Dr. Rose's Blog

Thinning hair: New pain-free laser treatment

2011-08-11T14:45:00.000-07:00

Hair loss is an issue near and dear to my heart. My hair has been thinning since my early 30s and it got much worse a couple of years ago.

I keep looking for solutions... and now I have something really revolutionary.

Introducing the Illumiwave 180 -- Laser Biostimulation for Hair Rejuvenation!

Let me explain:
The Illumiwave uses low-level laser to stimulate metabolism in the scalp, setting off a chain reaction of cellular events, increasing protein synthesis, cell division, tissue regeneration and micro-circulation to the scalp.

What does this mean for you?

In US studies, 100% of men and women experienced stabilization of hair loss.
A lot of people who are losing their hair say that if only they could stop losing any more, they would be happy.

Hair regrowth occurred in 75 - 96% of individuals studied, depending on gender and the location of hair loss.

The degree of hair regrowth was around 25 - 40%.
If your hair is thinning, how happy would you be to have 40% more hairs growing out of your scalp?

The growing hairs are also thicker, stronger and healthier.
If your hair is breaking easily or has regressed to peach fuzz, wouldn't you like to see it returned to strong, healthy strands?

Advantages of Illumiwave 180 Laser Biostimulation

This is not painful, expensive surgery. The laser treatment is completely pain-free. And some hair transplantation clinics are using laser biostimulation in conjunction with surgery to improve results.

There are no pills to take and no messy lotions to apply to your scalp.

There are no chemical or hormonal imbalances associated with laser treatment. In fact, low-level laser is useful for healing wounds and treating certain medical conditions.

Note: Laser biostimulation does not work if you are completely bald or have certain medical conditions. If you are losing your hair but not bald yet, it is best to start this treatment sooner rather than later.

10 Years Younger in Burlington

2011-06-16T13:08:00.000-07:00

What would a transformation mean to you?

2010-09-18T11:02:00.000-07:00

When we first consider a 10 years younger type of transformation, a lot of us imagine that it is purely a vanity thing. And a lot of us imagine it would be embarrassing or shameful to exhibit our vanity so blatantly on our faces.

What I have discovered after years of transforming people's faces is that vanity is the smallest fraction of what the 10 years younger transformation is all about. I'd like to share with you in a series of blog posts the comments from our previous 10 Years Younger in Burlington transformees on how the process affected their lives.

Here are the words of Celeste, who was 47 last year when she entered our program:

Words are limiting to describe emotionally what has transpired this past year. Being introduced to Advanced Rejuvenation spa was a spring board BACK to 'living life on purpose' for me. I can say that there isn't an area of my life that hasn't been affected in a positive way!

The procedures I had done, and the knowledge of knowing other ones were available to me - brought 'hope' back to me. The procedures were symbolic to me - showing me that I didn't have to accept the status quo. There were options to 'all or nothing' (meaning surgery or nothing).

The skin procedures rejuvenated my skin - the rejuvenated skin then rejuvenated my spirit. Dr. Jeans and her staff also lifted my spirits every time I walked through their doors. They create a warm, safe and professional environment at the spa, easy to relax and trust. The procedures gave me a glimpse of what I used to be. I didn't have to accept or submit - I could take control - there were options - I had a choice. IT WASN'T TOO LATE. With the additional help of the system (Dr. Jeans' Nutrition and Weight Control System -- ed.) I lost 30 lbs., reclaimed a career for myself and am now living a fulfilled life - everyday! I have not looked back!

This was a new beginning for me. On an emotional and personal level the procedures have given me back who I was and who I thought I had lost. Pretty cool!!!

Come and join us for a great evening

2010-09-18T08:32:00.000-07:00

Thursday September 23 7pm: Come and join us when we reveal Gini, Lorraine and Rose after their 10 Years Younger in Burlington transformations.

You will be treated to a Fall Fashion Preview, featuring Mia's Boutique, Livingston Furs, Mirella's, Savvy Couture, The Oyster and What a Heel.

Every attendee will receive a gift bag of goodies and will be entered to win valuable door prizes.

And if all of that weren't enough, by attending this event you are supporting a really worthwhile cause: Danielle's Place, a charitable organization, established in 2004, which provides eating disorder support services to anyone whose life has been affected by an eating disorder.

Please come and share the fun and excitement of 3 women undergoing an amazing transformation. Call 905-340-0401 for tickets.

10 Years Younger in Burlington is back!

2010-09-18T08:15:00.000-07:00

Our 2010 10 Years Younger in Burlington program is well underway!

We are transforming 3 amazing women -- Gini, Lorraine and Rose. I can tell you that they are already looking beautiful and that is before seeing the full package with hair, makeup and clothing.

Here they are:

First is Gini -- short for Georgina. Her nickname is the only short thing about her (so says the 5'2" vertically challenged one).

Gini, 56, has always been a high achiever with success as a nurse, a model and a fitness instructor under her belt.

However her sense of herself was shattered by a bitter divorce. As the single mother of 4 children, she is looking to rebuild her self-esteem and improve her chances in the job market.

Lorraine at 48 is the youngest of the group. She feels youthful on the inside but finds that the image staring back at her in the mirror is "overweight, tired and sluggish."

"I notice that I have the "11" indentations between my brow and my eyes are heavy with dark circles and my jowels are starting to sag. So, although I am not in dire despair now I think it is vitally important at my age and stage of aging that I manage aging and all that comes with it NOW."

And Lorraine is really motivated to get her outer appearance matching her internal exuberance.

Rose, 63, also feels younger inside than she feels that she looks on the outside. Rose has the energy of a much younger woman.

As a life-long tanner, Rose has sun damage, wrinkling and tissue sagging adding years to her face.

She wishes the years had been kinder to her appearance and wants to start feeling better about herself. We are very pleased to give her the opportunity to erase years of damage.

These three ladies have already started their transformation journey and already we are seeing the increased confidence that goes along with it.

We have a wonderful evening planned when we will reveal Gini, Lorraine and Rose looking at least 10 years younger and I think they will knock your socks off!

Please come and join us on September 23rd for delicious food, a fall fashion preview, goodie bags stuffed with treats and of course Gini, Lorraine and Rose. Call 905-340-0401 for tickets.

Risky anti-aging treatment: Would you do it?

2010-04-30T10:07:00.000-07:00

The other day, Coral* came to see me. A health professional who works in the aesthetic industry, Coral has a youthful, volumized face in keeping with a woman who has access to all of the best anti-aging treatments.

On this visit, I can see that she is healing from a fractionated laser treatment (see our Pixel -- one of my favorite treatments). Coral tells me that she had a very aggressive laser treatment and followed it up with a hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) treatment about 24 hours later.

"I loved the hyperbaric treatment. It made me feel energized and my face healed really quickly."

OK, that sounds interesting to me.

I should share with you here that in my former life working at the hospital, I was a consultant for the HBO service at the Hamilton General Hospital so I have treated a lot of patients with HBO and reviewed a lot of scientific papers on the use of HBO for a variety of conditions.

HBO is the treatment that divers go through when they have the bends. You are placed in a chamber that can be sealed so that the contents (meaning you and the air in the chamber) can be pressurized to 1.5 to 3 times the normal atmospheric pressure. It is like diving down 33 feet (double normal pressure) or more. You will definitely feel the pressure in your ears, and possibly other places.

Then Coral said "I loved the hyperbaric so much that I am planning to have a treatment every month. I think it is a great anti-aging treatment."

Whoa! This healthy, youthful-looking 40 year old is going to have HBO treatments every month?

I asked her if they had fully explained the risks and benefits of the treatment.

"Oh yeah, I filled in a consent form. It mentioned air embolism (a bubble of air in the circulation which can block blood flow) and pulmonary embolism (a blood clot in the circulation of the lung)."

I explained to Coral that there are 2 main groups of side effects from HBO treatments -- barotrauma which means damage caused by the increased pressure of the treatment, and oxygen toxicity which is an effect of the high oxygen concentration in the blood achieved by the HBO treatment.

Some of the side effects of the treatment are self-limited: for instance, you may develop seizures from oxygen toxicity and the seizures stop when you return to a normal oxygen level. Others can cause permanent damage such as scarring of the lungs, called pulmonary fibrosis, from exposure to high oxygen levels.

This case really illustrates the importance of informed consent and the principle of risk vs. benefit.

RISK
Every treatment has some risk associated with it. In thinking of risk, we consider how likely it is that the side effect will occur, how serious the side effects are and how difficult it is to treat the side effects.

For something like cosmetic botox, the risk is that the botox will affect a muscle we don't want -- usually the eyelid so that the eyelid droops. This is annoying but not life-threatening or vision-threatening and will wear off naturally in time. There are eye drops that can help minimize the eyelid droop.

Overall, the likelihood of a botox-induced lid droop is very low (but it varies depending on the provider), the severity of a droop is low and it will wear off naturally. Overall, this sort of risk is very acceptable for an elective, cosmetic procedure, right?

In contrast, HBO has some very serious potential side effects, including ruptured ear drums, heart failure, seizures, shortness of breath and changes in vision. I agree that these side effects are less likely in healthy people but they still can occur in them. The treatments range from stopping the HBO treatment (seizures) to prolonged healing times and needing medications, all the way to needing life support.

BENEFIT
HBO therapy increases the oxygen levels in your blood and tissues. For instance, HBO is used to treat conditions associated with oxygen deprivation to the tissues such as carbon monoxide poisoning, cyanide poisoning, compartment syndrome (where traumatized tissues become so swollen that the blood flow to an area is compromised) and radiation necrosis (where radiation treatments for cancer has caused scarring and shrinkage of blood vessels).

In certain conditions where tissues are compromised from insufficient oxygen levels, HBO can make the difference between tissue survival and tissue death. I am not aware of any studies showing that HBO has anti-aging benefits in healthy people. I think that someone has made the leap from HBO's effect in compromised tissue to thinking it will benefit healthy tissue.

I definitely think that HBO is a worthwhile treatment for a serious medical problem like the ones I mentioned above but as an anti-aging treatment, it is another story. We don't know what sort of benefit you can expect from HBO as an anti-aging treatment. Unless you are a Hollywood star whose fortune depends on remaining youthful-looking, I would think that the risks of HBO are unacceptable for an elective anti-aging treatment.

INFORMED CONSENT
Coral had not been informed of all of the risks of HBO therapy. If she had known all of the possible side effects, she would not be considering having a treatment every month.

The moral of the story is to make sure you read the consent form when you are having cosmetic medical treatments (or any other medical treatment, for that matter). If you are having a treatment that is considered new or for a new or unusual indication, do your own research online to find out what the risks are. It helps to ask a doctor to put the risks into perspective for you.

You are the best judge of how much risk you are willing to take for the expected benefit of the treatment. Make sure that you are getting a good sense of the expected benefit of the treatment based on evidence.

And always ask whether there is another safer way to get the same benefits.

*Name changed to preserve anonymity.

Botox is going to destroy society as we know it

2010-04-16T06:32:00.000-07:00

How To Lose Friends: Botox

Botox Can Leave You With Broken Relationships

Botox can make you less empathetic

Botox injection 'leads to rejection'

Wow! Who knew that a little botox to relax your frown muscles was going to leave you alone, friendless and a social outcast?

Let's backtrack: where are they getting the idea for these articles?

It all goes back to some research that was presented on January 29th of this year. PhD candidate David Havas wanted to determine whether a botox treatment to the frown muscles would have any effect on how quickly an individual could read angry, sad and happy statements.

"To test how blocking a frown might affect comprehension of language related to emotions, Havas asked the patients to read written statements, before and then two weeks after the Botox treatment...Havas gauged the ability to understand these sentences according to how quickly the subject pressed a button to indicate they had finished reading it...The results showed no change in the time needed to understand the happy sentences. But after Botox treatment, the subjects took more time to read the angry and sad sentences. Although the time difference was small, it was significant, he adds."

The interpretation that the above articles are putting on this research is this: your friends will notice if you are a fraction of a second slow to respond when they are angry or sad. They will immediately interpret this very slight hesitation to mean that you are not as empathetic to them and they will shun you.

Think about this for a second -- your best girlfriend is telling you about the death of her grandmother. You are getting all kinds of cues from her -- what she is saying, her body position, tears, tone of voice and so on -- and you are reacting on so many levels, including remembering what has comforted your friend in the past, hugging her, grabbing the box of tissues. Do you really think that there will be any perceptible hesitation in your response to her? Of course not.

I can tell you from personal experience with botox in myself and in many people around me that we have not been turned into antisocial, unsympathetic loners.

What is even more interesting is a scientific article about this research suggests that botox will make you happier. And that will probably make you more socially successful.

"There is a long-standing idea in psychology, called the facial feedback hypothesis," says Havas. "Essentially, it says, when you're smiling, the whole world smiles with you. It's an old song, but it's right. Actually, this study suggests the opposite: When you're not frowning, the world seems less angry and less sad." [Emphasis mine.]

Hmmm. Botox has been around for 20 years and hasn't torn the fabric of society asunder yet. Maybe the writers of these articles should stick to what they know rather than making outrageous postulations.

Carla Bruni: It's a laser treatment

2010-03-19T13:53:00.000-07:00

This picture of France's First Lady Carla Bruni is all over the internet this week. Various bloggers and news outlets are scolding her for having plastic surgery.

When I look at this picture, I see evidence that Carla Bruni is recovering from a fractionated laser treatment, such as the Pixel laser we have here at Advanced Rejuvenation. The texture of Carla's skin looks rough. Plastic surgery would not do this. It could possibly be makeup over a microdermabrasion treatment but why would she undergo microdermabrasion when she could have increased smoothing and tightening of her skin for the same amount of downtime with a Pixel laser treatment. Carla's eyes are a little puffy suggesting that her face is dealing with increased inflammation.

What is especially ironic for me is that my face looks very similar this week. I had a Pixel laser treatment two days ago. My eyes are puffy. My skin feels rough to the touch. I can cover it with makeup but if you get close enough to me you can see the fine bumps resulting from the fractionated laser. Overall, my face feels kind of stiff.

In a few days, I will be completely healed and my skin will look bright, smooth and radiant. My pores will be almost invisible. My brows and jawline will be lifted. A Pixel laser treatment makes you look air-brushed.

I use the Pixel laser now to maintain the collagen levels in my skin where they were around 10 or 20 years ago. Our collagen levels decline as we age, leading to skin laxity and wrinkling. Stimulating the skin to make more collagen restores the skin's firmness and means that you don't need plastic surgery.

This photo shows Carla Bruni at a state function at the beginning of March. I am sure that the photos that will be taken of her next week will show her looking flawless and glowing again.

I think Carla Bruni is wise to stay looking youthful and beautiful with non-surgical treatments.

Still tanning? Hollywood stars know it is not worth it

2010-03-17T11:38:00.000-07:00

This March Break, are you planning to go somewhere warm and bake your skin?

Maybe you'll even try to justify it by naming all the Hollywood stars that sport a sun-kissed look?

Don't do it! A week of sun tanning really roughens the texture of your skin and increases the number of lines and wrinkles.

I have seen it time and again. We do laser resurfacing with the Pixel and get a woman's face looking smooth, bright and radiant and then she goes on holiday and comes back with rough, wrinkled, tanned skin.

Here's an example of the rough texture that occurs after just one week in the sun:

And what is really ironic is that the stars we are trying to emulate stopped tanning long ago. They are in the business of looking young and they know that having sun exposure would add years to their skin.

Remember '80s supermodel Stephanie Seymour? This is what she looks like on the beach nowadays. Talk about a whiter shade of pale.

Stephanie knows that sun damage will age her quicker than anything.

Still not convinced?

Sharon Stone is one of those stars that often appears sun-kissed.

This picture of her was taken when she was in character for a role in Law & Order: SVU but I think her skin tone here is exactly what I expect for Sharon.

She looks like she has a nice, even tan, right?

But Sharon is another one who wants to look as young as possible. No way is she going to risk prematurely aging her skin or reversing the benefits of all her anti-aging treatments by tanning.

Have a look at what she looked like before she sat in the makeup chair. Another example of very fair skin.

So if you want to keep your face looking as youthful as possible, avoid the sun.

Wear a high quality sunscreen with a minimum SPF of 30 (50 - 60 would be preferred).

Wear a hat when you are outdoors.

And now that I have brought to your attention how fair all the Hollywood stars are these days, you are going to start noticing that very few leading ladies ever look tanned.

Gift Idea for the Stressed Out Person

2009-12-05T08:28:00.000-08:00

Does he grind his teeth? Look angry or anxious all the time?

The treatment that relaxes these facial expressions can also reduce the emotion behind them. Imagine giving the gift of relief from stress, depression or irritability.

The theory is that when we no longer look angry or stressed, people respond to us more positively and we feel better. The observations of one of my clients supports this idea. Martha told me that after she had Botox, strangers found her more approachable, and would, for instance, ask her for directions or strike up a conversation.

I think there is also a component of internal feedback. When you no longer have the aching jaws from tooth-grinding or an aching forehead from frowning, you feel more relaxed.

But whatever the exact mechanism for the effect, improved mood has been observed in a number of different studies and settings.

"The Botox patients scored much lower on measures of depression, anxiety and irritability," explains Michael Lewis, a psychology professor at the University of Cardiff and lead author of the study. "Crucially, there was no significant difference in how much their treatment made them feel attractive from those who had other treatments, suggesting that [the mood boost] wasn't just down to a boost in self-confidence."

Reduction of teeth-grinding (bruxism) is particularly beneficial.

"And it's not just relief from jaw pain, tension and headaches, that our patients experience. Some are also noticing a dramatic change in the appearance of their lower face. The square, severe look softened into a more normal and aesthetically pleasing jaw line.

