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Anti-Aging
Are you looking for a way to slow down the effects of aging? Signs of aging may
be more visible on the face than any other area of the body. If you want to really
make a difference in how you’ll look years from now, what you do today can really
make an impact.
The years from 35 to 55 are the transition years. Pores become larger, skin develops
lines, and age spots begin to show. The face starts to lose volume, which enhances
the lines of a maturing face. This is the time when early action will make a lifetime
of difference!
How can we slow down the changes that time brings, but do it in a way that allows
us to still look like ourselves? The answers lie in three facets of our system:
Protect, Repair and Restore.
There are many facets of skin protection, but none of them are as important as protection
from ultraviolet light. Although there seems to be as many sun protection products
as there are stars in the night sky, many of them are inadequate for the serious
consumer. Both women and men should seek out a product that doesn’t leave the skin
white, blocks both ultraviolet spectra, and is a relatively good value.
Skinceuticals makes
excellent, elegant sun blocks with a competitive price point.
Ultraviolet light is our worst enemy. Ultraviolet A and Ultraviolet B age the skin
and cause many of the skin cancers that affect us later in life. A perfect sun block
should block both, without significantly affecting our appearance.
Amazingly, though, if the muscles around the eyes and mouth are relaxed, the etched-in
lines tend to diminish, and even disappear! The only FDA-approved method of relaxing
lines between the brows is Botox Cosmetic® a safe and effective treatment that has
been used in recent years to relax not only the glabellar lines between the brows,
but also around the eyes, the forehead, and the lower face around the mouth. Botox
can also be used in the next area to help prevent the "neck bands" that often form
in later years.
The accumulated damage from years of exposure to lights, toxic and irritating chemicals
and the wear and tear of daily living takes its toll. You can, however, help reverse
the changes by using the newest generation of antioxidants
on the market. They help repair oxidative damage and enhance the natural healing
mechanisms we already have in place.
The product that we like the most as it is at the cutting edge of reparative chemistry
is SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic. It works with the body’s own repair mechanisms to fix
the skin at the cellular level.
Beyond repairing the oxidative damage with anti-oxidants, another significant thing
one can do is to add a retinoid to the regimen. Retinoids, of which Retin-A and
Renova are the most well known examples, help rejuvenate the skin by increasing
collagen formation in the layer just below the epidermis. This new collagen helps
cut down on bruising later in life, makes the skin more resilient, and makes the
skin look younger. We happen to like Tri-Luma, the best if a patient also has brown
spots on the skin, as it combines a retinoid with hydroquinone, an ingredient that
lightens hyperpigmentation. Tri-Luma is a prescription product available in our
office.
Additionally, retinoids provide modest defense against the formation of skin cancers.
If you can tolerate a retinoid (they are irritating to some patients), you should
use one. If toleration is a concern, we dispense LaRoche-Possay Retinol so you can
benefit from the retinoid effect with less irritation. Why not look younger and
have more healthy skin in the bargain?
Science has done wondrous things over the past ten years. Ten years ago, the only
way to achieve loss of wrinkles, improvement of dark spots and rejuvenation of the
texture of the skin was to use a laser that destroyed the top layer of the skin.
The result was raw, oozing skin for up to two weeks, and pink, shiny skin for up
to two months and skin that was often abnormally light forever. All that has forever
changed.
Now, we have the Palomar Starlux Photofacial System for rejuvenation of mild to
moderate sun and age spots, as well as the redness and tiny blood vessels that develop
with time. This system also is fantastic for the “age spots” that develop on the
hands over time.
For those looking for renewed collagen and treatment of the texture changes, there
is no treatment that is more effective than the Reliant Fraxel 1500(also referred
to as the Fraxel II or Fraxel restore). This laser has very important advantages:
it does not cause the raw, oozing skin, the prolonged “down time”, the residual
white spots nor the abnormally shiny skin that the old lasers could cause. The Fraxel
1500 makes skin appear younger, “dewier” and much more even in color, all with only
a day or two of down time! It also treats the crepe paper appearance of the aging
neck, chest, and hands. For optimal results, it is in your best interest to have
a board-certified dermatologist, knowledgeable in the science of the skin, operate
this laser on you. For patients who want to look their very best, Fraxel has been
a home run.
Finally, there is a better way to escape the effects gravity places on the face
as we mature. When we were younger, our faces resembled an inverted triangle. As
we mature, the triangle slowly descends, until the triangle is no longer inverted.
There are a whole new generation of fillers that mimic a naturally occurring substance
in the skin called hyaluronic acid, which gives young skin the plump, firm look
and can help restore the fullness to cheeks and upper face. The two most well known
are Juvéderm and Restylane. And if those weren’t enough, there is a new long lasting
filler called Radiesse that helps fill in the deep furrows along the side of the
chin and mouth, as well as augment the cheeks to restore the sagging architecture
of the face. At last, you don’t have to take what nature and gravity are giving
you for birthday presents! Ask your cosmetic dermatology team which filler would
be right for you.
In conclusion, it is now possible to look as good as you feel, no matter what your age!
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