You might have seen this ad — I saw it today on my hotmail homepage — a single skincare product that is miraculously going to erase every wrinkle from your face.
They use a simulated picture of a woman (you have to read the fine print to know that it’s simulated). Her wrinkles are deep and extensive, all over her face. You drag the bottle over her face with your mouse and they disappear.
If it were that easy, none of us would ever look our age, right?
Be very wary when you see an ad touting a single product as the solution to all of the aging changes in your face. Not all wrinkles are treated with Botox and, by the same token, not all wrinkles will respond to this treatment.
If you really look at your face, you’ll see that not all of the aging changes are about wrinkles anyway.
For instance, a lot of people call the lines that bracket the mouth wrinkles. I’m talking about the lines between the corners of the nose and mouth, also known as nasolabial folds, and the lines going down from the corners of the mouth, or the marionette lines.
These lines have more to do with the sagging of tissue from the cheeks down and towards the mouth than with wrinkling of the skin caused by muscle contraction.
This image shows how much of the changes that we associate with aging are caused by sagging skin seen on the left side of the face.
The best strategy for reversing signs of aging is to use good medical grade skincare products and a few different supplemental treatments to address the particular problems that affect you.
I have spoken about treatments like serums, Botox, fillers, Sculptra, photofacials, laser treatments and radiofrequency treatments. They all have a role in helping you look as young as you feel.
No single treatment or product is going to solve everything.
If you want to do something about wrinkles, I strongly recommend that you go to a reputable medical spa and talk to the doctor about your options.
Don’t get sucked in by a hyped up ad on the internet.