Skin Care ~LuxxyLux

People searching for ways to have younger looking faces will probably arrange a course of Botox injections; it is the treatment of choice but a great most people do not know exactly what it is. To understand exactly what it is and does, we first have to look at just how this amazing miracle of modern science came to be. The first research into Botulinum toxin was carried out over five decades ago; it was tested for use as a treatment for disorders of the mind.

A few decades later after much research, the FDA granted permission for it to be used medically and the first patients to make use of the drug were those with eye conditions; these included people with eyes that were not aligned correctly and those that suffered from uncontrollable blinking called blepharospasm. Later in the first year of the millennium after many more years of research, it was granted permission to be used on patients with cervical dystonia; this eases the pain from serious contractions in the shoulders and neck, but it was also given the ok to be used on another more unusual eye condition. However, it was the discovery of the effect botox had on reducing frown lines that finally changed things; following this the FDA finally recognized the implications and agreed its commercial use in 2002.

Botox paralyses the muscles that cause wrinkles keeping them in a relaxed state; eventually, over a period of several months, given enough of these injections, the frown lines start to soften - thus, helping in anti-aging. With continued use, the frown lines in most instances will completely vanish but the same effect can be found in lines at the sides of the eyes, mouth and other forehead lines. The injections actually contain a purified form of the Botulinum toxin; this same botulism can make us very ill but when use in cosmetic surgery it is a purified form the Botulinum toxin.

The problem is that when we laugh, cry or frown for example, lines and wrinkles appear caused by the muscles that have helped create the expression; these injections can help eliminate those lines. These lines are formed on our faces after years of wear and tear; when these creases become permanent, no kind of skin cream can get rid of them but this treatment can eliminate them temporarily. After being injected into the effected area, botox temporarily paralyzes these muscles so that you can’t make these expressions; because facial movement is reduced, it can give a doll like appearance to the user.

People still have enough movement to look fairly normal but not enough to cause these wrinkles; so in fact by taking these injections they help you to look younger. Injections of this very popular cosmetic treatment are still costly; often considered something only celebrities can afford because a single injection can cost anywhere from a few hundred to over a thousand dollars. As a recent form of cosmetic enhancement it may be some time before the full facts about long term botox use will be known but for now, most people really aren’t that concerned.