Archive for May, 2007

Relocating Your Fat

Unfortunately, after nearly 100 years of plastic surgery advancements, and thousands of cosmetic surgery patients, doctors are still hesitant to transfer fat from other places in the body to the breasts. With all the other safer, more aesthetic options on the market, doctors are hesitant to perform the procedure.

Allow me a brief moment to wax historical. Back in the day – the early 20th century to be more specific – doctors began experimenting with grafting autogenous tissue (i.e. body tissue harvested from the patient’s own body) onto the breasts for cosmetic enhancement. Doctors generally tried to use the tissues that contained high concentrations of cellular fat. However, their attempts were to no avail.  Often the tissue would reabsorb into the body, however, the rate that the fat reabsorbed was not uniform, of course, which left some highly dissatisfied patients with lopsided boobs. Many patients also had infections on their breasts after the procedure as well.

Fast forward about 60 years. As liposuction bursts on the scene, doctors attempt to use purified, whole fat cells attained through liposuction to plump up breasts. After some debate, doctors decided that the reabsorption levels were still unclear, and could not be maintained or determined before surgery.  Women were reporting between 20 and 100 percent of their added breast fat was reabsorbed into their bodies during the first 12 months. Again, patients were left with lopsided breasts.

On a more serious note, there was also some question about breast cancer after fat transfers. Some claimed that the fat transfers could cause problems detecting cancerous areas in the long run, and may even contribute to higher breast cancer rates. Finally, the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons elected not to support the procedure due to these health risks, and in most of the United States, the procedure is not performed. Occasionally, in other countries, the procedure is still used.

On the plus side, fat transfers after liposuction have proved effective in many facial wrinkle treatments. They often last longer than artificial dermal fillers, and because they are your own cells, there is no chance of allergic reactions. Although it hasn’t worked for breasts, many women will enjoy beautiful smooth, wrinkle-free skin thanks to a little thigh fat.

Cosmetic Surgery through the “Ages”

Even though we are getting older, we don’t want our skin to look like it. Here are some tips and tricks on how to age with grace. From your teens to your 60’s, we have your age covered!!

In Your Teen’s

The most important thing for this age is to start developing good habits. You can start by applying sunscreen daily. UVA and UVB rays from the sun hurt your skin, so look for sunscreens with a broad range of protection and at least an SPF f 15. If you don’t protect your skin from the sun now it will start to wrinkle and sag sooner.

In Your 20’s

Keep applying sunscreen daily. Along with that begin to pay more attention to the skin around your eyes because this is the first part of the face that begins to show signs of aging. In addition to sunscreen, wear sunglasses to avoid squinting and add an eye cream to your nightly routine.

Microdermabrasion is a procedure that you may want to consider in your 20’s. Microdermabrasion is a non-chemical, non-invasive procedure that uses a spray of microcrystals to remove the outermost layer of dry, dead skin cells and reveal younger, healthier-looking skin. Microdermabrasion also encourages the production of a new underlying layer of skin cells with higher levels of collagen and elastin, which further improves your skin’s appearance.

You may also want to think about starting BOTOX® treatments as a preventative method. This cosmetic procedure provides a quick and effective remedy for the facial lines and wrinkles that age, stress, worry, and environmental factors can produce, even on a younger person’s face. Even if you don’t have wrinkles now, those lines and wrinkles that occur with age may never become an issue if you do BOTOX® now.

In Your 30’s

This is the time when most women start to see their first signs of aging. You could see a few fine lines, unevenness of the skin, or even skin that isn’t quite as tight as it used to be.

BOTOX® is the most popular treatment for those 30 and older. A BOTOX® injection skin treatment smoothes frown lines on the forehead, between the eyes, and at the base of the nose. BOTOX® Cosmetic is an injectable agent used to temporarily diminish or eliminate lines and wrinkles on the face by relaxing underlying facial muscles.