"Some patients have also reported a marked reduction in their general stress level as their grinding gradually comes to a halt. Breaking the habit of Bruxism allows patients to relax and enjoy life."

Maybe you can buy happiness after all.

Dr. Frankenstein 2009

2009-11-05T06:56:00.000-08:00

Bizarre but true: plastic surgeon married a woman he didn't love and didn't find attractive but thought had "potential." He performed 8 operations and injected 1000's of dollars worth of botox and fillers to transform her into his ideal woman.

"Only AFTER £18,000 of cosmetic surgery did Reza, 48, fall in love with her."

Here are Before and After shots of her from topix.com. These images show how subjective our perception of beauty is because I don't find her transformation very attractive. And yet she was "created" to her husband's specifications. I'd like to see her face a little softer and prettier with less emphasis on the fake lips.

Her body is extremely toned and fit-looking but the massive breast implants make each breast bigger than her head. The doctor obviously has a comic book aesthetic.

And of course, the whole idea of their relationship seems pathological. Imagine marrying someone who didn't love you and wasn't attracted to you? Actually, I can't imagine it. And he says he loves her now that he has transformed her?!? I'm sorry but that isn't love; that's pride in creation.

Comic book girl superhero image from Comic Vine. Right hand image from http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,26298019-5013016,00.html.

The original story appeared in British tabloid The Sun.

Returning to beauty and confidence

2009-10-30T06:46:00.000-07:00

This is a very personal story for me. It's about my sister Nicola who is 5 years older than me. We both agreed that we would share her story in order to help others.

A few years ago, her life seemed to be on a downward spiral. She'd reached the point where she felt she had lost her looks -- makeup didn't seem to be working any more -- her face was perpetually sad, even when she was trying to smile -- and she was overweight and suffering a lot in her health.

This Before picture was taken in October 2007 after she had started having a few treatments here (she didn't allow herself to be photographed before that) but you can still see the bleakness she was feeling. She didn't make much effort with her appearance because she thought it was futile.

From a cosmetic perspective, I see volume loss in the lips, and sagging of existing volume so her eyelids are heavy and her cheeks are most prominent down at the level of her mouth. You may not see it well in this picture but she has a very uneven skin tone with dark pigment around her eyes and mouth and on her neck.

In the past 2 years, Nicola has undergone a few treatments -- generally when we needed someone to practice on as various staff were trained. She might get something done every 4 months or so -- I don't want you to think that she was getting botox and pixel laser treatments every week or even every month.

Now take a look at Nicola today. You'll immediately notice that her hair style is more flattering and that she has lost weight. I would argue that she made more effort with her hair and she had success with losing weight because she was feeling better about herself.

If we look in detail at her face, you can see a huge improvement in her eyelids. See how crepey the lids were in the Before shot? Her left eyelid was touching her eyelashes. Today she has contoured lids with lots of lid show. We tightened the skin of her lids by doing some Pixel laser and lifted the brows with Botox.

Look at her cheeks. See how the fullness has been lifted from where it was, down at the level of her mouth, up to the apples of her cheeks? The whole shape of her face is changed with an overall appearance of uplift, improving the jowls and jawline. Nicola had a SoftLift in August with Juvederm placed in her cheeks and in the marionette lines extending down from the corners of her mouth.

Of course, Nicola mouth looks bigger. Part of her SoftLift included augmenting her lips with Juvederm. Nicola and I both have thin upper lips that tend to disappear when we smile so we both like the way the lips augmentation prevents that.

The other thing we noticed is that the scar on Nicola's nose across the bridge has improved. This wasn't something that we actively treated. Nicola always looked on the scar as a symbol of surviving a near-fatal accident so she never asked to have it erased. However you can see how much it has smoothed out in the course of using medical grade skincare from Vivier and having Pixel laser treatments.

Another point to make about these 2 photos: Nicola was trying to make the same facial expression in both -- her pleasant expression. In the bad old days, every line in her face was downturned -- brows, outer corners of eyes, corners of mouth -- so her pleasant expression looked angry and sad. Now that those downturned lines are gone, she looks alert and positive even without a smile on her face.

These pictures show that you can get your face back without surgery, without having a surgical facelift. Nicola had a combination of non-surgical treatments including excellent skincare products, Pixel laser, IPL photofacial, injection lipolysis, Juvederm and Botox.

It took time for Nicola to achieve this level of improvement. However when you have gotten to the point that you think that the rest of your life is a downward spiral, how wonderful to see yourself improving month by month, instead of declining.

And this brings me to my final point: looking better makes you feel better about yourself. When you start seeing some improvement in yourself, you're more energized to do other things that will make positive changes in your life.

The path back to feeling positive and confident will be different for different people. If you're having trouble finding your path, start with your appearance.

Now is the time to erase signs of sun damage

2009-10-02T08:19:00.000-07:00

Now that cooler temperatures have arrived and the sun has slipped behind clouds, our tans are fading. Our winter skin is showing all of the after-effects of the sun-brightened skin that we enjoyed in the summer.

When you look in the mirror, you're probably not seeing a smooth bright even-toned complexion.

You're probably seeing brown spots -- sun spots -- known by the medical term solar lentigos. Sun spots foreshadow worse damage to come in the future. And they contribute to aging your appearance now.

You may be seeing redness, ranging from a diffuse flush to patches of broken capillaries.

The surface texture of your skin is likely to be roughened. My skin used to be so rough from sun damage that I gave up on wearing makeup because it looked mealy on my skin. I needed foundation to even out my blotchy skintone but I couldn't get it to go on properly.

And of course, we can thank the sun for many of the wrinkles and lines on our face -- both from squinting against the sun and also from damage to the collagen and elastin in our skin leading to the network of fine lines that we see as we age.

When someone comes to see me about sun damage, my recommendations depend on the individual's age, goals and budget, as well as the company that the sun damage is keeping.

So the basic treatment that addresses specifically the brown sun spots is the Intense Pulsed Light treatment (IPL), also known as the photofacial. By strict definitions, this is not a laser although many people refer to it as such.

In the upcoming series of articles, I will address sun damage and the factors that influence my recommendations for treatment. Depending on the situation, I might recommend skincare alone, chemical peels, or fractionated laser or any combination of these treatments, with or without IPL.

There's method in my madness and I'm trying to tailor the treatment to best suit the individual.

Fix droopy eyelids without surgery

2009-08-15T08:34:00.000-07:00

We often think of droopy lids as simply a cosmetic problem, but for sufferers they are more.

Not only do they have to put up with constant inquiries about their sleeping habits and apparent lack of energy, the lids actually press on the eyelids making the eyes themselves tired.

Nicola, our Director of Business Development is a case in point.

When she started working here in November her eyes were quite hooded (before picture, upper right). Since then she has had several pixel treatments and each time she is more and more thrilled with the lift she has regained (after picture, below).

"Instead of falling down like a curtain, my lids are following the contour of my brow bone. I look brighter, can apply my make up easier and best of all I don't suffer from the constant pressing on my eye balls that made it hard to work at the computer."

If you've been thinking about doing something with your lids, now is the perfect time to try out a Pixel treatment as part of our Summer Tasting Menu.

With little downtime and far less risk and cost than surgery it might be just the solution to your hooded lids.

This article is reprinted from our newsletter of July 2, 2009. Subscribe to our newsletter by clicking on the big pink button in the upper right hand corner.

Latest trends in bikini grooming from Europe

2009-07-18T10:28:00.000-07:00

A lot of my bikini hair removal clients are still asking for a brazilian, meaning everything off.

That's why I was interested to read on this Irish blog that more and more European women are choosing a well-groomed triangle rather than baring all.

The latest stats for Harley Medical’s Dublin clinic reveal that eight out of ten gals getting laser hair removal for their bikini line now prefer a little more coverage - a classic V-shape, to be precise. And why is it called the Sicilian? Well, that’d be to do with the fact that its shaped like the home of the Mafia, fact fans.

I saw the same trend on La Mom, the blog of an American woman in Paris.

Both articles are pretty cute and the comments are hilarious.

It will be interesting to see if North American women continue to prefer the brazilian or make the switch to the "classic T."

Older job seekers: Make your age a non-issue

2009-07-18T06:41:00.000-07:00

If you're jobless and aged over 55 years, you're probably having a difficult time being considered for a new job, let alone actually getting it.

The US Department of Labor's statistics published in June show that unemployment rates for those over 55 are the highest they've been since 1948, 7%. And older workers remain jobless for far longer than younger workers.

...unemployed workers 55 or older were jobless an average of nearly 30 weeks, compared with about 21 weeks for those under 55. That gap has widened during the recession: In 2006, it averaged only six weeks.

The prejudices that younger supervisors have against older employees include the fear that the worker is more likely to injure himself on the job, for instance by falling, more likely to require more sicktime and less likely to have new ideas or be up on new technology.

Many job-seekers are adjusting their resumes to exclude dates, and sometimes cutting out certain experience or qualifications that indicates age or over-qualification.

Another strategy is to erase some of the signs of aging in the face so the interviewer will accept you as 10 or 20 years younger than your actual age.

In our recent 10 Years Younger in Burlington program, we performed a variety of treatments to reduce signs of aging all on the same day on the winner and 4 runners-up.

Each treatment requires some healing time before you see the final results so doing all of the treatments on the same day meant that everything had healed 1 week later. All of the ladies who underwent the treatments felt that it was very tolerable to have light and laser treatments as well as Botox and Juvederm injections on the same day.

You can see the results for each one by clicking on their links: Margaret, Celeste, Kathy M, Kathy P and Christine.

For all the male job seekers out there, don't be put off that these stories are all about women. I have written about how celebrities are getting laser and filler treatments to stay looking young here and here, and I have also shown how restoring the cheeks can take 10 - 20 years off a man's face here.

The approach to the male face has to be quite different from the female face to avoid feminizing the features. My techniques for men are all directed at keeping you looking masculine, handsome and ageless.

I strongly urge you to come and see me at Advanced Rejuvenation so we can talk about your specific issues and the best treatments to make you look younger and more vital. Call 905-340-0401 for an appointment.

Joan Rivers, can we talk?

2009-07-11T08:20:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to write about Joan Rivers for a long while now but, frankly, I had trouble finding a good quality photo of her before she had any plastic surgery done.

Joan is an excellent model for showing how our ideas about cosmetic medicine and surgery have changed over the years.

In the photo on the left above, Joan is in her early 50s and already had a facelift. Joan's now 76, so this was taken around 25 years ago, before Botox and hyaluronic acid fillers were available though collagen injections were available then. In a classic facelift, lax facial muscles were cut and shortened to tighten them up and excess skin was cut out and the remainder pulled tighter over the framework of the face.

With a classic facelift, you get the very high brows and the tight skin of the lower face. Her hairline appears well behind the ears and her eyes pull into a bit of a slant. It looks like the framework of her facial bones has the skin stretched taut over it.

This photo (right) shows Joan before the facelift. You can see that her brows were lower and drooping at the outer ends. Her lower face was fuller with the fullest part of her cheek was down near the level of her upper lip.

So, comparing these photos of Joan Rivers in her 40s and 50s, we can see that in earlier years, the thinking in plastic surgery circles about reversing signs of aging was all about tightening.

The more recent photo of Joan (top right) shows that our new ideas about looking younger are all about volumizing.

As we age, everything shrinks -- the bones and muscles of the face. The skin loses collagen and elastin and becomes thinner and more lax. The fat pads in the face shrink and move downwards -- that's why Joan's cheeks were fullest at the level of her upper lip in the earliest photo.

In the most recent photo of Joan, her cheeks are fuller than they were after the facelift. This is probably from injections of dermal fillers like Juvederm or Teosyal. The cheeks can also be volumized with Sculptra.

Her jaw is wider. They have built up the jaw either with surgical implants or filler or Sculptra.

Her nose looks smaller. I suspect that this is because the tissues around the nose have been revolumized rather than another nose job.

As we age, our noses appear to get bigger because the tissues around them are receding. When I do a Sculptra treatment, I make sure to restore the tissues around the nose so the nose goes back into proportion. I explain this idea in more depth with photos here.

She has dermal fillers like Juvederm or Teosyal in her lips to keep them looking soft and full, and in the lines from nose to mouth and mouth to jawline building up the tissues in this area and making them look more youthful.

In a lot of ways, Joan Rivers looks softer and more youthful now than she did 25 years ago. Sadly, she will always have the stretched-taut appearance of her brows and eyes from the earlier plastic surgery.

The stars who are hitting their 40s now are avoiding the characteristic facelift appearance by keeping the skin tight with fractionated laser treatments like our Pixel and maintaining the volume in their face with injectables.

In this day and age, you really don't need a facelift to look younger and better.

This article is reprinted from our newsletter of March 23, 2009. To subscribe, click on the big pink button in the upper right-hand corner.

Hot News: EWG 2009 Report on Sunscreens

2009-07-03T06:44:00.000-07:00

Is your sunscreen working for you? Are you and your family truly protected from harmful UVA and UVB rays? Are any of the components of your sunscreen potentially harmful?

Now you can get the answers to these questions and more from a not-for-profit expert team called the Environmental Working Group (EWG). Their annual report on sunscreens was published online yesterday.

You can read it for yourself by clicking here.

Last year's report was harshly critical of many of the most popular brands of sunscreen, like Banana Boat, Neutrogena and Coppertone. The report stated that only 29% of sunscreens had UVA protection. The sunscreen industry is listening and this year 71% of products include UVA protection.

EWG ranks products according to effectiveness and safety.

Some sunscreen chemicals break down very quickly when exposed to the sun's rays so a compound that seems stable in the laboratory may be useless in the real world.

Certain compounds and/or delivery systems may be harmful. For instance, zinc oxide is an excellent and safe broad spectrum protectant in a cream or lotion form but could be harmful if inhaled so should not be used as a spray.

Wanna know what's on EWG's Top 10 List? Click here.

For your convenience, you can purchase the #1 Recommended Sunscreen Soleo Organics Sunscreen Organic chemical free sunscreen, SPF 30+, and 2 more recommended products: UV Natural Sunscreen, SPF 30+
and Obagi Nu-Derm Physical UV Block, SPF 32 at our online store.

Our online store is certified Hacker Protected and Verified Secure for worry-free internet shopping. You can pay using VISA, MasterCard, Amex, Discover, PayPal, and Google Payments.

Be confident that the sunscreen you're using is effective and safe by choosing a product recommended by the EWG 2009 Sunscreen Guide.

Why did this woman almost die from botox?

2009-06-26T08:49:00.000-07:00

Front-page news: Botox injection nearly kills woman. Yesterday's Hamilton Spectator trumpeted the news.

Does this mean that everyone who decides to smooth out a few wrinkles is risking a brush with death? Not at all.

Let's look at what happened: Francine Giacomelli, a 25-year old woman who lived confined to a wheelchair because of severe cerebral palsy had botox injections into her thighs, hips and back to improve the function of those muscles and reduce pain.

Botox acts as a mucle relaxant, making a huge difference in conditions of severe muscle spasticity.

In this poor woman's case, she experienced side effects from the spread of the botox so that it affected the muscles that control the eyelids and her swallowing function. She will gradually regain control of these muscles when the botox wears off but it could take months.

What about botox treatments for wrinkles?

There's a vast difference between the way botox is used for cosmetic treatments and medical conditions.

Botox for cosmetic use is much more concentrated, meaning that it won't travel or diffuse any distance from where it is injected. We are targeting tiny facial muscles and we want the botox to stay put.

For medical conditions, particularly those involving large muscles, the botox is diluted so that it will diffuse into the muscle. This is a good way of dealing with large muscles but it carries the risk that the botox will spread beyond the target muscle to other areas.

The dose that we use for a tiny little facial muscle is much smaller than what is needed for a big gluteal or quadriceps muscle.

When I did our Fabulous Five in the 10 Years Younger in Burlington program, the most that I put into any one woman (targeting every single facial muscle that I wanted to) was around 75 units. Not one of these ladies experienced symptoms of the botox spreading to another area.

In contrast, a lot of these medical treatments for severe spasticity start at 100 units and go up from there. I don't know how many units this woman was given but an estimate for treating 3 large muscle groups, both left and right sides, would be a minimum of 120 units and probably a lot more.

Botox for cosmetic use in the face is very safe. There has never been a report of an allergic reaction or a death with true BOTOX® Cosmetic from Allergan.

Medical botox, on the other hand, carries risks related to the dose required, the size of the patient (the number of units per kilogram body weight is higher in children and small adults) and the part of the body being treated. However if you google botox and cerebral palsy, you will find countless reports of children and adults who experienced huge improvements in their lives, thanks to this new treatment.

I wish Francine a speedy and safe recovery.

6 Common Sunscreen Mistakes

2009-06-15T07:44:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again when we think about protecting ourselves from the sun. Before you go outdoors, make sure you're not making any of the following common mistakes with your sunscreen.

Not wearing sunscreen on cloudy or overcast days.

Damaging ultraviolet rays, UVA, stay at a pretty constant level all year round and all day. These rays penetrate clouds and glass. UVA causes the damage we associate with accelerated aging such as wrinkling and sagging of the skin.

Not applying sunscreen until you are outside.

How many times have you gone to the beach with the sunscreen in your beachbag and applied it after you're sitting soaking up rays? Apply your sunscreen before you leave the house so that you are fully protected when you walk out the door.

Forgetting to reapply sunscreen.

Manufacturers' instructions advise that you should reapply sunscreen every 2 hours. At the bare minimum, you should reapply after swimming or working out, and on your face, after eating.

