Friday, October 3, 2008

Skin Tightening – Turning Back the Clock



There are many methods of skin tightening used by dermatologists. In fact, there are also products you can use at home now that result in minimal skin tightening if you cannot seek the services of a doctor. The methods range from lotions containing anti-oxidants and a variety of vitamins and collagen producing boosters to invasive procedures such as cosmetic surgery.

Skin tightening creams should be used throughout your lifetime. But at some point, whether you use them or not, age will catch up with your skin. Damage from sun exposure and natural aging results in a breakdown of collagen which is what gives our skin its soft and plump look. As the amount of collagen is reduced, the skin begins to sag. At that point, you may need to seek one of the other methods of skin tightening.

Of course, the most radical method is cosmetic surgery. Fortunately for those wanting to avoid surgery, researchers have been busy developing non-invasive means of skin tightening. For example, a popular method is botox injections which actually relax facial muscles to decrease the appearance of wrinkles. There are several other kinds of derma fillers on the market also which are injected under the surface of the skin. These include Sculptra, Lipodissolve and Fraxel Laser treatments.

Another one of the popular methods of non-surgical skin tightening uses radio waves to "remodel" the underlying skin structure. This procedure is called Thermage. Another skin tightening procedure called Titan uses infrared light to produce similar results. Laser technology is constantly being improved and adapted to methods of non-invasive skin treatments.

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