Laser Hair Removal
Say Goodbye to Shaving and Waxing!
York Laser and MedSpa has been offering laser hair removal to Aurora, Newmarket, and York Region since 2002 (originally as Aurora Laser Clinic, then as York Vein and Laser Clinic).
Laser HAIR Removal 20% off October 2024
We have the experience, expertise, and equipment to remove unwanted hair from your face, bikini line, legs, underarms, or any other area (like men's chest and back).
Call to book your consultation with one of our expert staff!
(905) 726-1126
Frequently Asked Questions
Laser hair removal involves the application of powerful light, delivered by laser or IPL (intense pulsed light), to reduce unwanted hair on any part of the body.
The light penetrates the skin and is absorbed by dark pigment (melanin) in the root of the hair. The temperature of the hair rises, and the hair burns. This burning hair injures the hair follicle, damaging the cells that produce the hair.
Because the skin is light in colour, most of the light energy is reflected, and the skin is undamaged.
If sufficient damage has been done to the hair follicle, it dies and will not regenerate. Any remaining hair in the follicle will shed over the next week or two and will not return. Some follicles are only injured, and they survive. Usually these injured follicles are weakened and produce finer hair that is of less cosmetic significance.
At the York Laser and MedSpa we use the Candela Gentle YAG Pro laser and occasionally the Harmony IPL.
The Gentle YAG was chosen for its unequalled safety profile as explained here.
The target for laser light energy is the pigment called melanin. This pigment is found in hair and throughout the skin. The darker your skin, the more melanin it contains. The object of laser hair removal is to have more absorption of laser light energy by the melanin in the hair root than by melanin in the skin, thereby destroying the hair follicle but preserving the skin.
The Gentle YAG laser has the longest wavelength available for hair removal. The longer wavelength of the Gentle YAG laser results in deeper penetration of light into the skin where the hair root resides. Less light energy is absorbed at the surface of the skin. The result is hair root damage without skin damage. The Gentle YAG uses the safest wavelength available for hair removal.
The longer wavelength of the Gentle YAG is safe for use on all skin colors, including tanned skin.
Most other lasers use wavelengths of light that are scattered and absorbed in the very superficial layers of the skin where they may cause undesirable skin side effects such as burning and pigment changes. These shorter wavelengths are safe on light-coloured skin, but unsuitable for treating dark skin.
However, no laser works well for treating lighter colored hair. For this reason, we sometimes use the Harmony IPL machine. IPL (intense pulsed light) delivers light energy of multiple wavelengths. These other wavelengths are better absorbed by lighter colored hair than the wavelengths used by lasers. The tradeoffs are that 1) IPL is a weaker device than a laser so more sessions are required, and 2) IPL can only be used to treat fair skinned people. Fortunately, these are also commonly the people who want to treat lighter colored hair.
To summarize, the Gentle YAG can treat people of all skin types including dark skin (e.g. East Indian). The Harmony IPL is used in fair skinned people with light-coloured or fine hair. Between these different technologies, we can help almost everyone regarding hair removal.
Any and all parts of the body can and have been treated using lasers and IPL. In women the most commonly treated areas are the upper lip, chin, bikini line, underarms, and lower legs. Men most commonly request treatment of neck, shoulders, chest, and back. Even the ears and nose can be treated. We are cautious about treating eyebrows because lasers are not great tools for shaping small areas.
The darker the hair color the better. Dark hair absorbs more light, which makes more heat to damage the folllicle.
The coarser the hair the better. When coarse hair is treated it generates a lot of heat, and this is more likely to injure the cells of the follicle that make the hair.
Vellus hair (peach fuzz) does not respond to laser treatment (not enough colour, too fine). For permanent results, vellus hair is best treated by electrolysis, which we do not offer.
Laser treatment is ineffective on blonde and white hair, because it contains little or no melanin. Red hair is difficult to treat because all hair removal lasers shoot red light which bounces off red hair and fails to heat up the hair.