Habitually missing a spot when you apply sunscreen.

After a vacation in the Caribbean where she meticulously used sunscreen to avoid any tan on her face, Laura came back with a brown stripe down the middle of her nose. She always applied sunscreen with both hands starting at the sides and working towards the middle but her hands never quite met, leaving a stripe unprotected. I've seen other people miss the hollow under their cheekbones or the upper lip.

Using sunscreen that is too weak.

If you are using the SPF as a guideline to how long you can stay out in the sun, you're probably underestimating your level of protection. SPF is tested under ideal conditions, using a lot more product than we typically use. It doesn't take into account activities that will remove the product such as exercise, swimming, physical contact, contact with clothing.

Protecting the face and forgetting the body.

Many of us get into a workday routine of applying sunscreen to our faces in the morning but leave the house with exposed and unprotected skin, such as the nape of the neck, the hands, the decolletage. It's a good idea to wear protective clothing and to apply sunscreen to all exposed skin. Remember to reapply sunscreen after you've washed your hands.

Special program happening at Advanced Rejuvenation

2009-05-26T11:51:00.000-07:00

We are in the middle of a project that is so fun, so gratifying and so absorbing that I have not been writing on this site for a while.

Yes, that's right, it's time once again for 10 Years Younger in Burlington!

We had quite a number of applicants this year and every one of them deserved a 10 years younger transformation. It wasn't easy to winnow down the applicants to our top 10, and then to our top 5.

Once we had our top 5 applicants, we were really sweating bullets trying to decide who would be The One. Each applicant had a compelling story. Each applicant had a particular sign of aging that other people would relate to; we knew the correction of each individual's problem would create a transformation that would amaze our readers.

Then we received the most wonderful good news: Allergan, the maker of BOTOX® Cosmetic
and Juvederm, agreed to provide SoftLifts to all 5 women.

Once we had Allergan on board, it was a no-brainer for all of the participating businesses, Advanced Rejuvenation, Art in Hair, Beth Parojcic, Dr. Bekesch, Mia Boutique, The Ornatrix, and Sparkle 2 Go to provide various products and services for all 5 women. And our wonderful photographer, Melanie Gillis, photographed them all.

This has really been an exciting month for us, seeing 5 women transformed in their faces, their hair, their smiles, clothing style and internally as well. They have become fast friends, calling themselves The Fabulous Five -- and they really are fabulous!

Go over to the 10 Years Younger in Burlington site to check them all out. Join us on Friday May 29th at 5050 Restaurant (corner of Locust and Elgin in Burlington) at 7 pm to see them revealed.

Come and share this magical experience with us!

What the Pixel experience is really like

2009-04-23T09:16:00.000-07:00

Here are Miss A's comments about her Pixel experience and the skincare products.

Based on the science and Miss A's experience, I think the HYDRAgel and TNS Ceramide Treatment Cream are ideal for comfort and rapid healing after the Pixel.

You can see Miss A's photos here.

I would like to thank all of you for the opportunity of having a Pixel treatment on my face and neck. This was one of the things on my "wish list".

Not really knowing what to expect was a good thing for me as I had a fresh and unbiased experience with this procedure.

First off, the procedure itself was not painful. The IPL treatment was more painful, and even that was not so bad.

The pain of the Pixel comes approx. ten minutes after the procedure is complete. I found that the lidocaine gel and the cool air is a must. The cool air felt really good while still laying down - approx. 5 min. worth.

After that, approx. 3-4 hours later the redness really comes out. My face felt very sunburned and sore.

I would strongly encourage the HYDRAgel! That gel is amazing! It cools and takes the sting away. It is very soothing and the nice part is that it does not ever sting, even right after the procedure. I found that the Cicaplast does sting for about 10 minutes after application and I'm not sure if I would like to use that again. The Ceramide cream is also very nice in combination with the HYDRAgel. I did not use the Ceramide cream on its own so I'm not sure if it would sting if used alone. However, since I put it on overtop of the HYDRAgel, I found that it added to the moisture level on my face and the two of them really made my face feel more hydrated and supple. On the other side of my face (left) I used the Vivier Redness Relief cream and although it did not sting, it still was not as soothing as the other side (right). My left side still felt a bit tight and sore with the Redness Relief cream, although bearable.

I found that the flakiness was most obvious 2-3 days after the procedure but even that wasn't very bad.

The next time I get a Pixel treatment done I would use the HYDRAgel and the Ceramide cream on my entire face and neck. Even now, one week later, I still like the way these two products make my face and neck feel. I will continue to use the HYDRAgel in my daily routine and the Ceramide until gone.

Thank you, once again.

Sincerely

A

Study on new skincare products used after Pixel laser treatment

2009-04-22T08:06:00.000-07:00

This is what a Pixel fractionated laser treatment looks like from before (first image) to immediately after (second image) and day-by-day to the seventh day after the treatment.

We compared our standard skincare products on the left side of the face, with a new product from Vivier, HYDRAgel, and a SkinMedica product, TNS Ceramide Treatment Cream.

We chose the HYDRAgel for 2 reasons: 1) it is an excellent oil-free moisturizer full of hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B5 and glycosaminoglycans, and 2) our experience was that it didn't hurt on Pixeled skin.

The TNS Ceramide is designed to help skin heal after a Pixel. Ceramides are the specific fats on the surface of your skin. In damaged skin, you need to replace the ceramides to promote skin healing and prevent drying. The TNS line of products also contain peptides and vitamins that stimulate growth and help the skin to heal faster.

Immediately after the treatment, you can see some dark red patches where we did extra shots of laser for scars and wrinkles on Miss A. These are mostly on the right side of her face. She applied the HYDRAgel and TNS Ceramide to the right side of the face. At this point, her skin is feeling pretty sunburned; she doesn't look very happy, does she?

DAY 1: Twenty-four hours after the treatment and everything has settled down. Miss A's complexion appears darkened because she has so much healing and blood flow happening in her face. At this stage, you can comfortably apply makeup and cover everything.

At this stage, the skin is feeling rough to the touch. The roughness lasts 5 - 7 days and flakes off.

DAY 2 DAY 3
DAY 4
DAY 5

DAY 6
DAY 7: By 7 days after the treatment, Miss A's skin has healed. Notice how Miss A looked happier and happier as the week wore on -- this was her natural response to the treatment.

She now has new skin cells and new collagen in her skin, making her skin smoother, brighter, lighter and tighter. Her skin is more reflective, which is why it appears so white under the lights.

In the final image, I don't see a difference between the 2 sides of the face so you might think that the skincare products didn't make a difference. Don't forget that the right side of her face was worse to start with and received a more intense treatment. The fact that the right side caught up with the left side so quickly and healed so well suggests to me that the skincare products made a difference.

Boob Job Bandit: Doesn't she watch CSI?

2009-04-11T07:14:00.000-07:00

You may have heard about the Boob Job Bandit, a woman who purchased $12,000-worth of cosmetic services from 2 Newport Beach clinics using a stolen credit card.

Her stolen purchases included liposuction and new breast implants to replace an old set.

She has now been captured and it was the old breast implants that revealed her identity as 30-year old Yvonne Pampellone.

All implants have a unique identification number. This is classic CSI: unidentified DB (dead body) turns out to have some kind of implant, somewhere -- I've seen breast, cochlear, even intervertebral disc (that was the episode where the daughter killed her mother and disposed of her in the trash, I believe).

The CSIs check the number on the implant and, voila! They have the identity of the victim.

Same thing with the Boob Job Bandit. Her old implants have resulted in her being charged with identity theft, grand theft and commercial burglary.

She should have paid more attention to CSI.

Did she really think new boobs and a little less fat was worth risking a criminal record? The mind boggles.

What's wrong with Donatella?

2009-04-06T07:23:00.000-07:00

Donatella Versace is always making the lists for bad plastic surgery. What is she doing that is drawing so much criticism?

These images are from 1993 and 2007.

The first and most obvious problem is that her look hasn't really changed. Long bleached blond hair, thick black eyeliner and mascara don't suit her age and look dated.

The next problem is that the work she is having is not balanced. She gets a lot of filler in her lips, making her mouth look excessively large.

She has not had a sufficient volume restored to her cheeks so her mouth looks too young for the rest of her face.

She has had some subtle tightening of her neck and jawline, most likely a surgical neck lift. She has also had a brow lift.

Another problem is that her face and body don't match.

Her skin is leathery and saggy. She looks scrawny rather than slim. Her breast implants are out of proportion for her body size.

This degree of tanning is reversing any rejuvenating treatments that she has done to her face.

If Donatella stopped tanning and updated her look, she would get a lot more compliments.

(Top photos source here. (Bikini photo source here.)

This article is reprinted from our newsletter of January 21, 2009. To subscribe, click on the pink button at the top of the righthand column.

Trends in cosmetic medicine and surgery

2009-03-30T12:56:00.000-07:00

The New York Times is saying today that cosmetic surgery procedures increased by 3% in 2008, compared with 2007, even with the recession.

What's interesting about the article is that they are lumping together both surgical and non-surgical treatments. In fact, it is the non-surgical treatments that are increasing and cosmetic plastic surgery that is declining.

Here are some numbers for surgical procedures:

Liposuction down by 19%

Tummy tucks down by 18%

Breast augmentation (boob job) down by 12%

Surgical facelift down by 5%

Here are the non-surgical procedures:

Laser skin resurfacing up by 15%

Dermabrasion up by 13%

Botox up by 8%

A lot of articles make the trend from surgical to non-surgical cosmetic treatments be primarily a result of economic trends but that is not the case.

Surgery is inherently risky. Every year, we hear of people dying after cosmetic surgery procedures like liposuction, tummy tucks and facelifts. And the recovery time after surgery is longer than after non-surgical treatments.

But the biggest reason to choose non-surgical treatments in my opinion is that you still look like yourself afterwards.

Invest in yourself

2009-03-27T10:38:00.000-07:00

Let's face it: how you look affects your success and your opportunities. In tough economic times, anything that gives you an edge is worthwhile.

Various studies have shown that if your looks are below average, your income will be 5 - 10% below average; if you're blessed with above average looks, your paycheque will be 5% above average too.

And it's not just about attractiveness; age and the appearance of age is becoming increasing important in the marketplace.

Nowadays we are seeing older employees working for younger bosses. If you look significantly older than everyone else, you may be subject to age bias. Younger co-workers and supervisors may think that you don't have any new ideas to offer or that you're not savvy about new trends and technology.

Whether a front-line worker or an executive, you may be subject to age discrimination. This article discusses perceptions of age bias among corporate executives:

An interesting finding is that 73.7% of executives believe they have lost a job opportunity because of their age.

So what are the solutions?

You can rework your resume to cloud how old you are. You can get coaching to help you learn how to avoid the pitfalls of acting your age. Or you can have treatments to help yourself look younger.

As the psychiatrist said to the plastic surgeon:

“Why spend years talking to a therapist about my self-esteem when I can spend two hours on your operating table and eliminate the issue altogether?”

My experience has been that erasing the signs of aging from my face has made me feel younger inside. It's a chicken-and-egg phenomenon: people started treating me as if I were younger and I started feeling younger, which made me act younger so people treated me as if I were younger.

We know that botox treatments relieve depression and stress.

Nowadays the treatments that erase the years from your face are widely available, safe, long-lasting and do not require surgery. The cost of the services is a fraction of what you would pay for a good facelift and the results are more natural-looking.

Don't spend any more time worrying about your looks. Come and get some help.

A Botox competitor is coming

2009-03-25T14:46:00.000-07:00

Reloxin is another compound of botulinum toxin A, the active ingredient in Botox, that should be available soon.

The good news is that having a competitor for BOTOX® Cosmetic should help to bring down prices.

But if you're thinking that every Botox-injector is going to immediately switch over to the newer product, think again.

Reloxin doesn't behave exactly like Botox. The dose and volume injected has to be adjusted to achieve the equivalent effect as Botox. Many injectors may be unwilling to make the switch, preferring to stick to the tried-and-true to something new.

This article gives a pretty good overview of what many cosmetic doctors are thinking about Reloxin and Botox.

To my mind, this is the critical issue with Reloxin:

"[Reloxin] disperses a little more beyond the area of injection than Botox does," noted Dr. Robert Singer, chairman of the nonsurgical procedures committee of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. "Because it disperses more, there has to be a greater knowledge on the part of the individual doing the injecting to avoid problems like eyelid drooping, brow drooping and other complications."

For myself, I won't make a decision about Reloxin until I have had a chance to try it on a few people and see firsthand how it compares to Botox.

Less surgery, more medspa services

2009-03-23T10:41:00.000-07:00

The Financial Post is reporting that people are turning to non-surgical cosmetic treatments in the current economic climate.

According to recent surveys by the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (ASDS) and the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), more patients are opting for non-surgical procedures instead of expensive surgery due to costs and the risks of taking time off work or away from a job hunt to recover.

There has been steady growth in the use of less expensive options, such as fillers and injectable treatments like Botox and Juvéderm. Of the doctors surveyed by the ASPS, 73% reported increased or stable demand for procedures like Botox, chemical peels and hyaluronic fillers. Fifty-nine per cent of patients surveyed reported that concerns about the economy have forced them to rethink plans for cosmetic surgery, with 27% looking into less expensive, non-surgical options.

One of the social forces that is keeping the demand for medical cosmetic services stable or increasing is the sense that looking younger and better helps in the job market and with professional success.

Of those surveyed by the ASPS, 73% believe, particularly in these challenging economic times, appearance and youthful looks play a part in getting hired, being promoted or winning new clients. Some patients are making direct connections between cosmetic procedures and professional success and, though the bulk of their clientele continues to be female, some doctors also report seeing more professional male patients in the last several months. Dr. Swift's male clientele now account for 12% of his business, up from 8% before the downturn. "They want to look youthful in the boardroom," he says. "They realize that it's a very competitive market and that if you look tired it appears that you're offering tired opinions or tired ideas." (Emphasis mine.)

I was talking to a Human Resources professional the other day who told me that she did think that looks matter in the current job market. She had observed in the last several years that the business people in Toronto have shifted to a younger-looking crowd. She wasn't sure if this was because fewer older people were working in the business district or the older people had had rejuvenating treatments.

In this day and age, aren't we lucky that we can have non-surgical treatments to look younger and fresher without breaking the bank or enduring prolonged downtimes?

Another man's Botox experience

2009-03-20T08:57:00.000-07:00

Bryan McCourt is a 37 year old man who is not shy about describing the cosmetic medical treatments that he has had done in this interview from UK newspaper The Sunday Sun.

Bryan does regular skin peels, botox every six month and has had fillers injected.

The reporter described him as looking at least 10 years younger than his actual age.

Here are his comments about Botox:

Bryan says: “I’ve noticed a massive difference. I have had nothing but good results.

“The first time I had it done was for my crows’ feet around my eyes. After three days I thought this hasn’t worked but then after a week the crows’ feet had gone. It was amazing, to the point where my mates actually noticed.They have all had it done now.

“I have botox every six months now. I’ve had fillers too, which lasts a bit longer and I have had skins peels where they put on a solution on your face and after seven days the skin starts peeling and it takes layers off.

A man's Botox experience

2009-03-19T07:42:00.000-07:00

More and more men are trying medical cosmetic treatments like Botox. As the competition becomes fiercer in business, men want to appear more relaxed, healthy and vital.

I came across this article from the British Times Online where a man describes his own experience of having Botox for forehead creases and frown lines.

Despite being in my early twenties, I found that I loved that frozen feeling. Being acutely aware of the ageing effects of the sun, booze and just about everything else I’ve enjoyed in my life, I’m less interested in turning back the clock than stopping it altogether. As with antiwrinkle creams, it’s good to start young as they work better as preventatives than curatives. Botox is no different. As its hold wore off, my forehead remained smooth. The lines had gone, and because I couldn’t move my brow for four months, I’d trained myself out of doing so, exempting me from wrinkles in later life (I like to think). And, being younger, those who didn’t know about my Botox jabs never suspected a thing. I merely looked rested, rather than like a cast member of Desperate Housewives.

I’ve recently gone back for more, after noticing two little frown lines had appeared. So, aged 27, Franklin gave me a few more shots to iron me out, persuading me to have just a tiny dose. “The muscles in your forehead aren’t huge like an older man’s,” she said, “so you won’t need much.”

Six months on, I still haven’t frowned and have never been asked if I’ve been “done”; people just think I’m nonjudgmental and get eight hours’ sleep a night. Who could want for more?

It's very important with Botox and any cosmetic treatments for men that you make sure that your practitioner does things differently for men and women.

For instance, with women, I strive to open up the eye area, lifting the brow and giving lots of lid show. This gives women a very pretty, feminine, refreshed look. This pattern of treatment would look effeminate on many men.

Botox is a great tool in the right hands, giving a relaxed look that is not frozen.

Home laser hair removal: Is it worth it?

2009-03-13T10:01:00.000-07:00

British Beauty Blogger put up a post here about a home laser hair removal system called Tria.

One of her first statements is this:

I’ve actually tried a Tria home laser hair removal machine, but due to my appalling attention span, quickly realised that I didn’t have the patience for it.

This is my concern with all of these home laser treatment units. Every one that I have looked at requires many passes over the same area and many more treatments than you would require with medical-grade equipment.

I remember when the epilator was all the craze (you know, that little handheld electric doohickey that yanked each hair out -- Ouch!). It was promised to make your legs stay smoother for longer ... yadda, yadda, yadda. However it hurt and it took so darn long and you had to keep cleaning out the rubber thingy that grabbed the hairs. I think I used mine maybe 3 times before I gave up on it.

Now the fad beauty equipment is home lasers.

