There are many different ways to remove body hair and the one you choose will depend upon how long lasting you want the hair removal to be, the part of the body concerned, your skin and hair type, and how much it costs.
Plucking
This is the cheapest method, requiring only a pair of tweezers. However, it is very painstaking and slow, and is therefore only recommended for very small areas of the body, such as eyebrows, or the stray maverick hair.
Shaving
Shaving is relatively cheap and can be done while in the shower. Large areas of hair can be removed quite quickly, but as the hair is only taken off at skin level, it grows back very quickly.
Depilatories
Depilatories are chemical substances spread over the hair and left for about ten minutes, before gently wiping away the residue of paste and dissolved hair. A prior test on a small patch of skin is recommended before proceeding with the full removal.
Waxing
Waxing involves applying warm wax to the body part. It is then allowed to cool and harden, at which point it is ripped away from the skin, pulling out all the hair by the roots. As with all root-removal methods, the hairless result lasts longer.
Sugaring
This is a similar method to waxing, but uses a paste or gel made up of natural substances. It has one big advantage over waxing in that being water-soluble, it is easier to clean up.
Electrolysis
This method introduces an electric current to the hair follicle via a fine needle, thus killing it and preventing regrowth. However, in practice, more than one treatment is usually necessary to achieve this. This is not a cheap way to remove hair, and is probably best used for small areas and awkward hairs.
Laser
Laser is probably the most expensive method, but is very effective over large and small areas.
None of the hair removal methods will produce a permanent result (with the possible exception of electrolysis), and while some produce more long lasting results than others, regrowth does seem to diminish over time with repeated treatment.
Picture: Jacek Chabraszewski – Fotolia