Three Areas That Can Reveal Your Age

Do you know your age? It turns out, it may be more complicated than we think. You’ve probably heard it said that someone is “young at heart” but, as it turns out, that may be true for many of us. It seems that different organs age at different rates. To make things even more confusing, you have a chronological age—your actual age in years—and your biological age—the age of your body based on lifestyle and risk factors. Someone with a chronological age of 40, but who smokes, drinks, has an unhealthy diet, lives alone, and has a stressful job they dislike, could have a biological age of 75. There’s also a third measurement of age, based not on our chronological or biological age, but based on our appearance: What age do we appear to be? We’ve all known people who look younger or older than their chronological age, but what are others seeing that gives that impression? Experts agree that there are a few key areas that can give the appearance of either youthfulness or ageing. Whether we consciously recognize it or not, when we estimate a person’s age, much of what goes into our calculation is based on the appearance of the following three areas. Face – It may seem obvious but, because most people look at someone’s face before they see anything else, a face may give people the impression that you’re older than you are. As shown on WebMD’s website, the face is made up of so many individual parts—brow, eyes, cheeks, lips, chin—and faces undergo changes with every passing year. Seeing those changes often go into one’s estimate of a person’s age. Unfortunately, the wrinkles and brown spots that begin to appear over time, are most often caused by excess time spent in the sun before the age of 20. As time goes on, through one’s 40s and 50s, wrinkles around the lips, eyes, and forehead will deepen. Facial skin may also begin to sag, and the brown spots that may have started to appear in one’s 30s, will become larger and more prominent even as new spots continue to appear. Neck – While many people do everything possible to give their face a younger, more refreshed look, the neck is often ignored. One’s neck is subjected to the same elements as the face, and can suffer the same effects—wrinkled, crepey, sagging skin, with an increasing number of brown spots. Arms – The skin on arms and hands can often become saggy and crepey and can be a wildly inaccurate indication of one’s age. While there are several non-invasive or minimally-invasive procedures to give arms a more youthful appearance, one popular and effective is liposuction, which can reduce or eliminate sagging, fatty areas of the arm. Often, liposuction is used in conjunction with other cosmetic procedures to tighten the skin. Hands, which can be exposed to many harsh conditions, can also look prematurely wrinkled. To help diminish the signs of aging skin, dermatologists suggest you:

• Moisturize – To prevent skin from getting dry, apply lotion frequently throughout the day, and after you wash your hands. Moisturizing is especially important in the winter, when indoor heating makes the air very dry, or in climates that are dry, as it is in Arizona. 
• Protect – To protect skin from the elements, cover up as much as possible in windy environments. To protect from the sun, wear sunscreen with SPF 50. The sun can cause age spots and wrinkles. The cumulative effects of the sun may take decades to appear, at which point it’s much more difficult to deal with the damage.
• Eat a Healthful Diet – Foods containing vitamins, antioxidants, and omega-3 fatty acids will nourish skin and promote healthy nails. Diets containing certain proteins, vitamin C, and B complex will not only promote healthy skin, but will also keep nails from becoming brittle and flakey. 

While the three tips listed above may help to some degree, it’s often necessary to consider cosmetic procedures to truly soften the years. Procedures offered by Dr. Lo at  About Faces Cosmetic Surgery can undo damage caused by years of exposure to the elements. There are many surgical and non-invasive procedures that can rejuvenate the skin in problem areas discussed. The obvious choices are a facelift or neck-lift, surgical procedures which will tighten the skin and underlying muscles. Today, however, there are a great many other options available to those who want to look and feel younger. The following procedures can treat skin on the face, neck, or arms, with many being effective for multiple areas. 

• Microneedling Series (Face)

This minimally invasive treatment requires little downtime and is used to rejuvenate the skin by stimulating collagen production. It is used to help decrease fine lines and wrinkles and improve the appearance of acne or surgical scars.

• HydraFacial Treatments (Face)

Using water to perform a facial is a new way of exfoliating the skin, leaving it hydrated, plump, and youthful looking. A mild chemical peel or a dermaplaning treatment can be done at the same time to further enhance the effect. Frequent HydraFacial treatments can help with fine lines and mild pigment problems.

• RF Microneedling (Face)

This non-surgical procedure combines microneedling with radio frequency heat energy to boost collagen and tighten the skin. It is a non-invasive skin treatment that reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. The number of treatments will vary based on particular skin issues and skin types. Within several days to several weeks, you will notice a smoother and brighter appearance. 