Think about it: lasers are powerful and they can hurt and cause damage to important structures like your eyes. In order for the government to approve a laser for home use, the equipment has to be greatly reduced in power to make it safe.

Before you purchase this sort of equipment, you really need to ask yourself if you have the time and motivation to use the equipment for many hours before you see results.

And these things aren't cheap. British Beauty Blogger quotes a price of 675 British pounds. That's almost a grand in USD or $1200 Canadian. You can get a lot of hair removal in my clinic for that much money.

Don't get sucked into purchasing something that requires way more time and effort than you can put into it.

How to shop for Botox® Cosmetic

2009-03-11T09:34:00.000-07:00

Here is an educational piece that we provide to people who are shopping for Botox. It outlines the factors people should take into consideration and the questions they should ask before signing the consent form for Botox.

We’ve created the following guide to help you decide on the best Botox® Cosmetic treatment option for you. We hope that by reading this guide you will find the provider who will give you the best value for your money.

Botox® is typically quoted as a cost per unit procedure. Depending on the treatment you choose, you may have as few as 10 (touch up) to as many as 200 units (Hyperhidrosis). A common treatment of relaxing the “11”s, the two vertical lines between the brows takes about 30 units for a woman.

Area prices for Botox® vary between $6 and $15 per unit. The obvious temptation is to find the cheapest provider but as you will see below, you may get more or less than you bargained for.

Make sure you understand what to expect from your Botox® treatment.
Be sure your expectations are realistic. You may find that the results you desire are better achieved with an alternative treatment.

At Advanced Rejuvenation Medical Spa, we focus on you and your needs. We respect your right and need to think about what you need and the schedule you wish to follow for your treatments. Proceed as quickly or as slowly as is comfortable for you.

Who will be doing your treatment?
At Advanced Rejuvenation Medical Spa all of our Botox® injections are done by our Medical Director, Dr. Rose Jeans. As a doctor she holds herself, and is held by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, to a higher standard of treatment than nurse injectors. Legally, only medical doctors and nurse injectors (specially trained Registered Nurses) are allowed to inject Botox®. All nurse injectors must practice under a doctor’s supervision. In practice, a supervising physician may never actually see their work.

When shopping for a Botox® provider, be sure to ask for the credentials of the person who will actually be doing your injections, not just the medical director who oversees them.

Some places cut corners by using RPNs (Registered Practical Nurses). Their medical training is limited and takes less than 2 years to complete. They may not understand the subtle geography of your face and deliver less than optimal results.

Dr Jeans, the Medical Director of Advanced Rejuvenation Medical Spa, has been a licensed doctor for 20 years. For eight years, Dr. Jeans worked in the Intensive Care Unit and in the Cardiac Surgery program, assisting with open heart surgery. She assisted in Plastic Surgery for over four years, and collaborated with a plastic surgeon on research projects and a medical textbook.

She is ideally suited to provide care in cosmetic medicine because her background in Internal Medicine has given her an in-depth understanding of how the body works and responds to treatments, and her surgical experience has given her excellent technical skills and anatomical knowledge.

Location
Beware of “deals” at gyms, hair salons or other nonmedical spa or day spa locations.

Fake “Botox” is out there. The photo above shows the hologram that is visible on real Botox vials. While the cost may be attractive, the risk certainly isn’t. Botox® is made from the neurotoxin that causes botulism. Used in trained hands, it is safe and effective. Allergan, the maker of Botox® Cosmetic, ensures that the dosage is consistent from one batch to the next. Whether you buy from one trusted provider or another, a properly reconstituted unit of Botox® will be the same.

The product is delivered freeze-dried to the provider. It is the clinic's responsibility to reconstitute it to the proper dosage to be effective. One of the ways that unscrupulous operators can increase their profits is to overdilute it. This means you may get results that don’t last very long or you may not get results at all!

Many providers lowball the price of their Botox® as a loss leader, just to get you in the door. Once you’re there, you can be subject to high pressure sales tactics to purchase more, and more expensive, treatments.

Guarantee
One way to protect yourself is to ask a provider what sort guarantee they offer with their injections.

At Advanced Rejuvenation Medical Spa, you’ll discuss your treatment options with our doctor. You will learn the pros and cons of varying the number of units and injection sites to get the results you want. You will know what results to expect and how long they should last. We guarantee that your treatment will be effective within the limits you have determined for your treatment, such as number of units injected, or we will do touch ups at no charge until we achieve that goal.

Rarely, due to a client’s unique anatomy, a Botox® treatment does almost the opposite of what was intended. For instance, instead of lifting the brow, it drops it. These results can’t be predicted.

Ask your prospective provider what their policy is in such circumstances. Many places tell their customers to wait out the 3 or so months it takes for the effects to wear off.

At Advanced Rejuvenation Medical Spa if such a situation occurred we would work with you to minimize the adverse effects and improve your appearance as quickly as possible. We’ve only had one client this has happened to, but our commitment to her satisfaction surprised and delighted her, even if her initial Botox® results didn’t.

What to watch out for
In conclusion, when shopping for a Botox® provider, look beyond the dollar price per unit in order to determine the best value for your money.

Don’t be pressured into doing more than you feel comfortable doing.

Be realistic in your expectations based upon a thorough discussion of your goals and treatment options with your provider.

Ask for the credentials of the injector who will be doing your treatments. Be sure you are comfortable with their level of training.

Go to a reputable, appropriately trained provider. Never get treatments done if you don’t know and trust who is doing it or what they are injecting.

Ask about their guarantee. Be sure you’re happy with and prepared for the risk you’re taking with your treatment.

Stress got you grinding your teeth? Here's help

2009-03-06T14:23:00.000-08:00

I came across this press release from a cosmetic surgery group in the UK called Transform. They are describing a 50% increase in the number of people requesting treatment for Bruxism, which is the medical term for excessive teeth-grinding.

Transform can reveal that it's Britain's men, aged 35-45, living in London who are most likely to request this treatment although its clinics have treated women too. Those patients have cited a rise in stress levels due to financial stress and job worries as the reason for their increased and unbearable teeth grinding. And their constant jaw-grinding has caused problems in relationships with partners kept awake by the noise.

Botox to Brutox Treatments

Gwen Davies, Head of Non-Surgical at Transform, comments, "Transform has been using Botox to treat chronic teeth grinding successfully. Brutox, as we're calling it, is very quick, straightforward and can be very effective. Most Botox patients experience noticeable improvement within two to three days of their first treatment.

Pain Relief from Botox

"And it's not just relief from jaw pain, tension and headaches, that our patients experience. Some are also noticing a dramatic change in the appearance of their lower face. The square, severe look softened into a more normal and aesthetically pleasing jaw line.

"Some patients have also reported a marked reduction in their general stress level as their grinding gradually comes to a halt. Breaking the habit of Bruxism allows patients to relax and enjoy life.

What's particularly interesting to me in the above quotation is that the treatment of a symptom of stress, that is the treatment of teeth-grinding, actually reduces the individual's stress level.

This seems paradoxical, almost a chicken-and-egg scenario.

I've heard of it anecdotally in other situations. For instance, people who have their frown lines treated with Botox don't seem to get as angry as they used to before the treatment.

And I reported on a study in a previous post where 10 people with established severe depression had Botox for frown lines and the depression resolved in 9 out of 10. And the 10th person experienced an improvement in mood, if not a complete resolution.

Our bodies work in mysterious ways, don't they?

Jenny McCarthy likes Botox

2009-03-06T14:14:00.000-08:00

Jenny McCarthy is interviewed in Michigan Magazine and I found an excerpt on the Access Hollywood website.

She is someone I admire for her work on autism. The sense that I get of her in this interview is that she is comfortable in her skin. She doesn't apologize for where she's at and what she does or doesn't do. She knows what's important and what's not.

“I’m 36 – not that means I’m 100, but I just really like my clothes on now,” [ed.: explaining why she wouldn't do another Playboy spread] she said in a new interview with Michigan Avenue magazine.

But the star, looking fresh and glamorous in the mag’s six-page spread, stays in shape with Bikram yoga (the style of yoga in which the room temperature is heated up) and admits to the occasional touch of Botox.

“I love Botox, I absolutely love it,” she said. “I get it minimally, so I can still move my face. But I really do think it’s a savior.”

I think she looks great too.

Sagging arms?

2009-02-27T14:08:00.000-08:00

Do your arms bother you?

If you have sagging skin on your arms, it doesn't matter how much you diet and exercise, they don't tighten up.

Here are before (top) and after (bottom) photos of one of my clients who didn't like the way her arms sagged.

She underwent injection lipolysis (Lipodissolve) and Accent RF treatments. She had had 10 Accent treatments by the time the "after" photo was taken.

Pretty impressive, eh?

This is why I'm so excited about combining radiofrequency and lipolysis treatments. Using the 2 together really boosts your results.

You could get results like these with the 3-month Accent membership and an injection lipolysis treatment.

This article is reprinted from Advanced Rejuvenation's newsletter of January 14, 2009. To subscribe to our newsletter, click on the big pink button in the upper right hand corner.

Sculptra works great for darker skin types

2009-02-27T08:18:00.000-08:00

I just saw this blogpost reporting that a study has been completed to see how well Sculptra works in darker skin types.

A question was whether darker-skinned patients would create too much collagen, causing hypertrophic scars and keloids. But it turned out that "they do very well with this product," according to Dr. Mest, with new collagen forming more quickly than light-skinned patients without any unwanted side effects.

Good news indeed for people with darker skin types.

You can read more about Sculptra and see some photos of results here, here, here and here.

Daniel Craig, is that you?

2009-02-26T11:19:00.000-08:00

Do you remember the first time you saw a trailer for Casino Royale featuring the new James Bond? Do you remember wondering who was that swimming trunk-clad hunk?

Ooooh-la-la!

Even a masculine icon like James Bond needs a little cosmetic help now and then.

Could this be the same man?

This is what Daniel Craig looked like in 2005 when they announced that he would be the new James Bond.

OK, I agree that his hair cut was changed but he had more than just a hair cut. Look at how flat his cheeks are here and how his eyes and nose dominate his face.

Things just aren't in proportion.

Now look at the images below, the before image on the right and the after on the left.

He's had the volume restored to his cheeks. It really put his features back in proportion.

He had some skin resurfacing, probably with fractionated laser like the Pixel.

I think he also had some Botox to open his eyes up a bit. This will open up the eyes just 1-2 mm -- enough to make his irises show better but not enough to be obvious. He didn't have his glabellar or forehead lines treated though.

I've looked at a lot of pre- and post-Bond photos of Daniel Craig and I think he also had a little filler in his lips. His lips appear more sculpted post-Bond and subtly fuller.

The other big thing that changes his photos is this: it seems that Daniel has been advised never to smile for photographs any more. He looks much more like James Bond when his face is stern and expressionless than when he has a friendly smile.

This article was originally published in Advanced Rejuvenation's newsletter of January 14, 2009. To subscribe to our newsletter, click on the big pink button in the upper right corner of this page.

Is the economy getting you down?

2009-02-19T07:21:00.000-08:00

This is a bit off-topic for cosmetic medicine but an important resource for anyone who is worried about money in today's economy. That's why I want to share it with you now.

Are you worried about money?

Would you like to have more money?

Do you wish you handled your money better?

Then sign up for a Millionaire Mind Intensive course with T. Harv Eker. I did it in 2007 and it totally changed the way I think about money.

T. Harv Eker says our financial success is based on our financial blueprint -- all of the programming or ideas about wealth, money and success that we have absorbed since birth.

In the Millionaire Mind Intensive course, you uncover what your financial blueprint is and use a variety of modalities to change it.

During the 3-day course, you break the connections in your own brain that are blocking you from achieving wealth and success and create the connections that will open you up to achieving wealth and success.

This is a great course for anyone who has ever spent more than they should have, used retail therapy to deal with problems or had any concerns about retirement income.

The next Millionaire Mind Intensive in the Toronto area is June 18 - 20, 2009 at the International Centre on Airport Road. I'm planning to go.

You can also attend the MMI course this spring in Montreal, Phoenix, Calgary, San Francisco, LA, Vancouver, Ft. Lauderdale, Salt Lake City, Denver and Secaucus, NJ.

As T. Harv Eker says:

“There’s the general economy, and then we each have our own personal economy. The general economy is definitely suffering. MY economy is great.”

I highly recommend this course. To learn more, click on this link. You will be able to view a video, download a report, and register for a Millionaire Mind Intensive course near you.

If you're not ready to commit to life-changing course, then order the book Secrets of the Millionaire Mind. It is chockful of information.

Help us purchase a breast coil for the Hamilton General Hospital

2009-02-12T07:16:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder about a really worthwhile fundraising project.

This is a project that is going to help many women with breast cancer in our region. You can read more about it here.

Kelly Arnott is donating the proceeds from the HSBC Chilly Half Marathon and Frosty 5k coming up on March 1, 2009.

The MRI techs put together a team called The Rack Pack to train for the races and get pledges. The team is training with Nancy Hastings of Second Wind Conditioning.

Sponsor The Rack Pack by clicking here.

If you would like to help purchase an MRI Breast Coil for the Hamilton General Hospital, please click here.

You may donate your time instead of money to this great cause. I am the Medical Director of the race. I am still looking for volunteers to help at the finish line. If you are interested, please contact me at 905-340-0401.

Research projects at Advanced Rejuvenation

2009-02-12T07:05:00.000-08:00

This article is reprinted from our newsletter of December 18, 2008. In the past week, we have sent out a request for volunteers for the cellulite study and we are currently designing several more studies for which we will be requesting volunteers. To receive our electronic newsletter, click on the big pink button at the top of the right-hand column of this page.

From time to time, I need subjects for research projects, training and demonstrations.

This is an example of a research project that we did for our skincare supplier, Vivier, on their new serum, C E Kinerol. You can read an article about this serum here.

These are UV photographs -- that's why the skin looks so blue. Upper image is Before, lower is After using C E Kinerol for 4 weeks.

Participants in this study received at least a 3-month supply of skincare products. In return, they had to use the products, fill in a couple of questionnaires and have their pictures taken.

In October, we needed subjects for lip filler injections. They got their lips done at cost by me or by an experienced nurse-injector from my supplier.

If you know someone who might like to participate in a research project or who would be willing to be a demonstration model, please forward this newsletter to them and tell them to subscribe.

In future, we will be sending out requests for people to participate in these projects through the newsletter.

Another reason to choose an Accent Membership

2009-02-09T09:23:00.000-08:00

It's a funny thing about doing a research study, you start measuring everything.

One of my clients started an Accent Membership recently. She is starting out with some body recontouring on her abdomen rather than addressing cellulite but we were in measuring mode so we measured her before and after 3 treatments.

Usually I tell people that they will start to see the difference at around the 4th treatment so this person was a little faster to show results than normal. She swears that she didn't change her diet and she hadn't been exercising. We didn't do anything extra to accelerate her results.

Here are her Before (left) and After (right) shots:

And the measurements are even more impressive: She lost 4 cm off her waist with just 3 treatments!

With an Accent membership, you are signing up for weekly Accent treatments for a set period of time -- 3 months, 6 months or 12 months. Like a gym membership, if you don't come and see us for a few weeks, those weeks of membership are gone.

However, the savings are far greater when you purchase a Membership than when you buy a package of 6 treatments so you still come out ahead even if you miss a few weeks.

Update on Refining Cellulite Body Lotion

2009-02-07T09:43:00.000-08:00

The first client using the Refining Cellulite Body Lotion came in yesterday and said that she could already see a difference with it.

In another case, I personally just did an Accent treatment on a client this morning and applied the Refining Cellulite Body Lotion immediately afterwards.

I wasn't expecting to see a difference but I did see a modest difference. This person dropped about half a point on the 0 - 4 point cellulite assessment scale in the lotion-treated leg compared to the non-treated leg.

What's interesting about the case that I was doing today was that if the lotion had been applied to both sides, we probably would not have detected the difference. Remember, this client had just had an Accent treatment so I would have ascribed the difference to that.

These observations tell us nothing about how long the difference will last, just that it shows up right away after the lotion is applied.

The study that we are currently doing will help us know how long the improvement lasts with the lotion (hours, days, weeks, longer?). It will also show us whether the difference between the treated and untreated legs increases with prolonged use of the lotion.

If you want to find out what the study is telling us about the Refining Cellulite Body Lotion, keep checking in with this blog.

If you are in the Southern Ontario area and want to participate in the study, contact us as soon as possible at 905-340-0401. This is a small study and spaces are filling up quickly.

Wipe out cellulite now

2009-02-05T14:41:00.000-08:00

Advanced Rejuvenation Medical Spa is doing a study. It starts within the week. We plan to assess Refining Cellulite Body Lotion, a new product for cellulite from Vivier.

The key ingredients in Refining Cellulite Body Lotion include Synephrine from bitter orange, Caffeine and Glaucine, a plant extract.

These 3 compounds attack different stages of fat metabolism.

Synephrine activates the breakdown of the fats stored in the fat cells;

Caffeine blocks an enzyme that inhibits fat breakdown;

Glaucine stimulates fat breakdown and blocks the formation of new fat cells.

This is an excellent option for any of you who plan to get one of our Accent Memberships. The study is open to all clients who have not started doing Accent on a body part already. The study will last 6 weeks with one follow up appointment at 12 weeks.

In the study you will receive the product to test on half of the area you get treated by Accent. The other side or half you will not treat with the lotion. You will have to treat the same area for the entire six weeks of the study. We will take photographs at the start and at the 6- and 12-week mark.

We expect to see the side treated with lotion will show more rapid results of smoothing and tightening than the side treated with Accent Radiofrequency alone.