Your 30’s is also a prime time for body contouring procedures . Liposuction is the most popular method of body contouring surgery because it allows the surgeon to re-sculpt specific areas of the body. Using only a few tiny incisions, your surgeon can target stubborn fat deposits and permanently remove fat cells from the area. The tummy tuck,” or abdominoplasty, is a unique body sculpting surgery that combines removal of excess skin and fat from the midsection with the surgical tightening of the abdominal muscles. Abdominoplasty is typically offered as an individual procedure, but may also be performed during full body lift surgery. Body lifts allow surgeons to remove excess skin and fat from one or many areas of the body. You can re-sculpt your entire body with a total body lift or lower body lift, or choose one or more less extensive body contouring techniques such as an arm lift, thigh lift, and butt lift

40’s and Beyond

After 40 is when you can see the results of your previous year’s habits. If you smoked or spent too much time in the sun, your skill will most likely look older than its age. However, if you have been good to your face, you will only need small procedures to keep your skin looking young. <a href = “http://www.docshop.com/education/dermatology/injectables/botox/” Title = “DocShop.com” >BOTOX® </a> and <a href = “http://www.docshop.com/education/dermatology/injectables/” Title = “DocShop.com” > wrinkle fillers </a> are your best bet in your 40’s. This will relax the facial muscles and the skin will be smoothed out by the filler.

In your 50’s you may now want to consider a minimally invasive surgery called blepharoplasty, or eyelid surgery. Cosmetic eyelid surgery dramatically improves the appearance of the eyes. This is accomplished by removing excess skin and pockets of fat from the upper and lower eyelids. You may also want to combine blepharoplasty with other treatments such as brow lift to eliminate drooping eyebrows, and various cosmetic dermal fillers to treat crow’s feet.

In your 60’s your best tool is face-lift surgery. A face lift, or rhytidectomy, is a surgical procedure used to reduce facial wrinkles, eliminate telltale signs of aging, and improve the overall appearance of the face and jaw area. Face lift surgery can help reverse the harmful effects of time, stress, and the elements.

Tyra Banks Speaks Out: Bigger Can Be Beautiful

Do you really have to be thin to be gorgeous?

Not so much according to the American Next Top Model TV show host, Tyra Banks. After some criticism from the unflattering photos of Banks in her bathing suit in many tabloid magazines, she finally came out and fired back to let the world know that she is still beautiful by posting in swimsuit for People magazine.

Banks is now fighting back to the criticism not just for herself, but for all women who look up to her. Yes, she had gained about 30 pounds since the last time she was on the cover of the Sport Illustrated magazine in 1997, but it was ten years ago.

We all want to have a perfect shave, but the main reason that we should be worry more than our look is not to be overweight because it will cause more health problems in a long run. One of the easiest ways that can be use to identify possible weight problem is Body Mass Index (BMI).

BMI Formula: weight (lb) / [height (in)]2 x 703

Interpretation of BMI for adults

bmi

What’s Tyra Banks’s BMI?

Weight = 161 lbs., Height = 5′10″ (This information is from People Magazine)

BMI = 161/ (70)2 x 703 = 23.1

The result of Banks’s BMI indicates that her weight is within the normal range for adults of her height.

Now at age 33, it appears that putting more weight makes Banks has more credibility as a businesswoman. Her talk show is now entering its second season, and American Next Top Model has its strongest ratings than ever.

Computer Vision Syndrome

computer Vision Syndrome

What is Computer Vision Syndrome?

The American Optometric Association defines Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS) as “the complex of eye and vision problems related to near work which are experienced during or related to computer use.”

Symptom of CVS

•    Eyestrain
•    Headaches
•    Fatigue
•    Burning or tired eyes
•    Dry eyes
•    Loss of focus
•    Blurred vision
•    Double vision
•    Neck and shoulder pain

How to reduce the effect of CVS

•    Computer glasses are prescription glasses designed to be worn when working on a computer.
•    Have an anti-reflective coating applied to your glasses to minimize glare.
•    Proper lighting can reduce eyestrain and glare.  When using computers, lighting should be about half of that used in most offices.
•    Adjust the brightness of your computer screen.
•    Blink more often.  Blinking is very important when working with computer because it rewets your eyes to avoid dryness and irritation.
•    Take a 10-15 minute break every hour to reduce eyestrain.