Lifestyle Choices

Stomachs very commonly sag after pregnancy, sometimes after one, certainly after several. They also sag as we age or after significant weight gain followed by significant weight loss. Abdominal surgery of various kinds may often leave the stomach muscles slack and the skin covering flabby. Whatever the cause, the effects are very commonly distressing. In western culture, a flat stomach is perhaps too much prized and admired but prized and admired it is, if more by women than by men. Abdominoplasty, surgery to reduce the stomach, restores muscle tone and smooth stomach appearance. The cost, however, inevitably, is extensive scarring. (more…)

Fat Suction Scars

You will have as many scars as you had incisions but none should be longer than half an inch. If your buttocks and thighs have been treated, most of the scars should be hidden by the buttock crease. Scars behind the knee, on the ankle or on the stomach will show and some can turn out to look red and thick. (more…)

Fat suction, known technically as lipolysis or suction assisted lipectomy, is still a relatively new procedure. It was developed in France in the last decade and now is a very common cosmetic surgery procedure in the United States and increasingly common here. It has been the cause of a great deal of excitement and raised hopes for those in a permanent struggle with their weight but, while it is indeed a successful method for removing some excess fat, it is not a procedure that is suitable for those who are most overweight. It is not a surgical alternative to dieting. (more…)

Unlike sunscreen (which everyone absolutely needs), not everyone needs a moisturizer, especially on the face. If you have oily skin, you are often better off without. As a dermatologist, I see many problems stemming from excessive or inappropriate use of moisturizers on the face. If you have an oily complexion but feel you need a moisturizer for non-oily parts of your face, use an oil-free formulation. Everyone should beware of exotic oils, fragrances, protein extracts, or enzymes; rarely useful, they are often irritating. (more…)

Everyone suffers at some time from dry skin. When your skin is dry, you reach for a moisturizer. But effective moisturizing involves more than just day cream or lotion.

When doctors look at dry skin under a microscope, they see that it is actually an accumulation of dead cells adhering to the skin’s surface. These cells are made of the protein, keratin, which can absorb water, changing from dry, tile-like flakes to smooth, plump cells. Natural, moist, supple skin depends upon the complex interaction of these surface cells with the environment, with water, with your body’s secretions, or with moisturizers you apply. (more…)

The effects of the sun can be seen on the skin of any present or former sun-worshipper in the form of wrinkles, dark spots, roughness, leathery skin texture and a sallow complexion, often with prominent bursts of blood vessels. Under the microscope this shows up as thickening of the outer layer of the skin, with extra grouped pigment cells, and in the deeper dermis, clumps of non-functional elastic tissue and loss of collagen. (more…)

Does the performance of alpha-hydroxy acids match the promise? Yes, when formulated correctly, AHAs do indeed exfoliate the outer layers of skin to treat clogged pores and blackheads, to smooth fine wrinkles, and to remove dry surface skin. You, the consumer, however, are confronted with advertising for a myriad of products containing AHAs, all promising youthful, wrinkle-free skin. Not all preparations are effective. When choosing, there are three key factors to consider: (more…)

4 Gravity and Wrinkles Causes

The whole universe is held together by gravity. The movements of the earth around the sun (determining the seasons) and of the moon around the earth (regulating the tides) are all according to the invisible force of gravity. Although gravity makes life possible (and helps people walk rather than float!), we are not often conscious of gravity’s effect on our appearance. (more…)

When you take the time to ask “Why?” science will always answer “How”. In the case of wrinkles, as you learn why they appear, you can also learn how to prevent or postpone their appearance, plus how to eliminate many of the wrinkles you already have. It’s never too late to care for your skin, to prevent more wrinkles from appearing, and to soften those already present. It’s never too late to look and feel younger! (more…)

Some wrinkles are superficial; some can be deeper. The good news is that, as a scientist and a dermatologist, I can assure you that almost all wrinkles can be either prevented, or at least successfully treated!

