Botox: Q&A
Ask a QuestionBotox As a Preventive Measure - Antiaging
I'm young and am very concerned about aging. I've read that Botox can be used as a preventive measure, but couldn't find a lot of information about it. Can botox really prevent wrinkles? If it can, when is a good time to start? Would I need as much of it as someone who has already developed wrinkles? I want to prevent aging as much as I can (I'm already using sunscreen) but I dont want to be throwing away thousands of dollars by starting too early.
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15 Doctor Answers |
Asked by
gg96
+2
Botox for prevention of wrinkles
Greetings~
Botox is being used more and more frequently by people trying to do preventative treatments. Waiting until lines become etched into the skin means it's much more difficult to smooth their appearance again. Botox is used for lines and wrinkles that are formed by muscle movement such as scowling (creates lines between brows), raising the eyebrows (creates horizontal lines) and squinting (contributes to crows feet). Often by starting Botox...
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Botox should NOT be used for prevention.
To gg96,
I get upset when Botox is promoted to someone like you. Of course I don't know you, but my advice would be: Forget Botox, don't look in the mirror too much, and enjoy your youth.
When you actually get lines or wrinkles that bother you, then Botox is a good thing.
+2
Yes, it is best to start Botox before you have bad wrinkles.
gg96,
It is best to start Botox before the wrinkles develop. The reasoning is that continued stress leads to dermal atrophy and breakdown of the structural integrity of the dermis (wrinkles). If you start Botox early, then you are decreasing the stress on the skin and, thus, helping to prevent wrinkles.
I hope this is helpful.
David Shafer, MD
New York City
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When to start Botox
Botox is being used as a preventative treatment for wrinkles. The question of when to start is more complicated. It depends really a bit on your facial structure and your predisposition for wrinkling. Many of my patients wait for the first signs of wrinkles to occur before treatment. The skin typically has enough elasticity that waiting until identification of problem areas will not prevent complete correction.
I hope this helps.
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Botox As a Preventive Measure - Antiaging
More and more young people are turning to Botox as a preventative agent for wrinkles. Botox is good for treating dynamic wrinkles but once the skin has in-depth wrinkles it is hard to completely treat them. When early Botox treatment and skin care is performed the lasting effect is a more youthful ,softer appearing face.
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Botox works wonderful as a prevention for wrinkles
Botox works by by blocking a chemical reaction that occurs in muscle that allows the muscle to contract. Therefore, when Botox is injected into a muscle the muscle cannot contract. If a muscle contraction causes a wrinkle and the muscle is no longer contracting, the wrinkle goes away , or the wrinkle does not form. If the muscle continues to be paralyzed, it will atrophy from disuse, like a stroke victim. An atrophied muscle will not contract normally, future wrinkles...
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Botox As a Preventive Measure
Botox may be helpful to combat dynamic wrinkles before they get worse, and it would take fewer units for correction then if the wrinkles got worse. However, don't jump too quickly. Botox should not be used to prevent wrinkles from forming.
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Botox and aging - study done
There have been twin studies where botox was used in one identical twin for a number of years and then stopped whereas the other twin did not get botox. Photos several year later showed the twin who had botox for some time looked younger than the "non-botoxed" twin. It works well. You probably need a lower dose and could spread them up to six months apart. Early botox has several advantages:
1. The muscles that you paralyze grow weak over time and don't work as well....
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Using Botox BEFORE wrinkles are present
While we do have a good number of young Botox patients, most are in their twenties and are just beginning to see fine lines in the forehead or crow's feet area.
In Southern California, because of heavy sun exposure, it's not uncommon to see a patient in their twenties that can benefit from Botox, but we don't advise using it before any lines or wrinkles are present..
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Botox as prevention for wrinkles
Botox works well for dynamic wrinkles on the face and neck. These wrinkles do not start as severe wrinkles, rather they gradually progress with age, stress, and sun exposure.
Botox is effective only on dynamic wrinkles of the face. If you have these, even mildly, at a younger age, the early use of Botox will be preventative in nature to stop the progression of the wrinkles.
These answers are for educational purposes and should not be relied upon as a substitute for medical advice you may receive from your physician. If you have a medical emergency, please call 911. These answers do not constitute or initiate a patient/doctor relationship.
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