Dr. Jean Loftus is a double board-certified plastic
surgeon and is a national authority on plastic surgery. She has
appeared on CNN, MSNBC, and The Today Show, as a vocal advocate
of safety, conscientiousness, and honesty in plastic surgery.
Her book, The
Smart Woman's Guide to Plastic Surgery, is
the #1 best-selling book in the country on plastic surgery. This
book is available online at
amazon.com,
bn.com and
borders.com.
Dr.
Loftus has offices in Cincinnati and northern Kentucky. Visit
her website at
www.infoplasticsurgery.com. To schedule a consultation,
you may contact her offices at (513) 793-4000 or (859) 426-5000.
Dr. Loftus just loves getting questions and posting answers. To
submit your question, please follow the link at the bottom of
this page. Even if you just want to send her a comment, she'd
love to hear from you.
Q:
I love your book and your website. It is the most informative
on the web. My
question is: do facial exercises improve fine lines, firm lips,
and raise sagging eyebrows as they are advertised to do?
Dr.
Loftus Answers: Thanks for the kudos on my book and website!
As for facial exercises, they do nothing to improve these things.
Here's why: facial exercises (or any exercises) serve to tone
muscles, not skin. As wrinkles are a skin problem, exercising
the face will definitely not improve them.
Furthermore, as many wrinkles are due to muscle activity (crow's
feet, horizontal forehead wrinkles, vertical lip wrinkles, and
scowl lines between your eyebrows), these wrinkles are expected
to get worse, not better, with facial exercises. The concept of
performing facial exercises for a more youthful appearance is
terribly flawed. In fact, if anything having to do with facial
motion is responsible for a more youthful appearance, it would
be paralysis of the muscles, not increased activity or exercise.
This is illustrated by the observation that a person who has one
side of the face paralyzed (from accident or disease) actually
appears younger on the paralyzed side than on the normal side.
Further, in order to treat some wrinkles (like the crow's feet
and scowl lines mentioned above), we inject them with Botox, which
temporarily paralyzes the muscles that cause them. So, to achieve
improvement in the areas you mention, you should consider a browlift,
facelift, laser resurfacing, or Botox.
Best of luck!
Curious
about what others have asked? Want more valuable
information on Plastic Surgery? Go to the
Question of the Week Archives!
Discuss
this article with others right now at the
Plastic Surgery Message Board!
|
100%
Safe & Secure
