Do you prefer a face like a grape or a raisin? Grapes are juicy and smooth-skinned. Raisins are dried grapes with a wrinkled texture.
In your 20s, your face is usually full and voluminous _ just like a grape. But no matter how great your skin is at 25, the inevitable volume depletion in the mid and lower face will slowly leave their marks by the time you reach 40. A facelift can only remove the outer layer, but it can’t turn a raisin back into a grape. As the saying goes, “Just because you can lift it, doesn’t mean it fell.”
How do I detect volume loss?
Facial volume loss starts from the time we lose our baby fat which is usually in the 20s, but in most people, it only begins to become evident during middle age. When exactly depends on genetics and is different for various areas of the face. The areas most vulnerable are the lower eyelids and cheeks. The thin skin in the eye area becomes even thinner, giving an appearance of bags under the eyes. As volume loss progresses, you’ll notice the cheek skin is less supported, giving more prominent smile lines. You may also experience drooping in the outer eyebrow area. The overall result is a transition from a circular child’s face to a youthful heart-shaped face and eventually to a more masculine, elongated rectangle as you get older.
What causes these changes?
If you want vibrant and volumised child-like skin, keep a check on the hyaluronic acid (HA) production in your body. Although HA, collagen and elastin work together in creating vibrant, moist and glowing skin, it is really hyaluronic acid that lubricates and cushions the skin. This colourless transparent jelly is found in large concentrations in the extracellular matrix (ECM), which is the fluid-filled space between cells. It acts as a space filler between cells, locks moisture into the ECM, keeping collagen and elastin moist and promoting a youthful appearance. While collagen gives skin its firmness, it is the HA that nourishes and hydrates the collagen. HA can retain water 1,000 times its own weight and it is this ability that helps keep the elastin fibres in the skin moisturised. When elastin is not bathed in water, it becomes dry and brittle, thus the appearance of dry, brittle and wrinkled skin. A decrease in hyaluronic acid also negatively impacts on the fibroblast of the skin, leading to even less collagen being made, which can also cause the skin to become far less elastic. As a result, the skin loses moisture, becomes dry and lacks flexibility.
What are the cosmetic options to restore facial volume and fullness?
Thanks to technological advancements, there’s an alternative that’s not as drastic as an injection. The new technology, Fractional RF needle, stimulates the body to increase its production of hyaluronic acid, collagen and elastin, making it ideal for people with skin problems and dry and dull skin.
How does the Fractional RF needle work?
This epoch-making medical procedure has been around for three to four years, but just got more effective with less downtime recently. It is the only technology available that uses radio frequency to stimulate the three key skin elements simultaneously. It utilises RF energy to penetrate directly into the deep dermis to create new collagen, elastin and hyaluronic acid, without affecting the epidermis or destroying cells in the other parts. This approach is quite effective, offering a solid foundation for new dermal volume. Unlike most treatments, this approach transmits power at intervals in the treatment temperature you require in a single treatment. It helps with skin rejuvenation and facial lifting and works on large pores, acne, scars and deep wrinkles.
What is the most cost-effective treatment?
This depends on an individual’s skin and budget, that’s why you’ll need an expert to recommend a treatment that’s best suited for you. And in most cases, adding volume is usually better than face-lifting, simply because face-lifting without volume often looks unnatural whereas volumising without face-lifting looks completely fine. However, a combination of treatments does wonders.