Here is what Accent alone can do for cellulite in 5 treatments:

You can see that the cellulite is improved but not completely gone.

As many of you know, I am a big fan of Vivier's products for their quality, effectiveness, science and bottom-of-the-bottle guarantee. I expect the Refining Cellulite Body Lotion to perform as well as all of the other Vivier products so I am undertaking this study now to document how well the product works. Just in time for swimsuit season!

This study will be limited to five participants. Preference will be given to participants who can start immediately.

If you wish to be one of our study participants please call 905-340-0401 or email us at info AT RestoringNaturalBeauty DOT com . When we have enough study participants, the study will be closed to further applicants.

If the thought of walking on the beach in a swimsuit doesn't fill you with anticipation, give us a call to find out if being a part of this study is right for you.

My prediction about Keanu

2009-01-15T08:34:00.001-08:00

(This blogpost is reprinted from our newsletter of December 18, 2008. To subscribe to our newsletter, please click on the pink button in the upper right hand corner.)

(Link to source of photo.)Last week when I was looking for celebrity photos for the newsletter, I came across this pair of photos of Keanu Reeves.

The photo on the left was taken in 1989. Notice the fullness of Keanu's cheeks and how smooth his lower lids are.

On the right, his cheeks look flat and his lower lids are pouchy. When I saw how aged he looked, I thought "Some time soon, we're going to see Keanu with his cheeks filled, looking younger again."

Sure enough, the next day, Keanu was in the paper for the premiere of his new movie.

His cheeks have a youthful curve again and his lids look smooth. It's subtle but has a big impact on how we judge the age of a face. I bet you wouldn't have noticed if I hadn't pointed it out, right?

I have been doing this technique using dermal fillers for the past several months and getting amazing results.

The other thing you can see with Keanu is that he is avoiding tanning his face. His bright, clear, smooth skin suggests to me that he has had laser resurfacing, such as the Pixel laser that we use here.

Cheers to celebrities looking great without plastic surgery!

(Link to Keanu at the opening of The Day the Earth Stood Still.)

Are you planning to trim and tone your figure this year?

2009-01-13T09:05:00.000-08:00

It's January -- time to think about New Year's resolutions. The feasts of the holiday season seem to lead naturally to thoughts of trimming and toning your figure in January, don't they?

If you want help with losing inches, smoothing out cellulite or tightening sagging skin, I highly recommend Accent RF (radiofrequency) treatments.

You might have heard of Thermage, another form of radiofrequency treatments. Thermage treatments have a reputation of being extremely painful.

Accent is not painful. My clients describe it as feeling like a warm massage.

In our current culture of demanding instant gratification, Accent (and Thermage) has gotten a bad rap because it takes time to see the results from the treatments. That's because it is your body doing the work, such as making new collagen, that produces the results. It takes time for your body to produce enough collagen that you can see significant tightening.

About 18 months ago, we introduced a program for Accent treatments called the Accent Membership. The program entitles the client to an Accent treatment every week for a year.

With the membership, you as the client go into it with the expectation that the results will take time to appear so you're not disappointed after 4 treatments if you can't see much difference.

The thing that is really great about the membership is that you get to choose what area is treated each week.

Let's say your tummy is the thing that bugs you the most. You start your membership having all of your treatments on your tummy.

Now if you are a poor responder to Accent, you know you can have up to 52 treatments on your tummy so you will definitely have results at the end of one year.

If you are a good responder to Accent, you might have 8 treatments on your tummy and then be able to work on the rest of your body. Over the course of one year, you'll be able to tighten your tummy, your arms, your thighs, your chin, your back fat, wherever you want.

We have had so much interest in the Accent Membership that we are now introducing 3-month and 6-month membership options.

If your goals for 2009 include toning and tightening your body, an Accent Membership is a safe, comfortable and economical way to help you reach your goal.

How does Brad Pitt keep looking so good?

2009-01-08T11:33:00.000-08:00

(This blogpost is reprinted from our newsletter of December 5, 2008. Subscribe to our newsletter by clicking on the pink button in the upper right hand corner.)

I admit it: I'm a big Brad Pitt fan.

I first saw him in Thelma and Louise -- Wow! He's gorgeous and a good actor.

When I saw that the tabloids were saying that he had had work done, I had to check it out for myself.

(Image from Star Magazine.) In the left image, his skin is looking a little rugged -- rough-textured, dull and tanned. Afterwards, his skin is bright and smooth.

You could get this degree of improvement with a very aggressive chemical peel (Ow!) or have a Pixel laser.

The Pixel laser stimulates your skin to make collagen and new skin cells. That's why the skin looks smoother, tighter and more youthful.
Look at Brad's cheeks. See the difference?

Having filler injections in the cheeks like this really restores a youthful appearance to the face in 1 office visit.

I've been raving about it on my blog under the heading Tri-Site Bolus. It fixes the cheeks and the lower lids.

The amazing thing about this filler technique is that people don't tend to notice it. People see that you look better but don't know why.

Easier lip augmentation than ever

2008-12-29T10:37:00.000-08:00

Juvederm is now being made with the local anesthetic mixed right in with the hyaluronic acid filler.

I recently received my first shipment and was playing with it last week. It makes the whole process of having your lips filled much easier.

Here's what I didn't like about my old technique for freezing:

I used to do dental nerve blocks, upper and lower, to inject the lips. The blocks could make the whole face numb from the bridge of the nose to below the mouth.

Sometimes, the muscle action in this area would be unevenly frozen so the lips could be pulled to one side or the other. When I would show some clients the results of their lip augmentation while they were still frozen, all they would see was the way the uneven pull of the muscles was distorting the mouth.

The nerve blocks are not always 100% effective at the corners of the mouth or the midline of the lips so I'd have to do extra injections of anesthetic for those areas.

Not to mention that many people don't like the feel of the nerve blocks. You can't talk properly or drink until the freezing has worn off. (I have personally tried having my lips done without freezing and it really hurts so I don't recommend it.)

My clients would often feel that their mouths were swollen and huge before I had even started injecting the filler.

Here's why I recommend Juvederm with Lidocaine for lips:

I can start injecting without using any creams or injections for anesthetic. The needle for Juvederm Ultra is 30 gauge which is really fine. You barely feel the first injection and then you are frozen.

You quickly become numb in the area that I have injected so you're comfortable. I can work from the numb area to the not-numb so you remain comfortable.

The numbness is just in the area injected so freezing doesn't spread outside of the lips and you don't see the uneven muscle pull.

You feel normal after the injections. You don't feel as swollen. You aren't having trouble talking.

It is possible to do a lip filler procedure very quickly. This makes it very convenient as a lunchtime procedure.

Here's my caveat about Juvederm with Lidocaine:

It takes 15 - 30 seconds for the Lidocaine to numb the area. If you go to an injector who is very quick, you won't get the benefit of the Lidocaine before the injector has moved on to a new area so you'll feel each shot as if you had no freezing. You would be better off with conventional anesthetic, that is, nerve blocks.

For my style of injecting, Juvederm with Lidocaine is an ideal product. If you've had your lips done before, I think you will find that this product makes the whole experience much better.

The treatments WE chose to get ready for the holidays

2008-12-22T08:48:00.000-08:00

Did you ever wonder what treatments the experts choose to have?

In the last few weeks, everyone at Advanced Rejuvenation had the opportunity to choose one treatment that they wanted to get ready for the holidays. I thought you might be interested in what we each chose and why we chose them.

I have to preface the comments by saying that all of us are pretty topped up in the filler department so no one had to consider whether or not to have lips plumped up. Lips and cheeks would be pretty high on my list if they weren't already done.

My sister and I both chose to have Pixel laser treatments. She's 49 and I'm 45 so we both wanted the skin-tightening and rejuvenating effects of a Pixel. We both tend to have heavy upper lids so we experimented with having some laser done there. We only had laser where the skin was over bone so our eyes were safe. You can't do laser to the mobile eyelids (over the eyeball itself) without corneal shields.

I really like the way a Pixel makes my skin look smooth and poreless. Nic wanted to brighten the remaining pigment around her mouth and below her eyes. (She made a lot of progress with pigment using the C E Kinerol serum.)

Laura also chose the Pixel. She's young and has beautiful skin but her pores do get enlarged so Laura likes the Pixel for general maintenance and for pore-tightening effects.

Jackie chose an Accent facial. She was considering botox for frown lines but the muscle activity wasn't very strong. Jackie knew that the Accent radiofrequency treatment would help to smooth her frown lines. Her main consideration was that she had a party to go to that night so she wanted a treatment that would make her whole face look good with no downtime.

On the day of the treatment, the Accent radiofrequency energy tightens up the existing collagen in the skin, making everything look smoother and tighter. This tightening wears off over 2 or 3 days and then in the weeks after the treatment, the body makes new collagen fibers in the treatment area, leading to long-lasting improvement.

Our youngest team member, Claire, chose a medical facial with steam and extractions because she still has problems with blackheads and congested pores. The medical facial combines the best of medical-grade products that make your skin glow for 7 - 10 days with spa pampering such as hot towels on your face, hands and feet, massage, aromatherapy and pressure point therapy.

All I want for Christmas is...

2008-12-12T07:09:00.000-08:00

When I was growing up, my mother made it clear that Gifts for Mom such as a new vacuum cleaner, kitchen appliance or other household item were not going to go over well at Christmas or her birthday.

It would be safe to say that we all knew that instant death would follow any gift that was really for the house or the whole family rather than specifically for her.

But even with this knowledge, we didn't necessarily hit the mark with our gifts.

I remember well the year my sisters and I found stockings in fuchsia pink and bright sunshine yellow. We loved them! We happily purchased them, happily wrapped them and proudly presented them for our mother's pleasure.

Those packets of stockings sat unopened in her hose drawer for years until we were big enough to play dress-up with them.

And it's not just mothers who get dud gifts. I remember the year my sister got nothing but socks for Christmas. Knee highs. Ankle socks. Sports socks. That's it.

It is because I have been through all of this with my mother and my sisters that I set up the Wish List program at Advanced Rejuvenation.

You come in and fill in a Wish List -- fill in as many as you like, in fact. We will mail, email or phone each Wish List to the person you designate.

You can ask your parents for a Medical Facial, ask your sister for Hair Removal (she'll understand) and your husband Skincare. Or whatever treatments and products you want.

If you feel like your loved ones don't know know what to give you for a gift, this is the perfect solution for you.

You know that they are going to spend the money and get you something so why not gently direct them towards something you would really like to have?

And if they've already bought a vacuum cleaner, there's still time to take it back ;-)

Want to erase facial lines fast?

2008-12-11T11:05:00.000-08:00

I've complained in a previous post about a product advertised on the msn homepage that promised to transform a very wrinkled face to a smooth one so I felt a little funny writing the title of this post.

However, SkinMedica has a new product (to Canada at least) called TNS Line Refine that really works.

This is my friend Kelly. We put the Line Refine around her left eye (on the right side of the image) and waited 5 minutes. Then we took this picture.

I think you'll agree with me that, although you can still see some lines on the treated side, they are much softer than on the untreated side.

Here's how it works so fast:
I've talked before about certain peptides that have muscle relaxant effects. The eye area is especially responsive to creams containing these peptides because the skin is thin and the muscles are small.

TNS Line Refine contains a similar peptide that kicks in within 5 minutes to decrease muscle action.

Another ingredient that works quickly is hyaluronic acid filling spheres. Hyaluronic acid occurs naturally in the body. You would find it between your cells where it serves the purpose of holding water in place.

When applied topically, hyaluronic acid increases the moisture levels in the superficial layers of the skin. Hyaluronic filling spheres help to soften lines and give the skin a dewy appearance.

And it works outside of the eye area as well. We have tried TNS Line Refine in areas on the face where the skin is thicker and still saw an improvement very quickly.

For example, in Kelly's frown or glabellar area, she has a deep line, just on her left side. In the photo, it is actually improved compared to baseline. Sorry I didn't take a Before photo so you could see the difference for yourself but I was only thinking about comparing the 2 eyes when I photographed her.

TNS Line Refine also contains ingredients that work over the longer term to decrease signs of aging. CoEnzyme Q10 helps to prevent free radical damage. Certain peptides help to stimulate the body's repair mechanisms at the cellular level and promote collagen, elastin and new skin cell formation.

I have seen some amazing results with other products in the TNS line so I'm pretty confident that the long-term results with TNS Line Refine will be positive but I don't have the long-term experience with it yet.

The immediate results are great.

If you were going to a Christmas party this month and wanted to soften lines and wrinkles, I would definitely recommend TNS Line Refine.

Would you like to look 10 years younger by Christmas?

2008-10-23T07:22:00.000-07:00

I used to feel anxious when a family gathering or holiday time was coming up. I knew that there would be photos taken and mine would always depress the h*** out of me.

Now I'm pretty happy with the way I look: beautiful smooth radiant skin, cheeks restored to their correct position, taut jawline, fresh-looking eyes.

My transformation took place over a couple of years but I created a 1-month treatment plan for our 10 Years Younger program last spring and I'd like to share it with you.

These photos show what Catherine, aged 58, looked like at the beginning (left) and end (right) of her 10 Years Younger program.

The lightening and brightening of her skin is real. The smoothing and tightening of her skin is real. This is not makeup or photo retouching.

What we did for Catherine was get her on good, medical-grade skincare so her skin responded well to all of the other treatments. This is like preparing the canvas for a painting.

We erased brown sun damage and red discoloration from Catherine's skin to make it bright and radiant. We created long-lasting tightening of the skin to smooth out lines and sagging. We relaxed the facial muscles that were causing frown lines. We plumped up the cheeks and lips to a more youthful contour.

We did all of this for Catherine in a 1-month period.

The holidays are coming, with all of the parties, get-togethers and family photos.

This year, do you want to look another year older? Or would you rather look 10 years younger?

Wide jaw? You can slim it down

2008-09-22T06:47:00.000-07:00

One of the features that differentiates a feminine from a masculine face is the width of the face at the jawline.

We may accept a masculine face where the lower face is wider than the upper but a wide lower face is considered to detract from feminine beauty.

In many cases, the excessive width of the lower face is caused by overdevelopment of the large chewing muscles in the cheek, called the masseters. In the past, the bulk of the muscle was reduced with surgery but now Botox is being used safely and painlessly to shrink the muscle.

After an initial dose of 25 - 50 units of botox per side, most patients experienced the maximal reduction in the muscle mass at the 3 month mark.

Botox effects are visible for longer with masseter injections than cosmetic use. Muscle reduction commonly remains visible for 6 - 12 months.

Update on cheek fillers

2008-09-18T14:35:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I met an attractive 38 year old woman who complained of always looking tired. She had deep circles around her eyes and flattening of her cheeks.

I recommended Teosyal dermal filler to restore the volume in her cheeks and smooth out the hollows under her eyes.

We did the injections and my client looked great. She thought the results were subtle.

The images below are not this actual client but give you a very idea of what her cheeks looked like before (top) and after the filler treatment (bottom).

Now my client is thrilled with the injections. She says a lot of people have been telling her she doesn't look tired. People have been asking her if she is doing a different exercise plan. Her boyfriend thought she had changed the way she applied her makeup.

The bottom line is everyone thinks she looks better but no one can figure out what the difference is.

Better than Botox?

2008-09-11T14:38:00.000-07:00

You might have seen this ad -- I saw it today on my hotmail homepage -- a single skincare product that is miraculously going to erase every wrinkle from your face.

They use a simulated picture of a woman (you have to read the fine print to know that it's simulated). Her wrinkles are deep and extensive, all over her face. You drag the bottle over her face with your mouse and they disappear.

If it were that easy, none of us would ever look our age, right?

Be very wary when you see an ad touting a single product as the solution to all of the aging changes in your face. Not all wrinkles are treated with Botox and, by the same token, not all wrinkles will respond to this treatment.

If you really look at your face, you'll see that not all of the aging changes are about wrinkles anyway.

For instance, a lot of people call the lines that bracket the mouth wrinkles. I'm talking about the lines between the corners of the nose and mouth, also known as nasolabial folds, and the lines going down from the corners of the mouth, or the marionette lines.

These lines have more to do with the sagging of tissue from the cheeks down and towards the mouth than with wrinkling of the skin caused by muscle contraction.

This image shows how much of the changes that we associate with aging are caused by sagging skin seen on the left side of the face.

The best strategy for reversing signs of aging is to use good medical grade skincare products and a few different supplemental treatments to address the particular problems that affect you.

I have spoken about treatments like serums, Botox, fillers, Sculptra, photofacials, laser treatments and radiofrequency treatments. They all have a role in helping you look as young as you feel.

No single treatment or product is going to solve everything.

If you want to do something about wrinkles, I strongly recommend that you go to a reputable medical spa and talk to the doctor about your options.

Don't get sucked in by a hyped up ad on the internet.

Your beauty goals for 2008

2008-09-08T06:40:00.000-07:00

September always feels like a mini New Year to me. I guess it's the old pattern of starting a new school year with new goals and dreams for the future.

The leisurely pace of life that we enjoyed in the summer months is past and now we look forward to fall fashions and upcoming social events. Here in Canada, we have Thanksgiving before Hallowe'en and it won't be long before we're thinking about what to wear to the first Christmas parties.

Think back to January of this year. Did you make any New Year's Resolutions about your appearance? Maybe this was the year you were going to get some help updating your look? Maybe you resolved to do something to look less tired? Or start a good skincare routine?

It's time to think again about your beauty resolutions for 2008.

Whether you just want a makeup lesson to make sure your technique and color choices are up-to-date or you want to turn back the clock on your appearance or finally melt fat or smooth out cellulite, now is the time to get started.