Electrolysis requires the insertion of a needle into individual hair follicles followed by the application of a low intensity electrical current. While this can result in hair removal, the process is tedious and requires numerous treatments, frequently over a period of years.
In contrast, laser treatments cover large areas in a matter of minutes. Laser only requires four to eight treatments over the course of a few months to achieve long lasting hair reduction.*
Waxing, shaving, tweezing, threading, and depilatory creams are all maintenance techniques with no lasting benefit. Laser treatment produces long-lasting hair reduction following only a few treatments.*
Laser may seem expensive, but the long-term hair reduction achieved will actually give you significant savings in money and huge savings in time. Imagine never having to shave or wax again!
A 15-30 minute complimentary consultation is required prior to treatment.
All treatments are done by a female technician or nurse. They are well trained and very experienced.
Please note, that the only male on staff is the doctor. If you insist on being treated by him, all treatments will be done on a time basis at $500 per hour with $150 being the minimum charge.
Laser hair removal is very safe, but there are some risks.
Laser might cause some pain. (See the question below about pain.)
Mild redness is normal and usually lasts an hour or so.
The intense light of the laser can cause burning and blistering, but this is very rare.
Pigment changes can occur. This can be increased pigmentation or decreased pigmentation in the treated area. This is rare.
Occasionally people develop a light-induced rash (photodermatitis), which can be intensely itchy but goes away on its own in a few days. It can be treated with cortisone cream. We see photodermatitis about once a year.
Your eyes can be injured by laser light, so you will be provided with glasses or goggles to keep you safe.
Absolutely not. The wavelength of light that produces skin cancer is in the ultraviolet range of the spectrum.
The Gentle YAG produces light at the opposite end of the spectrum in the infrared range. The Harmony IPL has filters that block out the light in the ultraviolet range. They cannot cause skin cancer.
No. The goal of laser hair removal is to prevent the re-growth of hair. Hair follicles that are destroyed will not regenerate. Hair follicles that are only injured may continue to produce hair. In most cases this hair is lighter in color and finer in texture (like peach fuzz).
There is no system of hair removal that will ever achieve total removal of hair. You will always have some hair. The laser may disable up to 50% of hair follicles in the first treatment. In the second treatment 50% of what remains might be destroyed and so on. After six treatments only a small percentage of hair follicles survive. At this point most people are very happy with the results.*
The laser cannot treat vellus hair (peach fuzz). Vellus hair can convert over time into terminal (coarse) hair. This is a natural process of aging caused by hormone effects. This process is most relevant to facial hair in women.
The goal of treatment is significant hair reduction.
Hair follicles that are killed by the laser will not regenerate.
Hair follicles that are only damaged may continue to produce hair. This hair is usually finer and lighter in color than your original hair. It is of less cosmetic concern and is easier to deal with. You may still need to shave, but it will be far less often.
Some follicles are not damaged at all. These are usually fine hairs with little cosmetic significance. White and grey hair will not respond.
Don't forget the concept of conversion of vellus hair follicles. Vellus hair (peach fuzz) can convert under the influence of hormones and time to coarse hair. The laser will not stimulate this conversion of vellus to terminal hair. This is a natural process we all undergo.
The goal of treatment is long-term hair reduction.
With each treatment, only a certain percentage of hair follicles are destroyed. If 50% of hair follicles are destroyed with the first treatment and 50% of the remaining hair follicles are destroyed with the next treatment and so on, after four treatments approximately 90% hair reduction would be achieved. However, 50% reduction with each treatment cannot necessarily be achieved. The success of each treatment depends on many factors including hair color (darker is easier to treat), hair texture (finer is harder to treat), skin color (darker is harder to treat), and hormone status (excess testosterone stimulates conversion of vellus hair to terminal hair).
Coarse hair usually needs about 6 treatments. Fine hair might need 10 or more sessions.
With the Gentle YAG and Soprano, immediately following treatment you may experience some redness and slight swelling of the skin. In almost all cases these effects are gone in the first hour.
