White stuff on the ends of removed hair usually means it is in not in anagen any longer.
Thanks for the response LAgirl, I must have been reading the wrong stuff.
Whilst trawling through the posts looking for interesting little snippets I came across the above from LA girl suggesting the the white stuff on the ends of the hair means it isn’t in anagen any more, I don’t totally agree 
The white stuff, when it covers the end of the hair that was in the follicle is the root sheath. The root sheath sometimes slides out with the hair and sometimes it doesn’t. When it does it does, it does look white to the naked eye, with good magnification it actually looks juicy and wet. This is sad I know but my gag reflex was almost triggered by the site of this on one occasion. when you see the removal process magnified greatly it really is a different world. Check out a dust mite magnified a hundred times and you’ll get the picture. The Alien from “Alien” would fled screaming from one if they grew that big. I digress.
Here’s what’s wrong with these short posts, they just don’t go into the detail that is sometimes required for them to be accurate.
When a hair slides out with almost it’s entire depth sleeved by the white stuff it totally means the hair is in anagen, it also means that it has been treated thoroughly and it’s chance of re-appearing is minimal. When the hair slides out and the white stuff is left at the follicle opening, again what you can see is the root sheath, this time turned inside out by the hair as it slides out It’s left clinging to the top of the follicle where perhaps the energy hasn’t quite exerted it’s influence to release it completely. I’d like to think that the follicle has been treated effectively to prevent another hair and that the point of attachment is above the bulge but who can know for sure… maybe the dust mite who could climb inside for a look as long as it had a good clean up first
In this youtube clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DY-UfCE-uE the above can be seen between seconds 118 and 148 As the hair leaves the follicle the “white stuff” that’s left on the skin is the root sheath inside out and clinging on by the skin of it’s teeth. There’s something else you might not have known, hairs have teeth, That’sss what gives some of them their tenacity
Here’s hoping that All of the hairs that I treat are accompanied by the white stuff where upon I might well celebrate with a pint of the black stuff.
Does this white stuff that is hanging out of the follicles influence the treatment significant in a bad way?
The juicy and wet stuff for hair in anagen should be black.
Tho only thing that is gonna be black is the hair, surely and that’s assuming the individual has black hair. The root sheath isn’t black, if it were people with light to blond coloured hairs would have really easy to follow in follicles. I don’t think we’re talking about the same juicy wet stuff.
Sorry to be bearer of bad news, Follizap, but I think the fact that white stuff hang from the opening of the follicle does not guarantee the death of the follicle. If you ask any beautician who does waxing, she will tell you that after pulling the wax, white stuff (outer sheath) also appears on the surface of the skin.
I believe you call “teeth” to the cells of the cuticle of the hair shaft. They are arranged like shingles on a roof and if I remember correctly, the free part of these cells is up. Just opposite the inner sheath cells which are arranged down to fit in a perfect manner.
Indeed, that which some people is black (black hair), other is red (red hair) and other is just white (gray hair). This is the melanin (if still active melanocytes) that gives color to the hair when the hair is forming in the hair matrix.
That is remain behind dangling from follicle mouth, when the hair is removed seems being the outer sheath of the hair. I also wonder the same question, Follizap, I realized what was going through one of the drawings by Michael (now I can not say the exact page because I have not the book here, but the drawing is on the front pages). Until then I never could differentiate between all the components of the hair. Except the 3 components of the stem, medulla, cortex and cuticle, the rest of the things, inner sheath, outer sheath, glassy membrane, etc, was a mess for me. Luckily the teacher was there with his pencil to resolve our existential doubts.
And yes, white root is not necessarily a telogen phase. A white dot like a grain of salt is it.
No problem that’s not bad news at all, more discussion and understanding is a positive and I welcome it. I do appreciate that it does not necessarily indicate the death of a follicle when the white stuff 
is apparent on the skin after the hair has been removed, certainly where waxing was the cause. I’d be quietly confident though when the entire root sheath accompanies the hair when it slides from the follicle without resistance after electrolysis. I’d also be similarly encouraged if it could be seen part way out as the hair was removed.
I’d imagine that waxing would rip out a part of the root sheath but it wouldn’t have treated the surrounding tissues with heat or alkaline preventing further hair from developing. Neither will it have had much impact on the papilla apart from encouraging it to strengthen.
My reference to teeth was yet another failed attempt at humour and is part of an expression we british use on occasion.
I am going to try, hopefully in the not to distant future to capture hairs being treated and removed under high magnification. I was hoping for a colour digital camera to do this but I just don’t have the funds to make it possible so a black and white image will have to do for the time being.
I agree with what you say about the white dot being seen as an indicator to telogen. It clings to the very end of a hair and is what holds the hair into the follicle at the end of it’s life. I think this is what sometimes gives a feeling of a hair being plucked. Because of it’s location high up in the follicle it isn’t always hit by the treatment energy. To release energy this close to the surface would risk some skin damage and wouldn’t necessarily have the required impact on the rest of the follicle structure, specifically the dermal papilla. If the follicle had returned to the anagen phase without shedding and was quietly constructing another hair in the depths of the subcutis it might also account for why sometimes another hair can appear in the site of a previously treated one.
