What is the right cosmetic anti aging treatment for you?
There is a cosmetic anti aging treatment for everyone, these days. There are so many choices available. It can be difficult to decide which one is best. Sometimes, your pocket book is your guide.
First things first, what issues are you trying to address? You may have wrinkles, bags, splotches, age spots, rosacea, crow’s feet, sagging skin or perhaps something else. A cosmetic anti aging treatment for any of these can be quite expensive. Let’s just start with the ones that cost the most.
For clearing up red blood vessels, splotches or rosacea, an intense pulsed light may be used. It is often called a laser treatment, but that is actually an incorrect term. This cosmetic anti aging treatment requires three, for or five sessions to be effective and usually repeat visits every six months or so. The cost varies, depending on the area and practitioner, but around $150 per session is common.
Collagen injections are used to “fill in” wrinkles. Some people think that this procedure “replaces” lost collagen, so you sometimes hear something like “collagen replacement”. But, the only thing that an injection like this can do is temporarily “fatten” the skin, so that wrinkles, crow’s feet or fine lines are less noticeable. The collagen used is derived from cow’s skin and allergy tests must be performed before treatment, since allergic reactions are common. The cost is similar to pulsed light and this particular cosmetic anti aging treatment only lasts about tree months.
Combining the cow collagen with polymethylmethacrylate (plastic beads) is supposed to last longer. It’s the same material that the old “hard” contact lenses were made out of. Adverse reactions to the injections include heart attack caused by a sudden drop in blood pressure. Any procedure of this type is accompanied by risks and your practitioner should advise you about them before beginning.
And then there’s Botox. It never ceases to amaze me that people want a paralyzing poison injected under their skin. But, I suppose it depends on your priorities. By paralyzing the surrounding muscles, this cosmetic anti aging treatment makes some wrinkles, such as “laugh lines”, less visible, temporarily. At a cost of around $200 per injection, the results last for about three months.
Chemical peels and microdermabrasion remove the outermost layer of the skin. Some people think that they are only removing dead skin cells, but they fall off on their own during a bath. There will be redness and some pain. It is supposed to improve texture and reduce blemishes, blotches, age spots, etc.
How about a kinder approach to cosmetic anti aging treatment?
New research has shown that the skin can rejuvenate and repair itself, if properly nourished. These are not vitamin supplements that you take by mouth, but creams, gels and masks rich in vitamin E and Co-Enzyme Q10 that are applied to the face, hands and body.
The cost is much less. The effectiveness can be long lasting, with continued use and there are no dangerous side effects or drawbacks. The choice is yours, of course, but a non-invasive cosmetic anti aging treatment just sounds more pleasant, to me.