With IPL there may be redness and heat that will last for a few hours.
You can return to your daily activities immediately following treatment.
Immediately following treatment with the Gentle YAG laser and Harmony IPL, you may be able to wipe away some of the hair that has been destroyed. However, you are not likely to see an appreciable reduction in the amount of hair immediately. Hair reduction will only become evident over the next few weeks. For a few weeks following treatment, hair follicles that have actually been destroyed might look like they are stilll making hair. In fact, this is simply damaged hair that is being slowly expelled from the follicles. These damaged hairs are easily pulled from the skin. Undamaged hair is still firmly attached and cannot easily be plucked.
Yes and no. Tanning stimulates the production of melanin in the skin. This pigment absobs energy and can lead to burns or pigment changes.
It is safe to treat tanned skin with the Gentle YAG, but we may need to use lower energy. Lower energy means each individual treatment is a bit less effective, so more treatments may be required. More treatments means more expense, so to save money, avoid getting a tan prior to treatment.
If you tan easily, your skin may get too dark for us to continue to use the painless Soprano laser, because t. The Soprano can bleach out pigment leaving whitish spots. This will persist for several weeks to months. The same is true for the Harmony IPL.
Laser and IPL can stimulate melanin production. If tanning and laser treatment are combined, melanin production may be excessive leading to hyperpigmentation. It is recommended that you avoid active tanning for at least three days prior to and following laser treatments and two weeks following IPL treatments.
The Gentle YAG laser is safe and effective for people of all colors. However, because dark skin absorbs more laser light, treatment energy must be reduced to keep the skin safe. Lower energy means each individual treatment is a bit less effective, so more treatments may be required.
The Harmony cannot be used in dark-skinned people because of the risk of burning and pigment changes.
Dark hair is easy to treat.
Red and blonde hair contains less melanin. Therefore, more treatments are required and response may only be partial. We don't recommend laser for these colours.
Gray and white hair contains no melanin. It cannot be treated using any type of light.
Absolutely! In fact, you should shave a day or two prior to treatments. The laser is targeting the hair root, which is unaffected by shaving (and depilatory creams). Shaving removes hair above the surface that can absorb the laser light and reduce the amount of energy delivered to the roots. The laser will burn surface hair, which can add discomfort to the treatment, not to mention the distasteful odor of burned hair!
Shaving prior to treatment also allows you to show us exactly the area you want treated, which is important for bikini lines and men’s necks and backs.
Unlike waxing, plucking, threading etc. we don’t need hair above the surface for the treatment to work, so you can shave between treatments.
Avoid shaving immediately prior to treatment, because shaving sensitizes the skin. Shave a day or two before your treatment.
Shaving will not make your hair coarser, denser or faster growing! This deeply entrenched popular misconception has been thoroughly disproven by dermatology studies!
No. These techniques remove the hair root, which is the target for the laser. If there is no hair in the follicle, no energy is absorbed, and the hair follicle is left undamaged. You must wait four to six weeks after using one of these techniques to allow regrowth of target hairs for the laser.
Dyeing does not affect the roots. If you want to dye your hair blonde, got right ahead. The melanin in the hair follicle is still present to act as a target for the laser. Conversely, dyeing blonde, gray, or white hair will not increase the efficiency of the laser.
Our experience has shown that bleaching dark hair might reduce the efficiency of the laser treatments. It seems that some of the bleach does get into the follicle and lighten the hair colour making it a more difficult target. We recommend that you avoid bleaching.
Do not pluck, wax, tweeze, thread, or sugar for six weeks prior to treatment.
Although it is permissible to tan prior to treatment, this adds pigment to the skin and therefore requires lowering of the energy of the laser to protect the skin. This reduces the efficiency of hair removal, and may necessitate an extra treatment. It is preferable to avoid tanning for a few weeks prior to treatment.