How do you make your skin, and therefore yourself, look better and younger without expending a great deal of time and effort? Of course you can prevent new wrinkles from forming, starting today! (more…)

Everyone is talking about “free radicals“, the very reactive molecules that form from exposure either to the sun or to certain cancer-causing agents in the environment. Excessive free radicals damage connective tissue, cell membranes, and the basic genetic building block DNA itself. On the skin free-radical damage causes premature aging and skin cancer. (more…)

Has it ever occurred to you that you have too much fat on your body and too little fat on your face? However, today surgeons are actually taking fat from the stomach or thighs and moving it to the face. The transplantation of fat, or lipotransplantation, is an old and until recently neglected method of treating deep wrinkles, which was revived about ten years ago by the French plastic surgeon, Dr Pierre Fournier. (more…)

GoreTex is a synthetic material composed of interconnected fibrils of expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). You may recognize Gore- Tex as the lightweight fabric used to make insulating ski jackets, but GoreTex fibers are even more interesting as surgical implants. They have been used for almost 30 years as surgical vascular grafts and more recently for implants in the skin.

GoreTex patches can be placed just under the skin of the nose to give a smooth profile to previously unaesthetic indentations, and can be threaded under the deep folds between the nose and the mouth to smooth the grooves. (more…)

Dermabrasion is an extreme form of exfoliation. For this procedure, the doctor actually uses a rotating wire brush like a sanding instrument to remove the entire outer surface of the skin. The epidermis and the upper portion of the dermis (about one-quarter to one-third of the thickness of your skin) is usually abraded. (more…)

As you now realize, most of our larger wrinkles are caused by repeated facial expressions: frowning, squinting, smiling, grimacing or raising our eyebrows, or sometimes by moving one side of our face more than the other. With time, our facial wrinkles begin to show our facial habits. (more…)

“Skin Bleaching” Medical Surgery Basic Procedure

Before a chemical peel, the doctor may recommend that the face be “pre-treated” with a special exfoliating cleanser, with retinoic acid, or with alpha-hydroxy acids so that the peel procedure can be performed on a more even skin surface. Just before the peel, the doctor may ask the patient to wash his or her face thoroughly. Then he or she will clean the patient’s face extensively with alcohol oracetone, rubbing the superficial oil from the skin. (more…)

The use of chemicals to “peel away” unwanted or dead skin is a practice with a past. Chemical face peeling can be traced back to ancient Egypt, where creams of alabaster particles suspended in milk and honey were applied to the face for “tightening”. The Egyptians also used animal oils mixed with salt and natural minerals, and plant substances to “exfoliate” their faces. Later, poultices containing mustard, sulfur and limestone were used. (more…)

Acne usually starts as a few blackheads on the nose and forehead and a few inflamed papules also appear often on a greasy skin. Often the spots come in crops so that there are times in between without any spots. Many girls have a bout of acne around the time of their period.

Cosmetics

Very greasy or oily cosmetics are best avoided because they can block up the follicles and make acne worse. This may happen under a fringe when the hair may prevent the grease escaping. Disagreement about the best advice partly stems from the fact that in America they used to have a lot of trouble with greasy make-up causing acne. In Britain most doctors are happy to allow the use of noncomedogenic foundation, moisturizers etc. Some people gain much confidence if they can hide their spots. (more…)

It is difficult to understand why one person may have bad acne covering most of the back or chest but none on the face whilst another individual may have severe facial acne but little elsewhere. We presume that it is only the sebaceous glands and follicles in the affected areas that are responding to the hormone changes in the blood. Whichever area is affected, the changes are of larger papules and pustules which last longer and some of them may leave small scars. Blackheads will almost certainly be seen as well and they can be very extensive. When a flare-up occurs it may be very uncomfortable and an occasional cyst may appear. (more…)

Pigment

The pigment in our skin is called melanin and this same substance gives color to our hair and eyes. Fair -skinned people have only a little melanin while those with dark skins have a lot. The main function of melanin is to protect the skin from ultraviolet in the sun’s rays.

Vitiligo

Intensive research, around the world, has so far failed to reveal the trigger for vitiligo or the mechanism. We know that antibodies against the melanocyte are found in the blood, that antibodies against the thyroid gland are also present but that they seem to do no harm. (more…)