Despite the great demand for easy, cheap removal of unwanted hair, a chemical solution in the form of an over-the-counter cream has remained elusive for many years. Creams possess many advantages over other methods. Unlike plucking, they are generally painless unless an allergic rash is developed, while they are far cheaper and more convenient than electrolysis or laser hair removal. They can be applied almost anywhere, although some areas may need a measure of privacy, and they work on all colors of hair and all skin tones equally.

However, the trade-off with creams is they are generally effective only temporarily. Chemical depilatories usually work by breaking down the keratin in hair, weakening the hair to the point where it can be scraped or rubbed off easily at skin level. In effect, they weaken hair to the point where it can be 'wiped off' rather than needing shaving. However, this effect typically does not last longer than a thorough shave does - a few days at most. Care must also be used because keratin is also present in the skin, and leaving the cream on the skin can cause irritation as the chemical weakly attacks the body's surface. Such creams are usually for the arms and legs, and not for the face or other sensitive areas, for this reason.

Fortunately, more advanced products are now available, whose active ingredients are bioactive plant extracts rather than the usual calcium hydroxide. These creams seep into the hair follicle after they are applied, and break down the hair inside the follicle as well as above the skin. The affected hair will fall out after a few days, sometimes a few weeks, of regular cream applications. It will eventually regrow, but much finer and softer than originally, as long as the cream continues to be regularly applied.

Continued application of the cream will make the hair on the area it is used on grow finer and finer with each regrowth, until hair growth stops almost completely. The bioactive cream must still be applied from time to time to ensure that the hair breaks down in the follicles and does not begin to regrow. But if this simple, easy precaution is taken, these new creams do indeed offer the potential to permanently remove unsightly hair from the arms or legs, at far less expense than electrolysis treatment, and less risk of allergic reactions than the more common calcium hydroxide treatments.

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