Don't bleach your hair. If some bleaching affects the root, treatments will be less effective.
Treatment time varies according to the size of the area being covered and the device used.
The upper lip is a very small area that can be covered in a few minutes. Both lower legs will require approximately 1 hour. A man's back will require about 1 hour.
You should allow an interval of 6 to 12 weeks between laser treatments on the same area.
Hair follicles have a life-cycle with three phases. In Phase 1 there is actively growing hair in the follicle. In Phase 2 the hair stops growing and begins to loosen. In Phase 3 the hair falls out. The cycle is then repeated. Laser treatment is most effective during the active growth in Phase 1. It is ineffective in Phase 3 when there is no hair in the follicle.
At least 6 weeks is required for enough hair follicles to return to Phase 1 to make the next treatment effective. There is no advantage to waiting longer than 12 weeks.
Avoid waxing, plucking, etc for at least six weeks prior to treatment.
Avoid tanning.
Shave the area you want us to treat. This should be done the day prior to treatment. Shaving the day prior to treatment allows the skin time to recover from the irritation of shaving and reduces any discomfort of the procedure. Allowing one day of growth before treatment helps us to see the area to be treated.
Do not apply makeup or deodorants. These can absorb the energy of the laser light, reducing the efficiency of treatment and increasing the risk of burning.
Remove reflective jewelry in the area to be treated. Directly reflected laser light can cause serious eye damage to the laser technician.
Wear clothing that will allow easy access to the area to be treated (eg. tank top or sleeveless shirt for underarms; skirt, track pants, or loose pants for legs). For bikini line, wear an old swimsuit or under pants. The laser is easily capable of burning natural fibers and melting synthetic material.
This varies from device to device and area to area. Of course, pain tolerance varies greatly from person to person. Therefore, there is no easy answer to this question.
Gentle YAG: The Gentle YAG causes very mild pain. In order to protect the skin from excessive heat, the GentleYAG uses an innovative cooling system. Immediately prior to each laser pulse a brief squirt of sub-zero liquid is delivered to the skin. This cold spray reduces the discomfort of the laser shots to almost nothing. Some laser pulses feel like the snapping of an elastic band or a mild electric tingle or shock. Other laser pulses are not felt at all. Most people who have experienced waxing and electrolysis prefer laser treatments.
Harmony IPL: IPL also causes some pain. It feels hot. It's like picking up a hot cup of coffee and having to put it down again because it's too hot. There's a zing of pain, and then it's gone.
Certain areas of the body are more sensitive than other areas. There is likely to be greater discomfort over bony areas such as the shin. The area just below the nose is very sensitive. In the underarms, there are large nerves that pass close to the surface that may be sensitive to treatment.
The GentleYAG is close to painless, so this question is likely not relevant.
If you do find treatments uncomfortable, there are several things you can do to improve this.
Shaving prior to treatment removes hair from the surface that would otherwise burn and add to the discomfort. Shave the day before. Avoid shaving immediately prior to treatment, because shaving sensitizes the skin.
Topical anesthetic creams can be used to numb the skin. It needs to be applied thirty to sixty mintes prior to treatment and left in place until immediately before treatment.
It is perfectly reasonable to take analgesics such as Tylenol, Advil, or codeine prior to treatment, but this is rarely done.
Other than avoidance of the sun, there aren't any restrictions.
You can return to work or other daily activities immediately.
You should avoid sunlight and tanning beds for at least three days following treatment. This allows the skin time to settle and reduces the risk of developing excess pigment. Sunscreen should be employed with minimum SPF 15. SPF 30 to 60 is preferred. We offer sunscreens that have broad-spectrum protection for UV-A and UV-B.
You can shave between treatments, but avoid plucking and waxing.
You can shave between treatments, but avoid plucking and waxing.
We prefer to treat adolescent girls only once their menstrual cycle has settled. Generally, age 16 and up is not a problem. This is not a hard and fast rule. We have treated many 14 and 15 year olds.
