂
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