At Advanced Rejuvenation, you can fulfill your beauty goals safely, effectively and without surgery.

These are resolutions that you'll really enjoy keeping. And think how good you'll feel in January 2009, knowing that you made resolutions for 2008 and kept them!

Back to school: Teens need to think about skincare

2008-08-27T11:13:00.000-07:00

For a lot of teens, acne becomes a big deal during the school year. Maybe it's because stress levels are higher or winter weather stresses the skin more or maybe it's because hanging out with a large group of peers every day makes the teen more conscious of skin problems. Whatever the cause, a lot of teens want to improve their skin when school resumes.

Parents and teens are usually familiar with the usual acne remedies but may not be having much success with them. If you don't understand the underlying causes of acne, you may be focusing on the wrong treatment.

Four processes contribute to the development of acne.

The first is excess sebum production. Sebum is the oily substance produced in the skin. Sebum production is greatly activated by the hormonal changes associated with puberty. This explains why an individual may have beautiful skin as a child and very oily skin as a teen.

Secondly, acne is associated with an abnormality in sloughing off the outer layers of dead skin. If the dead skin cells do not separate and fall off, they can block the pores in the skin, leading to comedogenesis, which is the process of making blackheads and whiteheads (closed and open comedones).

The third process is the proliferation of acne bacteria on the skin and in the blocked pores and glands of the skin.

Finally, the process of inflammation determines how much redness and pus formation an individual has in response to the first three processes.

The mainstay for dealing with sebum is washing the skin with a mild cleanser. You don't want to use a harsh or drying cleanser because that will stimulate the skin to produce even more sebum.

You can decrease sebum production by applying topical retinoids or, in severe cases, taking an oral form called Accutane. Women can reduce sebum production by using certain birth control pills.

You can help your skin to slough off the dead outer layer of cells by using exfoliating agents like salicylic acid. Retinoids also help with exfoliation.

Acne bacteria can be kept under control using products containing benzoyl peroxide. Benzoyl peroxide may be used as a face wash or a gel. Antibiotics used either as a topical product such as a wash or a gel, or taken as a tablet are useful as well.

We usually manage the inflammation by trying to stop the processes that activate the inflammation, namely the sebum, blocked pores and bacteria but there are treatments available that reduce the appearance of inflammation.

Chemical peels are excellent for acne because the ingredients can work in a number of ways, including exfoliation, having antibacterial effects and having anti-inflammatory effects. We have seen the redness reduced in back acne within 24 hours of applying certain of our peel solutions.

Intense pulsed light (IPL) treatments help control acne by reducing the appearance of inflammation and zapping the acne bacteria. When you add Levulan to IPL, you get photodynamic therapy, which has been shown to decrease sebum production for 6 - 12 months.

The final point to make about treating acne is be patient. Using a good skincare routine, chemical peels and so on will result in a gradual improvement of the skin over several weeks. Don't get frustrated if you don't see a big change after a weekend of using products regularly. If you stick to the program, you will see the improvements build up day by day and week by week.

Creating big impact with Teosyal KISS

2008-08-21T14:42:00.001-07:00

This is our makeup specialist, Claire. She wanted very full lips like Scarlett Johansson's (below).

Her upper lip was relatively small compared with the lower so I split the syringe of Teosyal KISS with 0.7 mL going in the upper, 0.3 mL in the lower.

Claire's results really suit her features and her style. She already had full lips so taking them up a notch or two is still believable when you see her in real life.

In contrast, I wouldn't take Jaclyn's lips to Claire's size in one step but will gradually add a little in small steps until we get the size that she wants.

Teosyal KISS for a small mouth

2008-08-21T14:26:00.001-07:00

This is Jaclyn, another esthetician at Advanced Rejuvenation. Jaclyn's personal style is feminine and dramatic so her small lips weren't working for her.

She's had a total of 1 syringe of Juvederm in her lips, creating a very pretty and natural result. Her preference would be to go even bigger in the lips so you may see future pictures after we add more filler.

I've included more of the surrounding skin in the photos because they give a good indication of what happens with good skincare and IPL treatments.

Jaclyn has fair northern European skin. The before picture (left) was taken when she first started working here. She had breakouts, broken capillaries around her nostrils and brown sun spots. The after picture (right) shows a much clearer complexion. I'm not sure if the blogger program gives us enough resolution in the images for you to see the difference but it is very clear on the original pictures.

Using Teosyal KISS to balance the lips

2008-08-21T14:14:00.001-07:00

These images are Laura's mouth, Before (left) and After (right) putting some Teosyal KISS in her upper lip.

You saw Laura's full face previously in this article.

Laura has a very pretty, full lower lip but her upper lips was quite thin in comparison. I injected just over half a syringe (0.6 mL to be exact) in her upper lip only to create a more balanced mouth.

She's really thrilled with the results. And she looks so natural that her mother and most of her girlfriends didn't even notice the change until it was pointed out.

The results with Teosyal KISS last for 6 - 9 months in the mouth, which is longer than you can expect with Restylane and Juvederm. Teosyal will last longer in other areas like the cheeks. The high level of movement and muscle action in the mouth area contributes to the decreased longevity in this area.

Vivier releases an amazing new serum

2008-08-09T08:59:00.000-07:00

We were honored to take part in the evaluation of new serum that Vivier has just released.

It's called C E Kinerol. Kinerol is a complex of peptides that stimulates growth of skin cells and important components of the framework of the skin. The vitamin C and E components give the serum powerful antioxidant effects and vitamin C lightens the skin and stimulates collagen production.

We recruited a bunch of people to try the serum and saw within one to two days that they all developed a beautiful glow to their skin. This is typical of all of Vivier's Vitamin C serums so I didn't think much of it at the time. What really blew me away was comparing the Before and After photos.

Here are the Before pictures of one of our participants:

Here is what she looked like after 4 weeks of using the serum morning and night:

This is actually my sister so I can attest to the truth and accuracy of this story.

My sister was really bothered by those dark circles around her eyes. When I first saw the After UV picture on the right, I thought there must be something wrong with my camera system. The brown pigment is lightened everywhere, including on her upper eyelids.

I called my sister immediately: "Uh, are you putting the serum on your upper lids?"

When I had originally shown her how to use the serum, I'd demonstrated putting it on the lower lids but it's really not recommended for the upper lids. She admitted that she started putting it on her upper lids when she saw the pigment improving below her eyes.

So this degree of improvement in the dark circles around her eyes is based on 4 weeks use on the lower lids and maybe 2 weeks use on the upper!

My sister also found that the texture of her skin improved a lot becoming smoother and tighter. Overall, her skin has less redness and looks more pearly in the daylight photographs.

My sister's results are not unusual. Everyone who participated in the study was positive about the products. We have lots of other good Before and After pictures showing excellent improvement in the skin.

Another interesting finding was the response of the men in the study. We enrolled a few men who previously didn't have a regular skincare routine and they loved the products. They didn't find that it was a bother to do a good skincare routine AND they loved the way their skin felt.

If you're looking for something to lighten and brighten your skin, improve the texture and reduce wrinkles, try C E Kinerol serum from Vivier.

Lovely lips!

2008-08-09T06:51:00.000-07:00

Lauren was finally prepared to have her lips done. It is something that she and I had wanted to do for a while. Lauren is tall and we thought her lips were a little out of proportion with her face and height but she has trouble with needles so it took a while for her to build up her nerve.

Our goal was to keep the lips very natural-looking, just make them a little plumper so they would balance her face better. In the Before picture on the left, you can see how Lauren has beautiful big green eyes and thin lips, particularly the upper lip, so we had a ways to go to achieve balance between her features.

We used just less than a full syringe of Teosyal KISS, equal amounts in upper and lower lips. I like to save a little in the syringe for touch-ups about 2 weeks after the initial injection, just in case.

In the After photo on the right, her mouth now looks in proportion with the rest of her face. The photo is taken about 6 days after the injection and you can see that she didn't have any bruising.

If you hadn't seen her Before picture, you wouldn't think she'd had anything done to her lips because they look the right size and a natural shape. In fact, Lauren's sister didn't even notice the lip filler so that tells you how subtle the change was.

The other thing you can see on the After photo is that Lauren had some eyelash extensions applied. Look how long and curly her lashes are.

I love doing lips. It's really fun giving someone a beautiful mouth, balancing any asymmetry and creating the look the client wants. Apart from creating the right look, my personal yardstick for how well I've done includes using the minimum number of punctures as possible, making the procedure as pain-free as I can and avoiding bruising as much as possible.

These Before & After photos will amaze you!

2008-07-28T12:52:00.000-07:00

You might not believe these are pictures of the same person but they are. And they're taken on the same day!

This is a more advanced example of bagging of the lower eyelids. I think you'll agree these are definite festoons. Click here and here for examples of less advanced changes.

This is another person who received Dr. Carey's Tri-Site Bolus technique. He had a total of 13 syringes injected in one day.

What a difference!

In the After picture, the folds in the lower lids have been smoothed out so you can see where the depth of the fold never got tanned like the rest of his face. Those white lines will disappear in a few days with normal outdoor activities. The cheeks look naturally rounded. His nose looks smaller because the tissues around the nose are built up again. Everything is back in proportion.

I'm really excited about this technique because the results are so natural-looking and so long-lasting. This man has maintained his appearance for several years with no touch ups.

This treatment took 15 - 20 years off this man's appearance.

Another sign of aging and how to fix it

2008-07-28T07:59:00.000-07:00

In an earlier post, I talked about that diagonal line that runs from the inner corner of the eye downwards and outwards on the cheek. This line is called the nasojugal fold.

Today I am showing another change in the face that is part of the same process: the bagging of the lower eyelids.

Bags like these develop under the eyes as a result of 2 processes: 1. loss of volume (fat) in the area and 2. sagging of the skin. The skin is attached to the deeper structures of the face along the lower rim of the eye socket so excess skin above this attachment point will billow out as a bag. As the process advances you can end up with lower lids that look like festoons (think of those fancy window treatments that hang across the curtain rod in baggy folds).

We used to think that eyelid surgery was the only option for lids like these but this woman got these great results without surgery.

This is an example of using Teosyal dermal filler to improve the appearance of the midface. The technique is called the Tri-Site Bolus and was pioneered by Dr. Wayne Carey of Montreal. I had the privilege of being in one of his first training courses for this technique.

The Tri-Site Bolus technique gives beautiful, natural results like these in one visit but what is even more exciting is the longevity of the results. With conventional injection techniques for Teosyal, I tell people that it will last around 1 year in the cheekbone area.

With the Tri-Site Bolus technique, patients are getting results that are lasting longer than 7 years!

In summary, you can get great natural-looking rejuvenation of the lower eyelids and cheek area in one office visit, using a pure product that occurs naturally in the body (Teosyal), and achieving results that will last for years. You walk out of the office looking 5 - 20 years younger than you looked when you walked in.

Depending on how advanced your problem is, you may need to spend $4,000 - $8,000 or more for the correct number of syringes of Teosyal. However if you compare the cost with what you'd pay for a good facelift ($15,000 - $25,000) and consider the downtime and the fact that a facelift lasts around 8 years, the Tri-Site Bolus makes economic as well as aesthetic sense.

If you would like to view an even more impressive transformation with this technique, click here.

If you need help with meditation

2008-07-25T07:52:00.000-07:00

It's not unusual at Advanced Rejuvenation to have a client who is afraid of the treatment, especially an injection-based treatment. The way I help him or her get through the treatment is to use techniques of relaxation and guided meditation.

Meditation is something I have done on a regular basis since my teenage years. I needed it a lot during medical school to give me the energy and clear-headedness to cope with the hours of study and tests and assignments.

After medical school, as I got busier and busier with my career, I got out of the habit of doing meditation. I found that when I went back to it, my old techniques were difficult to focus on and no longer as effective as they had been. I needed some help to get my focus back.

I was searching on the internet and came across the Silva Ultramind site. I signed up for the free online course, which included a recording of a guided meditation. The recording and the instructions were very helpful in helping me achieve a deep level of relaxation.

Now I'm able to meditate very easily and I can help others get into a relaxed state of mind easily. I have used these techniques to calm down patients in the operating room and the ICU when I was working in the hospital. My manager at Advanced Rejuvenation, Lauren, faints in the presence of needles. I was able to talk her down to a deep level of relaxation in order to inject filler in her cheeks. Not only was she able to tolerate the procedure calmly but she didn't bruise afterwards!

If you want to learn meditation on your own, I highly recommend that you check out the Silva free online course. They have other stuff available for purchase, of course, such as books, recordings and courses. After I did the online course, I ended up going to a weekend seminar and learned so much. I really advanced my mental powers. However, the free online course is enough to get you meditating on your own.

What's the first sign of aging?

2008-07-18T11:20:00.000-07:00

When you're talking about changes in the volumes of the face, that is, whether the parts that should be full are full and in the right place, the first sign of aging is that line that starts at the inside corner of the eye and extends diagonally outward and downward.

The older you are, the more noticeable this line gets until it becomes a deep groove in the cheek.

This line develops because the fat pad of the cheek is going south, leaving too much loose skin in the area.

We can fix this really easily with Teosyal UltraDeep hyaluronic acid filler.

My esthetician Laura is in her late 20's and has beautiful skin but even her best esthetic skills couldn't prevent the volume changes from occurring. I was noticing that diagonal line in her cheek and finally she let me fix it.

BEFORE

Before, Laura's cheeks were flat up on the cheekbone and the shape of her face is a little more bulgy at the jawline than we would like. Our camera system tends to hide this line in its early stages because of the lighting arrangement but the 3/4 profile shows a shallow diagonal indentation in the cheek.

AFTER

After, Laura's cheeks are naturally and youthfully rounded. Look at the shape of her face: she's no longer bulgy at the jawline but tapers from the cheeks down to the jaw. She also has more of a contour under her cheeks although you see that better in real life than in these images.

Laura is absolutely thrilled to have her face back to the way it looked 5 years ago. The change is subtle but Laura really sees it.

What's even better is that most people don't recognize a change in your cheeks. They'll see that you're looking better but not know the reason why. Laura's husband didn't notice the change in her cheeks (mind you, he doesn't notice a change in her hair color either).

Laura's case was subtle and this technique works really well even on advanced cases. Come to Advanced Rejuvenation if you would like to see some Before & After pictures on older people with more extreme volume changes.

P.S. Laura got asked for ID after she had her cheeks done and the guy thought it was fake. He couldn't believe she was over 19!

ADDENDUM: You can see examples of more advanced changes in the cheeks and lower lids here and here.

More eyelash extensions -- you've got to love them!

2008-07-16T13:34:00.000-07:00

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Check out these lashes on a 77 year old woman. She had had a cancer below her left eye that was treated with radiation about 30 years ago. The radiation left her with white eyelashes on the upper lid and loss of lashes, scarring and dark pigmentation on the lower lid.

Jaclyn applied the 9-month eyelash extensions, in a short natural style, just to the upper lids.

What a difference the lashes make! Our client is thrilled to have visible lashes again and they really bring out the sparkle in her eyes.

N.B. You have to have some lashes to attach the extensions to. This client would not be able to have lower lash extensions because she has an area on her lower lid with no lashes.

Accent radiofrequency for a soft jawline

2008-07-16T13:26:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share with you these Before & After pictures of Accent radiofrequency (RF) used on a man in his late 30's who wanted to improve softness in his neck and jawline area.

The photographic technique is different for the 2 pictures (obviously) but I think you can still see how much better his jaw is defined after 2 Accent RF facials.

His first treatment was in April and the second in June. It takes time for the body to make collagen in response to the stimulation of the RF waves.

Both the client and the staff here at Advanced Rejuvenation were delighted with his results.

Environmental Working Group releases analysis of 952 sunscreens

2008-07-10T12:58:00.000-07:00

It's a huge comparison study and the results might surprise you. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) looked at 952 sunscreens that are widely available in the US and analysed both the safety of the ingredients and the effectiveness of the products. Only 15% made it to the recommended list.

(EWG) ... found that 4 out of 5 sunscreen products offer inadequate protection from the sun, or contain ingredients with significant safety concerns. Leading brands were the worst offenders: None of market leader Coppertone's 41 sunscreen products met EWG's criteria for safety and effectiveness, and only 1 of 103 products from Banana Boat and Neutrogena, the second- and third-largest manufacturers, are recommended by EWG. [Emphasis mine.]

I am very pleased to report that the sunscreens on sale at Advanced Rejuvenation are all on the recommended list -- the only exception is our Vivier sunscreens which weren't tested by EWG.

EWG is very concerned about UVA coverage. The SPF rating of a sunscreen refers only to UVB protection and yet UVA causes skin cancer and aging of the skin.

The Elta MD and Ti-Silc sunscreens that we carry here are active against both UVA and UVB.

Some chemical sunscreens are degraded very quickly in the sun, making the product completely ineffective in as little as 30 minutes so you need to choose products recommended by EWG to be certain that they will remain active during sun exposure.

You can't judge it just by looking at the active ingredients because the presence of stabilizing agents can make an unstable product last longer. For instance, EWG lists these chemical sunscreens as being unstable: Avobenzone (PARSOL 1789 | BUTYL METHOXYDIBENZOYLMETHANE), Homosalate and Octinoxate (OCTYL METHOXYCINNAMATE). Octinoxate is present in the Elta MD sunscreens which EWG recommends so Elta must put enough stabilizing agents in their sunscreens to keep the octinoxate active.

EWG recommends avoiding spray and powder forms of sunscreens because some active ingredients can be toxic when absorbed by the lungs. They can get into the lungs when aerosolized during application. The same ingredients are not absorbed by the skin so are not toxic when applied as a cream or lotion.

