Out with ingrowns: expert advice on how to get rid of these unsightly bumps

Shape, July, 2004 by Jody Buffalo

It's common for women to suffer from ingrown hairs under the arms, on the legs and around the bikini area. Here, Dennis Gross, M.D., a New York City dermatologist, offers advice on how to prevent--and treat--them.

THE BASIC FACTS

Hair has two separate structures: the follicle, a pouchlike depression in the skin, and the shaft, the visible part of hair. The root of the hair extends down into the follicle and widens into a bulb at its base, which is the center of hair growth. Hair is lubricated by sebaceous (oil) glands, located in the skin, usually next to hair follicles.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR

Here, reasons why ingrowns occur:

* The hair follicle becomes injured. Repeated nicking/pulling of the skin through shaving or waxing can damage the opening of the follicle so there's no clear hole from which the hair shaft can grow.

* The hair follicle becomes obstructed. Excess oil produced by the sebaceous glands can form a plug in the stockinglike follicle, forcing the hair either back down into, or out a side of, the follicle.

* Not everyone's hair grows straight. The curlier the hair, the less likely it is to exit the hair follicle properly.

SIMPLE SOLUTIONS

You can get your skin smooth for summer. Beauty Rx:

1. Be gentle when shaving. Go over your skin lightly with a clean, not dull, razor blade and use shaving cream.

2. Exfoliate. Swipe skin regularly with lotions or easy-to-use pads that contain the exfoliators glycolic, salicylic or other hydroxy acids, all of which clear away the dead skin cells that clog pores and hair follicles. Try M.D. Skincare Alpha Beta Daily Body Peel ($78; mdskincare.com) or Poetic Cosmetics Ingrown Eliminator lotion ($25; blissworld.com).

3. Find the best method of hair removal for you and stick with it. Once you figure out which one causes the least bumps for you--whether it's waxing, shaving or using depilatory lotions--don't switch.

4. Reduce hair permanently. It's pricey, but laser hair removal, which targets the hair follicle pigment and damages the hair shaft and root, reduces cell's ability to produce hair. You'll need a minimum of six sessions (at $200-$300 each), spaced one month apart, to treat an area like the bikini line. Results can last at least a year.

RELATED ARTICLE: SKIN

1. follicle

2. shaft

3. ingrown hair

4. sebaceous (oil) gland

RELATED ARTICLE: WHAT WORKS

"To prevent skin trauma, which can lead to ingrown hairs, take your time when shaving and keep your body stable, as if you're performing an operation," says Dennis Gross, M.D., a New York City dermatologist and founder of the M.D. Skincare line. "It's important also to clean the area with soap and water after you've shaved, since bacteria can cause a plug in the hair shaft." For persistent ingrown cases, Gross advocates laser hair removal; many of his patients have had the treatments and their skin, according to Gross, looks better overall. But while some redness is normal for up to 24 hours after any type of hair removal, if you also have white-headed or red bumps, you could have an infection of the follicles--not ingrown hairs. In that case, see a dermatologist for topical antibiotics.