• LaseMD (Face)

LaseMD is dramatically different from traditional resurfacing lasers. It works to rebuild healthy skin with gentle, but effective, heating to underlying skin tissues, without affecting the surface skin. LaseMD treatments require no downtime.

• Fraxel Repair (Neck)

Laser resurfacing can be done lightly on the neck to help improve pigmentation, texture, and some wrinkles. It usually requires multiple treatments because the neck skin does not heal the same as the face and the laser has to be done lightly to prevent scarring.

• Laser Resurfacing (Face and Neck) 

Laser skin resurfacing can be highly effective in softening wrinkles and pigmentation issues. Pulses of light remove thin layers of damaged skin, while stimulating collagen production in the skin beneath. The new collagen plumps and tightens the skin, softening the appearance of lines and wrinkles. The procedure takes between 30 minutes and 2 hours, using a topical anesthetic. New skin will cover the treated area in 1-2 weeks.

• Fat Augmentation (Face and Neck)

This minimally invasive procedure transfers a small amount of the body’s fat to areas of the face that have lost volume. Injecting fat creates a natural look. Swelling and bruising may last for up to 2 weeks. The results of fat augmentation often last for years.

• Botox®/Dysport®/Jeuveau® (Face and Neck)

These muscle relaxers are excellent in decreasing wrinkles that are caused by muscle activity. The usual places to treat are around the eyes, on the forehead, and between the brows. These muscle relaxers can also be used in areas, like the lower face, the lips, chin, and neck area, where they can help to soften the bands under the neck which develop from aging of the neck. Patients like this technique as it helps delay a neck lift.

• Agnes (Face and Neck)

Agnes RF (Radio Frequency) is a non-surgical radio frequency treatment that softens eye bags, tightens skin and reduces fat from the neck and jowl area. It can also treat acne and enlarged pores. Patients see improvement with minimal downtime. Suitable for any skin type.

• Alpha Hydroxy Peels/ VI Peel®/Obagi Blue Peel® (Face and Neck)

Numerous skin care treatments are available in our office to help our patients achieve the best-looking skin. Whether it is pigment issues or fine lines and wrinkles, our aesthetician can assist with selecting a plan that will help you achieve your goals. This plan would include products you use at home, in addition to procedures in the office.

• Liposuction (Arms)

Used to reduce or eliminate sagging, fatty areas of the upper arm, liposuction is a proven technique for removing fatty deposits. Dr. Lo uses a local anesthetic to minimize pain and blood loss, as well as quicken recovery time and produce optimal cosmetic results. A small cannula, attached to a vacuum, is inserted beneath the skin and moved back and forth to loosen the fat. Once loosened, the fat is suctioned away. After sculpting the upper arm fat, liposuction is often used in conjunction with cosmetic procedures to tighten the skin. The results of liposuction and skin tightening can be dramatic.

• Renuvion® (Face, Neck, and Arms)

One of the latest technological advances is Renuvion® J-Plasma, the revolutionary procedure to combat signs of aging. Renuvion is an FDA-cleared way to tighten skin. This ground-breaking technique can reduce wrinkles and is especially popular among those who have had a facelift and would like an occasional touch-up.

• Restylane Lyft (Face, Hands) 

The FDA has approved Restylane Lyft for use on hands, which makes it the first injectible of its kind to receive government approval for use outside the face. As we age, our hands lose some of the fat and muscle tone that makes them look youthful as the bones, tendons and veins become more prominent. Restylane Lyft immediately gives hands the same youthful look as it does for lips, wrinkles and contouring the face. 

• NeoGen (Face, Neck, Arms, Hands)

The non-invasive NeoGen nitrogen plasma technology delivers controlled heating to the skin to stimulate it without surgery. It restores and regenerates the skin’s natural structure, without causing harm to the top layer of skin. NeoGen tightens skin giving a more youthful appearance. It is an FDA-approved skin resurfacing procedure for the face, neck, décolletage, and hands that addresses uneven pigmentation, age spots, fine lines, wrinkles, and acne scars. Contact us for more details on NeoGen.

• Clarity (Face, Arms, Hands)

The Clarity dual wavelength laser treatment removes hair, helps reduce pigmented lesions such as freckles, soften wrinkles, rosacea, leg veins, brown and red spots and more. Clarity delivers fast results and requires no downtime. The professionals at About Faces Cosmetic Surgery will walk you through all aspects of this procedure.If you’d like to have a younger, fresher look before the holidays arrive, schedule a consultation today with Dr. Mikel Lo and his talented, professional  staff, including 2 trained nurse injectors, at About Faces Cosmetic Surgery. Contact us today!