EWG is a "team of scientists, engineers, policy experts, lawyers and computer programmers [who] pore ... over government data, legal documents, scientific studies and [their] own laboratory tests to expose threats to your health and the environment, and to find solutions. [Their] research brings to light unsettling facts that you have a right to know."

Ultimately, EWG is pressuring the US government to tighten up the rules surrounding the composition, labelling and marketing claims for sunscreens. From the problems that they report in this study, it is obvious that their efforts are sorely needed.

If you have one of the 814 sunscreens that EWG does not recommend, come in to Advanced Rejuvenation to get a safe and effective sunscreen recommended by EWG.

More reasons to choose NETWORK Lipolysis

2008-07-04T10:50:00.000-07:00

Injection lipolysis or lipodissolve isn't a branded treatment sponsored by a big drug company so there's no funding for the kind of advertising campaigns that you see for Botox, Restylane or Thermage.

It's a treatment that started in Italy and Brazil within the past 20 years and has since spread around the world. Practitioners are using all kinds of recipes and injection protocols to administer the treatment and most of these recipes and protocols are based on opinion, not evidence.

With the NETWORK Lipolysis group, a core group of scientifically-minded doctors studied the results they were getting with the original Brazilian protocols and decided that the protocols weren't right.

The Brazilian protocol calls for injecting a larger volume widely spaced for each individual needle puncture but a smaller total dose per treatment and frequent treatments every 2 weeks.

This style of injecting can make dents appear in the skin because too much fat is melted at each injection site and the sites are too far apart. The doctors in the NETWORK did research to show that a smaller volume closer together was ideal for creating an even layer of fat melting so the skin is smooth after the treatment.

NETWORK doctors also realised that the body's reaction to the treatment lasted longer than 2 weeks and did research to determine that the optimal time between treatments was 8 weeks.

When you have a fat-melting treatment from a NETWORK Lipolysis member, you know that the treatment is based on scientific fact, not opinion.

The compound that we inject contains only components that improve your results and nothing extra that might cause increased side effects.

When you look around on the internet, you'll find all kinds of places offering lipodissolve. You'll find a wide variety of prices, treatment schedules and packages. You'll read horror stories and see amazing before and after pictures. It's bewildering. Most places won't even tell you what compound they are injecting so it's difficult to judge who to trust.

I promise you that fat-melting injections are very safe and effective in the right person, when done by a properly trained practitioner. Please be careful that you choose a practitioner who will properly assess your suitability for this treatment and give you lots of information about what to expect.

If you choose to go with a NETWORK Lipolysis member, you can feel secure that you will be getting a safe, effective treatment. To find a NETWORK Lipolysis member anywhere in the world, click here.

If you want to melt fat, you want NETWORK Lipolysis

2008-07-04T10:07:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, June 28th, we hosted the second Canadian training course for doctors for the NETWORK Lipolysis technique of Lipodissolve (a.k.a. injection lipolysis).

I was advised in 2006 to get into doing lipodissolve so I looked around on the internet at various training courses and discovered the NETWORK Lipolysis group. I took my first training course with them in January 2007 in the US.

What attracted me to the NETWORK was that it was a group of physicians who were dedicated to sharing information to ensure that fat-melting treatments were done with the best protocols for optimal results and safety. The NETWORK sponsors research on various aspects of injection lipolysis.

Another big factor that attracted me to the NETWORK is that they collect data on every patient treated and publish papers. When the NETWORK publishes a paper describing 60,000 lipodissolve treatments, you know that their results are valid, reliable and that the treatment is safe.

I feel secure doing fat-melting injections using the NETWORK Lipolysis protocols because I have the benefit of all of the collected experience of the 1000+ other doctors who belong to the NETWORK.

I'm now the Canadian Representive for the NETWORK and a certified NETWORK trainer.

The next Canadian training course is in Montreal in September. If you are a doctor interested in obtaining training from the NETWORK, click here.

Is your skin blotchy? You can have a beautiful complexion

2008-06-23T07:03:00.001-07:00

There are a lot of women (and some men) who don't dare to take a step out of the house without foundation and concealer because their faces are marred with blotchy brown pigment.

If you are one of the people who suffers from this problem, there is hope for you.

The first line of attack is good makeup that conceals the pigment well. We carry gloMinerals makeup, which is a very high quality mineral makeup that can be applied in different ways to give either sheer or opaque coverage. glo foundations come in a wide variety of skintones from fair to dark cocoa.

Covering up the pigment is a good instant gratification solution but most people would rather not have the pigment at all.

Vivier makes a line of skincare products specifically targeted at severe skin problems like hyperpigmentation, moderate-to-severe acne and severe aging. This skincare line is called SkinTx.

SkinTx is a multi-step regimen that you use morning and night. The products are designed to lighten the skin and to transform the physiology of the skin so it is healthier, smoother and more tolerant of harmful agents.

Here are some before-and-after pictures:

I'm using pictures from Vivier because I haven't asked any of my own clients whether I could use their pictures but I am seeing the same beautiful skin on my own clients.

I started a client on SkinTx just the other day. She was a beautiful woman with severe dark brown patches on her forehead and cheeks. She was willing to go with my recommendation but a little doubtful. However my makeup artist has been getting great results with SkinTx.

Claire was putting makeup on this client after her consultation (since we'd taken all of her makeup off to take her pictures) and was telling the client all about how effective the SkinTx line was. By the time the client left she had a smile on her face and said "I have some hope now."

For people with hyperpigmentation or bad acne, that's what SkinTx is: Hope.

ADDENDUM: The client mentioned above came back for a 2-week follow-up and already has a marked decrease in the amount of pigment on her face. She is thrilled and excited with her results.

Alternatives to botox

2008-06-11T08:46:00.000-07:00

Some people try BOTOX® Cosmetic and don't like it.

Don't get me wrong -- I love BOTOX® Cosmetic and it works great for me. And I have a few clients who would sacrifice every other spa treatment, if necessary, in order to have their botox.

But sometimes BOTOX® Cosmetic just isn't the right thing for a particular person. I had a client in recently, a woman in her early 40s, I'll call her Mary for the sake of this article.

Mary has pretty long crow's feet radiating out from her eyes, frown lines between her brows and horizontal lines on her forehead. We did a treatment with BOTOX® Cosmetic and got good results but she felt that it altered her facial expressions and she didn't like that.

These aren't Mary's pictures but they give you an idea of what Mary's lines looked like and how well they responded to BOTOX® Cosmetic.

So what else can we do to minimize these lines?

What's causing the lines is two-fold: a loss of resiliency of the skin and shrinkage of the framework of the face (bones, muscles, etc.) so the overlying skin is a little oversized.

We can improve the resiliency of the skin using treatments like fractionated laser, peels, radiofrequency treatments and skincare products. All of these will stimulate collagen formation in the skin. However, the results would be modest and take several treatments and many months to build up.

We can put fillers in place that would give the appearance of building up the framework of the face. The results are immediate and natural. I've shown an example previously here. However, fillers do not improve the resiliency of the skin so we would probably still have to do a Pixel, Accent or peel.

Instead, we chose a single treatment that addresses both problems: Sculptra.

Sculptra stimulates your body to make collagen. We can inject it at the skin level to make the skin firmer and more resilient and we can inject it deep at the muscle level and near the bone. The resulting collagen formation thickens those tissues, building up the framework of the face.

It'll take 8 weeks or more for the body to make enough collagen that you'll see the results so it's definitely not the treatment for instant gratification but the results are so natural-looking and long-lasting that they're worth waiting for.

Another option is to do some filler now for instant gratification and starting the Sculptra so that you've built up the collagen by the time the filler has worn off.

We went the pure Sculptra route with Mary and I just injected her recently so I don't have any results to show you yet. I'll see if I can talk her into sharing her before and after pictures with you in a few weeks.

Results of our 10 Years Younger ... in Burlington! program

2008-06-09T11:33:00.000-07:00

Our first 10 Years Younger ... in Burlington! program has been a great success. Our recipient, Catherine, has completed her one-month transformation and looks and feels amazing.

The reveal party takes place on Wednesday, June 11th, 2008 at Kaareli's Restaurant and Wine Bar. Catherine will be there in all her glory, along with her before pictures and representatives from all of the Burlington businesses that took part.

On Thursday, we will begin posting her before and after pictures on the 10 Years Younger blog. We will also have pictures of Catherine for you to view here at Advanced Rejuvenation.

Don't forget -- Catherine is participating in the 60k Weekend to End Breast Cancer. You can sponsor her on-line here or drop some money into the collection box at Advanced Rejuvenation.

We're really proud of the great results Catherine has achieved with this program. We wish her all the best in her goal to raise $2000 in sponsorships for her 60k walk.

You don't have to feel bad about your neck

2008-06-06T14:00:00.000-07:00

I'm reading a book of essays by Nora Ephron titled I Feel Bad About My Neck.

You know Nora Ephron: she's written such great movies as When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle, You've Got Mail and Silkwood. She also has producer and director credits on various films but I'm concentrating on her writing here. You can read about all of her accomplishments here.

In the title essay, Nora talks about the neck going at age 43: "Oh, the necks. There are chicken necks. There are turkey gobbler necks. There are elephant necks. There are necks with wattles and necks with creases that are on the verge of becoming wattles. There are scrawny necks and fat necks, loose necks, crepey necks ... [You get the idea.] ... but short of surgery, there's not a damned thing you can do about your neck."

Actually, Nora, there is a lot we can do about the neck without resorting to surgery.

(In the essay Serial Monogamy: A Memoir, Nora talks about having imaginary conversations with the various cookbook writers that she idolized over the years so I'm doing a bit of imaginary conversing with Nora about her neck here.)

A scrawny neck can be made more youthful with Sculptra.

We can thicken and hydrate the skin of the neck with Meso, a form of uncross-linked hyaluronic acid. This is very popular in Europe.

The Pixel laser will soften lines in the neck and tighten the skin. Accent radiofrequency does the same thing but a bit slower with no downtime.

We can soften the muscular struts in the neck with BOTOX® Cosmetic.

A chubby neck can be reduced and tightened with injection lipolysis. I've been treating my mother and my sister in the neck and jaw area and they're really pleased with their results.

There's so much we can do for the neck and decollete now that there's no reason for women to feel that they have to wear turtlenecks or scarves every day.

Nora, I love the book but I think you're going to have to change the title.

Looking your best for a big event this summer

2008-06-06T07:58:00.000-07:00

In 2001, before I got into this business, we had a big family wedding. My cousin who is 10 years older than me, came over from England and she looked amazing -- radiant, natural, with clear smooth skin.

She definitely didn't look like she'd had a facelift and she wasn't saying what she'd done to look so good. In retrospect, knowing what else was going on in her family, I'm pretty sure she had discovered medical spa treatments.

Another great story along these lines was told to me by another doctor. He had a male client in his late 50's who had a very weathered face, sunken cheeks, sagging skin and bulging lower lids. The client was attending his daughter's wedding in 2 weeks and the ex-wife was going to be there so the man decided he'd better spruce himself up.

My colleague gave this man a liquid facelift using fillers (no surgery) and restored all the hollowed out areas. Putting filler in the cheeks even smoothed out the lower eyelids. The man looked about 15 years younger and very natural.

Imagine what it would feel like to go to a family reunion and have everyone saying "wow, you look amazing" rather than "wow, you're looking more and more like your mother". It's a real confidence-booster.

To me, the transformation of my cousin and my colleague's client is the ideal of what I am trying to achieve in my practice: helping people look their radiant best, without surgery.

If you have a big event in your future, we have lots of different treatments that will help you look your best without looking like you've had anything "done".

In upcoming posts, I will talk about various concerns you might have and what sort of schedule you want to allow to have them dealt with.

In the meantime, if you want to start your transformation to look your best for a special event, come in to Advanced Rejuvenation for a consultation. Call for an appointment at 905-340-0401 or email info@restoringnaturalbeauty.com.

What to expect after a laser treatment

2008-06-02T13:04:00.001-07:00

I see from the search terms that people use to find my blog that a lot of people are wondering what to expect in the days after a treatment, such as a fractionated laser (Pixel) or IPL photofacial.

I have some videos posted on the 10 Years Younger ... in Burlington! website that show Catherine having a makeup application a few days after a Pixel laser treatment.

I have also put up some photos over there that show the timecourse of changes in pigment and redness in the skin in the first few days after an IPL photofacial.

You can also ask me directly about the specific treatment you are interested in here on this blog. I have lots of willing guinea pigs here who will undergo a treatment (the sacrifice! LOL) and have their pictures posted to illustrate their reactions to the procedures.

Knowledge is everything. If you know how a treatment works and what effects to expect after a treatment, you will be happy to go through a few days of freckles or redness or whatever.

Check out my new eyelashes

2008-05-31T07:47:00.001-07:00

In the pictures above you see me without makeup on. My natural lashes are long enough, as you can see with eyes closed, but almost colourless. My eyes have no definition without makeup.

Now check this out:

I had permanent eyelash extensions applied! I love them!

You're not allowed to wear eye makeup for 48 hours after the application. No problem! Now that my eyes are defined by the dark lashes, I don't need makeup.

Each individual extension is glued to an individual lash. The extension will last as long as the lash does. I'll need to have fills put in about every month. After 9 months, I have to give my lashes a break and go back to my natural state, just as you do with fake nails.

These lashes feel completely natural to me. In fact, I used to always get hairs from my cats in my eyes but since these were applied, I've had a lot less trouble even when my cat rubs his head right on my face.

I can apply mascara if I want (as long as it is not water-proof) but I hate mascara so I doubt I'll use it very often.

These are the finest width and the shortest length of extensions to create a natural look. You can have medium or thick extensions and greater length if you want.

We have a new esthetician working with us, Jaclyn Gillies, who does the eyelashes. She can do lashes that last 2 weeks or these 9-month ones. If you are interested in permanent lash extensions, come and see Jaclyn at Advanced Rejuvenation Medical Spa, 905-340-0401.

You can read more about these extensions here.

Filler in the lips: the subjective experience

2008-05-28T10:05:00.000-07:00

I get my lips topped up with filler about twice a year. That's just long enough to forget what it was like the last time.

In this article, I'm describing the subjective experience, day by day, in hopes of showing that it is a tolerable experience that is worth it in the end.

Before I start, I should explain that the filler I use is Teosyal. It is purer than earlier products like Restylane and Juvederm so you have less swelling and pain with Teosyal. If you are using an earlier product, your symptoms may be greater and last longer than mine.

Injection Day

The nurse injector from my supplier does my injections. The nerve blocks are a piece of cake -- we use a much finer needle than I remember from childhood visits to the dentist.

Even with the nerve blocks, the injections pinch a bit. However, I tried using just a topical anesthetic last time and having the nerve blocks helps a lot.

Between the numbness from the nerve blocks and the sensation of the filler going in, I feel like my lips are 10X normal size. Everyone says the same thing when I'm doing their lips. Don't worry.

The nerve blocks wear off within an hour or two. My lips feel swollen and very tender. I'm very conscious of firm blobs in my lips. However when I look in the mirror, I can see how the shape is going to be very nice when everything settles down.

First Day Post Injection

I have a couple of bruises in the colored part of my lips but they're not too bad. They can be covered with concealer and lipstick if I remember to touch it up after eating and drinking.

I have a couple of small bruises just outside the colored part of the lips and have to carefully layer concealer and powder to keep them covered.

My lips still feel enlarged and stiff although they don't look bad in the mirror. My mouth still hurts and talking feels weird. This is the stage that I always forget about between injections.

Second Day Post Injection

I'm still sore but the discomfort is lessening. I still feel like my mouth isn't moving properly when I talk or smile.

I'm getting lots of compliments on my lips so I guess I can put up with the discomfort.

The bruises are still visible and need concealer and powder. The swelling is going down.

Third Day Post Injections

The swelling is improving. The bruises are fading. It's a Sunday so I don't bother with makeup.

In some areas, the filler has softened and I don't really feel it any more but in a few places the filler still feels like firm blobs.

Fourth Day Post Injections

Back to work so I do use a little concealer and powder for the bruises although they're almost gone.

The product is continuing to soften and feel more natural.

Fifth Day Post Injections

No concealer needed! And no more pain.

I'm still conscious of the product where it is in larger deposits and I still feel that my mouth is moving in a funny way but everyone assures me I look normal.

Sixth Day Post Injections

Everything has settled down -- bruising, pain, swelling -- and I'm no longer self-conscious about my lips. Now I remember why I wanted to get my filler topped up.

The very first time I had my lips done I hated them for 2 weeks. I had a lot of swelling and bruising and didn't think they would ever look nice. After that, they looked pretty and natural but those first 2 weeks were difficult.

If you're planning to get your lips done for the first time, allow for at least a week (if not 2 weeks) of bruising and swelling. Don't make any judgments about your lips until the 2 week period is up. Sometimes things that look asymmetrical in the first few days settle down to be nicely balanced.

If there is a little asymmetry at the 2 week mark that needs to be touched up, the pain, bruising and swelling after a touch-up is minimal and settles quickly.

Thoughts on aesthetic medicine

2008-05-26T14:05:00.000-07:00

I attended a course on aesthetic medicine this past Saturday.

I like attending courses, learning new things, finding out about different technologies and so on. A few of the things I learned about have got me really sparked up about what I can do here at Advanced Rejuvenation.

What really struck me, though, as I sat in the lecture hall or wandered around during the breaks was all the beautiful complexions (on women and men!), and general air of vitality.