What say you
Josefa, I would like to add that I have the utmost respect of your opinion and experience in this field and my posts are not argumentative in content. I am merely attempting to increase my knowledge and perhaps that of others who for whatever reason have an interest in permanent hair removal through electrolysis
Best wishes
I know, Follizap, I’ve been reading all your posts since you began to participate. It is easy to see your passion for Electrolysis. I love your curiosity, this reminds me of my old days.
You know? probably, I learn more from your questions and thoughts than you learn from my answers.
(I will try answer your previous post, give me a few minutes)
I agree absolutely. If we work under these circumstances, the hair that was forming at the base of the follicle may be slightly affected, and its appearance will be slightly different, the hair will not end in a cone shape, but will have a form of baseball bat. However, under the same circumstances you can also completely destroy the follicle and then the nascent hair that was forming on the base which will become Hinkel called “tombstone”. The small atrophied hair will be expelled to the outside by our own body.
I have taken some time to answer because I have written to Michael for permission to display one of his masterly drawings. As it was foreseeable, he has accepted. And here is it:
[img:center]https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-VFSpnvVVBQU/TitOggyzPpI/AAAAAAAAA-o/dvZ408KbVkk/s640/pag%25252034%252520%2525282%252529.jpg[/img]
[img:center]https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ERZONqZUX9w/TitO_k6UNrI/AAAAAAAAA-w/UMuwnw1iQ50/s512/pag%25252034%252520%2525283%252529.jpg[/img]
![https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-VFSpnvVVBQU/TitOggyzPpI/AAAAAAAAA-o/dvZ408KbVkk/s640/pag%25252034%252520%2525282%252529.jpg[/img]](https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-VFSpnvVVBQU/TitOggyzPpI/AAAAAAAAA-o/dvZ408KbVkk/s640/pag%25252034%252520%2525282%252529.jpg%5B/img%5D){kind=link}
![https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ERZONqZUX9w/TitO_k6UNrI/AAAAAAAAA-w/UMuwnw1iQ50/s512/pag%25252034%252520%2525283%252529.jpg[/img]](https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ERZONqZUX9w/TitO_k6UNrI/AAAAAAAAA-w/UMuwnw1iQ50/s512/pag%25252034%252520%2525283%252529.jpg%5B/img%5D){kind=link}
In this image you can see two sheaths of the hair root. Do a little experiment when you have one of those hairs in the anagen phase, try to separate the two sheaths with your fingers (or nails) and you could easily leave the outer sheath while the other will cost more to separate from hair shaft because it is much more fixed.
If the outer sheath is trapped inside the follicle, it can cause an infection. On the other hand, is usually not a problem if it gets trapped in the follicle opening. It is common peel finish alone or as part of the crust (if it occurs).
At Michael Bono: Thank you very much again!.
And here are those famous “Teeth.” Second segment increased by magnifying glass.
They really seem to teeth and if we put a little imagination, some shark teeth. It is possible that for some people is the most appropriate metaphor for the pain it produces.
(I love British humor Follizap, someday you’ll have to tell me what the joke of “teeth”.)
Thanks Josefa your reply must have required an additional 2 cups of coffee over and above your normal quota. You obviously still enjoy what you do, I hope my enthusiasm lasts even half as long as yours.
Yes, but this time they have been a couple of iced coffee. 
Your enthusiasm will increase as you always accumulate successes. I promise you.
LA girl what is thermolysis and microflash? I have heard of thermolysis but not microflash. No one seems to mention galvanic, why is this is it outdated?
Thermolysis disables the hair follicle with heat action using alternating current to produce an FM signal, leading to molecular vibration, causing heat that changes the liquids in the follicular indentation to become hot vapors that flash solidify the proteins in the skin tissues. Advantage: Fast. Thermolysis can treat a hair follicle in several seconds (we called this manual thermolysis) or thermolysis can be done in a flash in less than a second (we call this with cutesy names such as MicroFlash or PicoFlash). The technology has improved with the flash brands of thermolysis, so it is no longer considered less effective than the 1/10 timing flash thermolysis that we had in the 20th century. Along with special techniques, treating thick, deep and even curvy hair, with the different and advanced variations of thermolysis offered today, is just as effective as treating these particular hair structures with galvanic or blend.
All three modalities work and whatever your practitioner is comfortable with, should make you feel at ease. I prefer getting the hair off as fast as possible and the three thermolysis modes that I have at my beck and call, with the epilator I choose to use, is the approach I choose to use. If your electrologist was indoctrinated with another approach, you will still get what you pay for, so be at ease. This is why we recommend that you check out different electrologists and see what they offer and then you decide from there which approach is best for you.
I agree - thermolysis works beautifully on deep coarse hairs. After just one clearance, there’s a marked reduction in regrowth in the treated area. The reduction on thick hairs has impressed me more than the reduction of finer hairs that I’ve had treated.