Hair follicles which grow under the skin are called ingrown hair. This kind of hair follicles are unable to come out of the skin causing red bumps that irritate the skin and later on will cause skin infections if not treated properly. If you have the problem of an ingrown hair there are some practical solutions to solve this problem.

• You have to clean your skin with soap and lukewarm water concentrating on the area where the ingrown hair is located.

• Make sure that you sterilize your tweezers in alcohol for a few minutes to avoid infection.

• Make use of a warm compress to open up the skin pores. You should not touch the red bump on the skin if the ingrown hair has not come out of the skin. The purpose of the warm compress is to help the skin release the ingrown hair. Let the warm compress set in for a few minutes.

• Try to gently pull out the hair with your tweezers. Try to uncurl the hair then pull it back enough until it is out of the skin. Use the sharp edge of the tweezers to gently guide the hair to the normal hair growth direction. Do not take it out completely because this would cause the skin to breakout and bleed.

• Clean the skin area around the ingrown hair with antiseptics. You can also use hydrogen peroxide to do this. This would help prevent bacteria and other skin infections to set in.

You can also do some preventive tips to avoid having ingrown hair:

• Make sure to shave it properly. Use a single blade razor or electric shaver.

• Remember to use warm water when shaving to open up the pores. Apply a generous amount of shaving cream to help moisten the skin for easy shaving.

• Make use of exfoliation by using a facial scrub. Try to gently exfoliate the ingrown hair by rubbing gently at least twice a day. This would also help remove dirt and dead skin cells from the skin.

• You can also try to apply some acne medication to help ease out the swelling around the area of the ingrown hair. You can make use of salicylic acid and apply on the area for a few days. This would help reduce the swelling and ease out the hair to come out.

• Avoid wearing too tight clothing around the neck or leg areas. Avoid wearing stiff collars and too tight leggings or stockings. Try to wear clothing that fit well but loose enough that would help the skin breath.

As a word of caution if your ingrown hair is causing more irritation and is worsened by some methods which you used, it is practical to seek proper medical attention from a dermatologist to solve this problem.

Jonathan Pitts

Copyrighted material; do not reprint without permission.

 

View all articles by Jonathan Pitts