REVIEW

Elite Ozone Depil Mousse

Got hair? Tried Nair? Ozone Elite is not just a sponsor of the Quick-Step cycling team and the producer of hot crèmes for the legs, but also the maker of a depilatory. Called Depil Mousse, the substance is a spray-on, wipe-off that removes hair from legs without shaving and the attendant problems thereof. Maybe this is what makes Paolo Bettini and Tom Boonen so fast; it's not the bike nor the wheels, but girlishly smooth legs(!)

Years ago, we tried Nair. It did nothing for us other than leave a rather nasty odor. Still, we were interested in trying another product, one that might work with more robust hair and leaves a better scent.

On their website, Ozone Elite, www.ozonelite.it, states that their product line "helps athletes enjoy all that psychophysical wellbeing that only physical activity can generate, making use of the most advanced natural substances." We want that psychophysical wellbeing, and if it takes depilatory to get it, so be it.

Depilatory is any substance that removes hair. There are crèmes, lotions, sprays, and waxes. Depil Mousse is a chemical depilatory that breaks down the protein structure of hair above the follicle, so it can be washed or wiped off. But the Depil Mousse takes off more than just hair, which is the case with all chemical depilatories. It also exfoliates, removing the top layer of skin. With both the skin and hair coming off at once, the legs are left smooth and free of razor rash, a great thing in hot weather, or if a massage is scheduled right after the shave, or if shaving is too taxing, something we can see if one is in the midst of a three-week race.

Preparing to use Depil Mousse is pretty easy. First-timers should spray a little on a small area of a leg or arm and let the stuff sit for up to 12 minutes. Wipe off with wet washcloth. If there is no burns, hives, or irritation, it is safe to use on a greater surface area. If there is major skin irritation, wash off immediately: know that a chemical reaction will be taking place on your skin that will produce a warming sensation.

Next, bathe in the tub or shower, and with the limbs soft and warm and pores open, spray on the mousse, taking care to avoid broken skin and genitalia. Start a stopwatch. After 12 minutes, use a wet washcloth to take off a little of the mousse. If the hair comes right off, you can wipe off the rest. If it doesn't, leave on for another 3-5 minutes. If, at any time, you're concerned about burning your skin, wipe it all off immediately. After the second interval, try wiping off a little more. The hair should come off.

After, the legs should be silky smooth with no cuts or rash. It's great to moisturize with a non-alcohol-based moisturizer. Also know that denuded skin will also be a bit more sensitive to the sun, thank to the skin that came off with the hair.

We weren't as smart as we read when we tested the stuff ourselves. The first time, we sprayed it on thin, and rubbed it in by hand. After five minutes of noticing nothing, we re-read the instructions and re-applied thicker. The warming was almost immediate and built over the twelve minutes. That was good, but paranoia over burning our legs caused us to wipe off the mousse with a slightly abrasive bath sponge. Most of the hair stayed on. Maybe our hair is particularly thick and coarse and that is the root of the problem. Reading the instructions, we thought we needed to wait another week before reapplying.

We tried to suss out the issues online, which resolved very little, and then called the importer. He suggested that the mousse could be reapplied more than once a week, provided there's no irritation. He also suggested waiting longer before taking off the depilatory.

It's striking how little information there is on proper use of depilatories. We were hoping to find advice on how long various types of hair take to break down from the chemical reaction, what ingredients take off the hair, what ingredients moisturize, what are the limits on the product. Nothing was available. Nor did any other chemical depilatory producer have any insight on better use of their product. Nor did they seem to even have public relations departments.

While we were concerned about skin safety, we extended to 15 minutes the next time. Hair came off, but not evenly. We finished with a shave, but it was a smooth and easy shave. A week later, we tried again. We extended to 17 minutes. More came off, but we still needed to touch up the original job with a shave.

Our test had to end there. We managed four applications before we emptied the aerosol can. Others' mileage may vary. With a bit more practice, we think we could get the mousse to last longer and work better.

The one thing that we found annoying about the process was knowing we could shave our legs in less than 10 minutes. The warming sensation was great, and starting with our second attempt, we brought reading material along so the time went faster. Where the depilatory worked, we had smooth skin that didn't develop razor rash on some of the hottest summer days of the season. Even where we had to finish shaving, the results were great. We're going to do a little more research with Ozone Elite Depil Mousse and others to see if we can get the stuff to work. We're not vain, we just like our legs smooth.