We will not treat children under the age of 12, unless there is a medical reason (for example, treatment of a hairy nevus).
8 Problems You Might Have with Laser Hair Removal Clinics and How York Laser and MedSpa Solves Them All
1) Many laser hair removal establishments are run by people with minimal knowledge of the science behind skin and lasers, and that makes them dangerous. At York Laser and MedSpa your consultation is done by highly experienced staff with extensive knowledge of the interaction between laser light and skin. The doctor is always available to advise you and guide your treatment.
2) The experience and training of the staff doing your treatments might be very limited. We have very experienced staff doing your treatments. The same staff members have been providing laser hair removal since 2001. This ensures that you get the safest, most effective treatment possible.
3) Many clinics use outdated technology. Lasers cost about $100,000. Most businesses can’t afford this, so they buy old used lasers. At York Laser and MedSpa we upgrade every two to three years.
4) Most places have only one laser. All lasers are not created equal. There are advantages and disadvantages to every laser. York Laser and MedSpa has four different lasers for hair removal. With that kind of selection, you have the best chance of getting a laser that is best suited to your skin and hair type. We can treat all skin colors safely. Most clinics are pushing their luck (and yours) when treating tanned skin and dark skin types like East Indian and Middle Eastern.
5) Laser hair removal is usually not guaranteed. York Laser and MedSpa offers a money-back guarantee.
6) Most laser hair removal businesses fail in the first year or two. If you have bought a package, say goodbye to your money. York Laser and MedSpa has been in business since 2002, and we are growing rapidly. We’ll be around to see you through your entire series of treatments.
7) Most clinics aren’t run by doctors. They can't provide prescriptions for the prevention of cold sores which can be triggered by laser treatments. They can’t provide physician's receipts. Receipts from physicians are eligible for reimbursement through Health Spending Accounts.
Call us today to book your consultation with one of our laser hair removal experts:
(905) 726-1126
We require 3 business days notice for cancellation of your consultation or treatment, in order to fill the appointment time. If sufficient notice is not given, the full value of the treatment to be done maybe charged with the minimum charge being $100. If you have purchased a package, and you miss an appointment without giving sufficient notice, then that treatment may be deemed to have been given, and you will receive one less treatment than you paid for.
*Results may vary.
Testimonials
"I was surprised at how quickly the treatment worked. After the first time, I was already satisfied. My skin in the bikini area looks great. I can wear a bathing suit anytime!!!!!!!!"
"I am absolutely overjoyed with the smoothness of my legs and the privilege of being able to abandon my razors. Fantastic, beautiful, wonderful. I LOVE IT! NO MORE STUBBLE! (and her partner says, "I am overwhelmed with the satisfaction of this investment. I wish we had done it sooner!")"
"The staff is a wonderful, experienced. Very informed and professional. Helped me and my daughter (who started hair removal at age 16) feel at ease. Always courteous. I have recommended the clinic to many. I am mostly in awe over your guarantee. You keep your word."
"The staff have always been great to deal with! I drive to Newmarket from Woodbridge, and it is well worth it. I have tried SEVERAL laser clinics, and yours is by far the best I've experienced. I think you're doing a great job! Keep it up!"
"Wonderful not to have to shave again!! Relatively painless."
"The laser treatment on my bikini line was effective, and I am therefore continuing with treatment on my upper lip."
"I am very pleased with the results of my treatments. I am no longer trying to hide my chin from the world. My skin is much less irritated. No more plucking."
"The staff at the clinic is very pleasant to deal with. I am very happy with the results of the laser hair removal."
"Dr. Kritzinger and his staff treated my bikini, underarms, and legs. The results were fabulous. My hair is gone. No more shaving, no more waxing, no more ingrown hairs. I am pleased beyond my expectations. Thank you York Laser!"
"I was very impressed with the outcome of my treatment. My skin was a little red for the first hour but went away and my skin felt normal afterward."
*Results may vary.
Gallery
*Results may vary.
