What happens to my skin as I age?
As we age there are inevitable changes that occur to facial skin and appearance.
These happen at different rates among different people which is either genetically
pre-determined and also dependent on lifestyle factors (read my 5 non-surgical lifestyle tips for younger
looking skin blog for more info). These age-related changes are as follows:
The skin becomes dehydrated
Fine lines and wrinkles appear
Discoloration from increased melanin and broken capillaries occurs
There is a loss of collagen in the skin
The skin thins and loses elasticity
Facial fat pads atrophy
The appearance of pores increases
There is an increased dullness to the skin
The facial skins starts to sag and droop
There are several non-surgical approaches that can be used at different stages of life to
improve the appearance of the skin and the overall facial complexion.
1. Anti-wrinkle injection using a botulinum toxin to decrease the wrinkles in the
forehead and around the eyes
2. Dermal fillers to replace lost volume in the face
3. Micro needling to stimulate collagen and elastin production
4. Laser treatment such as IPL to reduce brown and red spots from sun damage
Anti-wrinkle Botox injections
Anti-wrinkle injections using a botulinum toxin is perhaps still the most well-known and
popular non-surgical aesthetic treatment. When we talk, laugh or smile the muscles in our
face contract to make our facial expressions – happiness, sadness or anger for example.
Each time the muscles in our face contract they move the skin lifting the forehead to look
surprised or bringing the eyebrows down and in to look angry or creasing around the edges
of the eyes when we smile or laugh. When we are young of the skin as well hydrated with
abundant collagen and elastin content and the skin returns to its normal resting position. As
we age fine lines and wrinkles can become more ingrained into the skin as it moves. These
are known as dynamic lines. However, they can also become permanent with a crease in the
skin even at rest. These are called static lines.
Anti-wrinkle injections using botulinum toxin help to temporarily interrupt the
communication of the nerve into the facial muscles thus preventing facial expressions. Anti-
wrinkle injections are well suited for people in the mid to late 20s and 30s to help reduce
the movement of facial muscles and soften the appearance of dynamic lines and wrinkles
before they develop into static lines. As we get into our 40s and 50s these lines become
more static and anti-wrinkle injections can still help to soften these lines but they will not
remove them all together. These injections need to be performed every three months or so
as your body starts to metabolise and remove the toxin from nerve endings and allow
communicate with the muscle and movement once again.
The most commonly treated areas with anti-wrinkle injections for the upper face. The
muscles treated include the frontalis which raises the eyebrows, the corrugator and
procerus which brings the eyebrows down and in as well as the orbicularis oculi which
contract around the edges of the eye when you smile laugh. Having all three areas treated
gives the best results and is the most commonly requested treatment. The lower face can
also be treated with anti-wrinkle injections however this is a lot less common. One area that
is requested is into the jaw muscles called the masseter. Some people have very strong and
large masseter muscles which gives the appearance of a more masculine widened jawline.
Treating the masseter muscles can help to reduce the strength and size of the muscle
slimming and feminising the jaw, which is more aesthetically pleasing for females. There are
other areas that can be treated; however, these are much less common and sometimes
often advised against. Injecting into the muscles around the mouth and lips can cause
asymmetry of smile and an abnormal look which many people would be unhappy with.
Dermal fillers
Filler injections help to replace lost volume in the face. When we were younger we have
good collagen structure in our face which supports the skin, and good fat pad volume on the
cheeks, temples and jaw line. As we age this fat pad volume decreases alongside a reduction
and loosening of the collagen and elastin in the skin and the effects of gravity slowly start to
have an effect on the face leading to a drooping in the sagging of the skin with sunken eyes,
hollow cheeks and droopy jowls. It’s becoming more common for young women to request
filler however this is not advisable. Younger women still have naturally full lips and faces as
they have not lost that volume in their face and overfilling at a young age can lead to
abnormal looks.
Filler does not add vertical height to the face or the lips. It cannot do what a facelift would
do. Filler also adds volume and weight to the face. However, filler techniques are ideal for
people in their 30s and 40s as they start to lose that volume in the face. We can help to
replace this loss volume in the cheeks and jaw and to smooth out sunken cheeks and
Marionette lines as well as volume chin if required. Filler is also great technique for smaller
slimmer lips where we can add volume; however, techniques such as Russian lips or
overfilled lips typically lead to very abnormal results and unhappy clients.
Filler is less favourable for people in their 50s and 60s when they have pre-existing facial
drooping. There are still some subtle filling injections that may help to improve the
appearance of a face but if you are concerned about sagging skin at this age then you may
need to consider a facelift as we’ve all seen the results of over the filled faces in older
women (think of Joan Rivers and Bridget Bardot).
The most popular areas for dermal filler are the cheeks to add volume and reduce
Marionette lines and the lips for lip volume. Fillers last anywhere from 12-18 months, and it
is advisable to start small with 1-2ml of filler used and build upon your look rather than be
overfilled and then request filler dissolving treatments. We do not offer non-surgical
rhinoplasty and filler the upper face is not recommended due to the increased risk of
complications.
Micro needling with PRP
Micro needling could encompass the use of a derma pan, derma roller or even cosmetic
acupuncture. All these techniques needle the skin creating hundreds of puncture wounds
into the deeper dermis of the skin. This micro trauma in the skin helps to boost collagen and
elastin production which can give the skin a more youthful looking appearance. Combining
micro needling with PRP is a fantastic complimentary treatment. PRP stands for platelet rich
plasma whereby some blood is drawn from your arm and spun in a centrifuge to produce
the plasma. This is then applied to the skin and used as a lubricant for the micro needling,
with the needles piercing the skin and penetrating the PRP into the dermis. PRP is full of
your body’s natural growth and repair factors and when they are pushed into the deep lies
of the skin they become activated stimulating growth and repair giving the skin a fresher
and more useful appearance.
It takes 3 months for the skin cells produced in the deeper layers of the skin to move to the
surface and be sloughed off so it is common to have 2 or three micro-needling treatments at
the start of your care, then to have the treatments every 3 months.
Later treatments
IPL stands for Intense Pulsed Light. It’s a great treatment for lessening the appearance of
brown spots and red spots that develop in the skin as we age. We currently do not provide
laser treatment however these may be a useful adjunct to the treatment options we do
provide.
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