Men and women, slim, normal weight or plump, and ages ranging from 30's to 60's -- the thing everyone had in common was clear, smooth, dewy skin.

Maybe this is what it would be like attending a gala event where everyone has been buffed and polished in order to look their best. But this was all of us on a regular Saturday morning.

Before I got into aesthetic medicine, I would do an at-home peel or microdermabrasion before a social gathering to try to look my freshest best. Inbetween those times, my skin was a bit dull, discolored and rough.

Now, with effective skincare products and treatments, I don't have to worry about any of that. My skin looks good every day.

That roomful of people on Saturday was a testament to the fact that medical aesthetic treatments work. No matter what your age or the damage to your skin, we can help you look a lot better.

And when you look good, you feel good.

Chemical peels on the body: My latest favourite thing

2008-05-23T10:49:00.000-07:00

Medical grade chemical peels work.

They increase the turnover of cells, making the skin smoother and more dewy. They reduce pigment in the skin. Certain peels hydrate. They can smooth out wrinkles. If you have acne, peels are great for reducing blemishes and improving the appearance of your skin.

However, to tell you the truth, I don't like to do peels on my face.

Here's why: I have sensitive, rosacea-prone skin so I tend to get redder and flakier in response to peels than the average person.

We've been doing peels on the body, to treat aging and sun damage on hands, chests and backs and to treat acne on backs, and Wow! they're great!

The thing about body peels is that you generally don't peel very much -- certainly much less than the face. Also, they tend not to sting or prickle much on the body so you don't have to worry about discomfort or downtime.

A peel that might feel like a 6 to an 8 out of 10 on the pain scale when applied to the face, feels like less than a 1 out of 10 on the body.

We've been doing serial treatments every two weeks with medium depth peels on the body -- something that could be an ordeal on the face -- and watched the skin get better and better over time.

For back acne, the redness and swelling recede in acne blemishes within 24 hours. I wish I'd known about that when I had to wear a strappy bridesmaid dress for my brother's wedding.

If you're looking for an easy way to address pigment, aging skin or acne on your body, I highly recommend a series of chemical peels.

Picture of immediate results with Sculptra

2008-05-12T11:50:00.000-07:00

I have talked in previous posts about the injection process of Sculptra.

Each vial of Sculptra is diluted to a volume of 6 mLs so the placement of 6 mLs of fluid under the skin gives you a preview of what you'll look like when the Sculptra has stimulated collagen formation in your skin.

This photo was taken after I had finished injecting the right side of the face and just started on the left (hence the spot of blood on the left cheek). We had cleaned off the right side and done the massage.

My client wanted to see the difference before and after the injections and was so struck by the changes that she insisted I take a picture and then very kindly agreed to let me post it on the internet.

This is the second set of Sculptra injections for this client. The first set restored a little bit of volume to the face generally.

With the second set of injections, I was focusing on building up the nice swoop of the cheek, filling in the temple, building up the tissues around the nose and firming up the chin.

Granted, on the left side of the face she has thick black marks accentuating every line. These are my markings to guide my injections.

However, I think you can see a big improvement in the right temple compared with the hollowness of the left. Look how high her brow is on the right. Her left cheek looks saggy and deflated compared with the right.

You can see how the Sculptra is going to build up the tissues around the nose; the untreated side is much deeper than the treated. Her chin also looks a lot smoother on the right, treated side.

I find it so gratifying to inject Sculptra and see the preview of how the volume is going to be restored. This preview last 2 or 3 days, then regresses. It will take 4 - 6 months from the first injection to see the full effect of the Sculptra.

Look after your hands as well as your face

2008-05-05T08:38:00.000-07:00

I have always thought Faye Dunaway was incredibly beautiful. She is still acting and looking gorgeous at 67. She is obviously having work done to keep her face looking amazing but it seems that she forgot about her hands.

How scary!

This image shows that Faye's hand has lost a lot of volume, looking skeletally thin. The skin looks like tissue paper -- you can see every vein and tendon. Her skin is discolored with sun spots.

Her joints do not appear enlarged and arthritic so she could totally reverse these signs of aging with a few simple procedures.

I would put volume back into Faye's hands with Sculptra. This would stimulate collagen formation in the tissues, making the skin look thicker and firmer.

We could restore her skin to a pearly appearance with a combination of IPLs and peels. The peels help to bring the brown pigment of the sun spots to the surface and the IPL fries it. The combination also helps to improve the texture of the skin.

Faye's hand looks so fragile that I would also want her using a lotion that contains growth factors such as TNS Body Lotion in order to stimulate her skin to produce more cells, more collagen and more elastin.

In this day and age, your hands shouldn't be giving away your age.

Medical spa treatments in the mainstream

2008-04-30T12:10:00.000-07:00

The April 2008 issue of Wish, a Canadian lifestyle magazine, features an article on medical cosmetic treatments.

My only problem with this article is that they refer to brand names rather than generic names for treatments. It tells me that the specific companies are promoting their products, rather than the magazine generally informing consumers about treatments.

If you want to confirm my suspicion, look who's advertising in the issue (and who's not).

Under "Magic Eraser" you could substitute Pixel or any fractionated laser for Fraxel.

For "Facelift Alternatives" Accent radiofrequency is a comfortable and effective alternative to Thermage and ReFirme.

The article suggests that Restylane and Juvederm last for 6 - 8 months but that is overly optimistic, especially for a first-time user. I have many clients come in and tell me that those products only lasted 3 - 6 months.

I use a third-generation hyaluronic filler, Teosyal, and find that it lasts about 5 - 8 months in the lips and a year in the cheeks.

Do you sweat excessively?

2008-04-28T12:55:00.000-07:00

Excessive sweating is extremely embarrassing and a hassle.

You put a nice clean shirt on and before you even get to work you've got huge wet circles under your arms. You don't dare wear a white shirt because it shows the wet marks.

The medical term for excessive sweating is hyperhidrosis. This is a condition that affects 2.8% of the population.

People try high-powered anti-perspirants, Drysol, and even medications but they don't make much difference.

One of the most effective treatments for hyperhidrosis is BOTOX® injections. For excessive sweating in the armpits (axillary hyperhidrosis if you want to be technical), 95% people responded to BOTOX® in a clinical study.

If you've read my earlier posts on botox, you know that in cosmetic use, it lasts around 3 months at first, gradually increasing to 4, 5, and 6 months. In hyperhidrosis, the first treatment lasts around 7 months!

For hyperhidrosis sufferers, 7 months without it would be a dream come true.

In Canada, the company that makes BOTOX®, Allergan, has worked closely with insurance companies to streamline the process for patients to get this treatment. Most people with extended health benefits can get BOTOX® covered by their insurance companies (GreenShield being a notable exception).

I am now doing BOTOX® for hyperhidrosis. When you come to see me, you will have an assessment, including a questionnaire about your symptoms. Depending on the severity of your problem, we may proceed to treatment on the very same day! Your excessive sweating will be shut down within days.

You can learn more about hyperhidrosis by visiting this website.

Come to our Circle of Women Appreciation Day

2008-04-24T12:01:00.000-07:00

We are holding a very special event on Saturday, May 10th, 2008, our Circle of Women Appreciation Day.

For a modest donation to Halton Women's Place, you and your mother, daughters, sisters and friends can sign up for:

- a UV photograph and skin analysis
- a makeup application by one of our skilled makeup artists
- a mini consultation with me
- hair styling at Chiarelli's Hair Design (next door)

We will have gifts and doorprizes. This is going to be a fun and interesting day.

Here's how the day will go. We will have some scheduled presentations for all to attend and inbetween you can schedule the services listed above. We are asking for a minimum $5 donation per service.

9:00am - 9:30am:
Enjoy your morning coffee or tea while attending an informative session on skin care, find out how you can stop acne & prevent it from coming back & learn a safe and natural way to prevent aging.

10:00am - 10:30am:
Get involved while Claire walks you through tips, tricks and trends for Spring and Summer make-up with live demonstrations!

11:00am - 12:00pm:
Attend an Anti-Aging Seminar with Dr. Rose Jeans & learn what all the buzz is about Botox, Fillers and Sculptra.

Enjoy some light refreshments & tour our beautiful facility.

1:00pm - 1:30pm:
Join Carolyn Murdoch of Vivier to learn the benefits & healing power of skin care for all skin types including Rosacea, Acne, and Hyperpigmented or Aging skin.

2:00pm - 2:30pm:
With wedding season upon us our talented make-up artist Claire will be sharing her expert knowledge on how to make your make-up last during those tearful occasions.

3:00pm - 3:30pm:
Dr. Rose Jeans will be sharing how you can renew your skin, target acne & rosacea and even your skin tone for a radiant complexion with light & laser treatments.

3:30pm - 4:00pm:
Raffles! You could win a complimentary medical spa treatment.
(winners must be present)

RSVP by May 5th: 905-340-0401 or email info@restoringnaturalbeauty.com

Halton Women's Place is an organization providing shelter and crisis services for physically, emotionally, financially and sexually abused women and their dependent children and is dedicated to ending violence against women and their children.

Injection lipolysis: before and after pictures of stomach

2008-04-23T11:24:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share with you some of the results that I am getting with Lipodissolve treatments. The woman in these pictures exercises regularly, watches her diet but still had a layer of fat on her abdomen and bulging muffin tops.

BEFORE

AFTER 2 treatments -- one on the muffin tops and one on the abdomen (above and below the belly button). She has been able to go down a size (or 2, depending on the cut) in pants.

The before picture was taken with flash, the after without, which is why the camera has interpreted the colour so differently. Apart from cropping, the photos have not been retouched.

10 Years Younger ... in Burlington! Recipient Selected

2008-04-21T14:51:00.000-07:00

I am pleased to announce that we have selected the recipient of the 10 Years Younger ... in Burlington! program.

We had a lot of really great applicants and interviewed quite a few of them. We met so many interesting women with compelling stories that it was difficult to choose just one.

In fact, we would have loved to be able to choose more than one person but it was beyond the terms of the program. We liked everyone so much that we are offering all of the applicants a gift from Advanced Rejuvenation Medical Spa as a consolation.

If you would like to meet our choice for the 10 Years Younger ... in Burlington! go to the 10 Years Younger blog.

Pixel laser smoothes and renews your skin

2008-04-15T10:20:00.000-07:00

I was looking at the list of topics that I have written about and I couldn't believe that I hadn't devoted an article to the Pixel laser treatment.

This is one shot of light from the Pixel. See the square on the hand made up of tiny white dots? Older lasers were unfractionated, meaning that laser would have burned a solid square on the skin. The Pixel is fractionated so the laser light is only coming through in tiny dots.

Each tiny dot is a little burn in the skin. Each little burn is a powerful stimulus to the skin to activate healing mechanisms, resulting in new skin cell formation and collagen formation. Because each burn is so tiny, the healing time is much quicker than the old lasers.

The new collagen makes the skin appear tighter, with less pigment. Fine lines are smoothed out. Deep lines are softened. Pores are tightened and the skin is smoother.

The new skin cells give the skin a dewy look and make the skin radiant. Radiance is one of those terms that I was uncomfortable with at first -- how do you define it for skin? -- but it really is the best term for how you look after a Pixel.

Here are a couple of pictures that will give you an idea of what results you can expect with the Pixel:

BEFORE The texture of the skin looks rough with enlarged pores. Fine lines are seen under the eyes.

AFTER The skin looks smoother and dewy -- we're seeing a new radiance in the skin. The lines under the eyes are much softer. The pores are visibly tightened.

Pixel laser combines the benefits of the older generation lasers, that is new skin cell formation, collagen production and refinement of the skin, but reduces the side effects and the healing time.

Accent radiofrequency on the face

2008-04-14T15:29:00.000-07:00

We do a really amazing Accent facial here. We developed a protocol that gives results that you can see right away.

Accent radiofrequency treatments have no downtime. In fact, this would be an excellent treatment to do on the day of a big event to look a smoother and tighter.

Here are some pictures:

BEFORE What I see here are enlarged pores leading to a dull skin texture, a jowl extending into the neck, lines in the neck, under the chin and around the mouth.

AFTER After 2 Accent facials, the skin looks smoother and the pores more refined. The lines are greatly softened; I can barely see the lines in the neck. The jowl is a lot smaller.

The results you see for the first couple of days after an Accent facial are caused by the tightening of the existing collagen in the face. That collagen relaxes again so the results appear to regress at first but in the subsequent weeks, your body makes new collagen leading to a lasting tightening effect.

Facial tightening and body recontouring with radiofrequency

2008-04-14T15:02:00.000-07:00

Radiofrequency treatments are a great way to tighten your skin, smooth cellulite and reduce volume.

I have the Accent Radiofrequency machine from Alma Lasers. It features 2 handpieces: unipolar for deep heating and bipolar for superficial tightening.

The energy from the unipolar handpiece penetrates several centimeters below the skin, causing deep heating of the tissues. The immediate result is increased blood flow and lymphatic drainage, recontouring of fat and tightening of existing collagen. The deep heating also tricks the body into thinking it has an injury, turning on healing responses which ultimately result in collagen formation.

Accent has been shown to reduce the thickness of fat under the skin by about 20% and it also reduces the appearance of cellulite.

The bipolar handpiece only penetrates a few millimeters into the skin so it produces superficial skin tightening. Once again, the bipolar handpiece will tighten the existing collagen in the skin on the day of the treatment, leading to immediate improvement in the appearance of wrinkles, sagging skin and stretch marks.

Using Teosyal filler to rejuvenate the face

2008-04-14T13:08:00.000-07:00

I have talked a lot about Sculptra (the most attractive and natural way to rejuvenate your face, IMO) but a client that I saw last week reminded me that dermal fillers are still very important when it comes to rejuvenating the face.

This particular client is going to a family reunion soon so she can't wait the 6 months or so that it would take to see results with Sculptra. For instant results, fillers are ideal. I use Teosyal, a 3rd generation hyaluronic acid (HA).

Hyaluronic acid occurs naturally in humans. It is found between the cells of the tissues and helps to hold moisture there. Our bodies naturally make the enzyme hyaluronidase that breaks down the HA.

Hyaluronic acid fillers include Restylane (and the related Perlane), Juvederm, Teosyal and a few others. Teosyal is the most purified and the most cross-linked of the 3.

Purity is important because it reduces the likelihood of reactions to the filler. The more cross-linked a product is, the longer it will last because the body breaks down the HA by attacking the cross-links.

People usually find that Restylane and Juvederm lasts 3 - 6 months, whereas Teosyal lasts 6 months to a year.

Dermal fillers are sometimes called a "liquid facelift." Here are before & after pictures showing the effect of injecting Teosyal into the cheeks.

BEFORE This cheek is actually concave rather than flat. The skin has lost its stuffing and lies in pronounced folds around the eyes. The sagging skin also drapes down to form lines around the mouth and jowls (not shown in this image).

AFTER Here you can see that the cheek is filled out and actually has a highlight on it. The lines around the eyes are softened. This individual looked remarkably younger after the injections. What was really interesting though, was that no one realised what had been done. He was complimented on his new work-out rather than his face.

I talked about Teosyal KISS in the lips here.

Botox info from the BBC

2008-04-14T12:22:00.000-07:00

I came across this article on the BBC website. They're calling the series "Extreme Cosmetics" which I find a bit over the top but the information is mostly accurate.

They have a little slideshow that shows how BOTOX® Cosmetic works.

I'd just like to correct a few things they said that were misleading.

They said:

Botox is 'botulinum toxin A' - a diluted form of a food poison, which blocks nerve signals and causes paralysis

Clarification:

While it is true that BOTOX® Cosmetic contains a purified form of the toxin that causes botulism, it is used in such a concentrated form and such a small dose that it only affects the small facial muscles where it is injected.

They said:

With repeated treatments permanent thinning of the muscles can occur

Clarification:

If you have overactive muscle action causing wrinkles, you want the muscles to become thinner and weaker. For instance, in the forehead area, lumpy muscles will become smoothed out making your forehead look smoother over time with regular BOTOX® Cosmetic use.

They said:

Side effects can include weakness in neighbouring muscles, a droopy eyebrow or eyelid and headaches

Clarification:

This is true. In my experience, the headaches only last a few days and the weakness of a neighbouring muscle, if it is the result of a little BOTOX® Cosmetic spreading from the injection site, might last a couple of weeks. If the BOTOX® Cosmetic was injected into the wrong muscle (something I do not do), it might take a full 3 months to wear off.

They said:

Botox injections can interfere with a patient's ability to eat, speak and blink

Clarification:

Trouble with eating and speaking would arise from having BOTOX® Cosmetic injected around the mouth, something that is not commonly done. Trouble blinking would come from using too much BOTOX® Cosmetic or injecting into the wrong place, something that can be avoided by having a trained practitioner doing the injections.

Serious complications of Botox may occur with injections for medical reasons, for instance to relieve severe spasticity of the neck muscles, not with cosmetic use.

They said:

The American Academy of Dermatology has issued a warning against Botox parties, especially those involving alcohol

Clarification:

Alcohol makes you more prone to bruising so an injection like BOTOX® Cosmetic could result in bruising when it normally wouldn't when done in the office. Alcohol can also impair your judgment, putting you more at risk of accepting treatment with a counterfeit drug or by a non-qualified practitioner. I do not administer BOTOX® Cosmetic at parties where alcohol is being served.

Makeup for tearful occasions

2008-04-09T09:31:00.000-07:00

I was attending an event last Saturday and knew that the chance of tears was pretty high so I had our makeup specialist, Claire, do a tear-proof face for me.

Claire has a wealth of tricks up her sleeve so I asked her to share them with us on her blog.

Yes, I cried but, thanks to Claire, my face looked pretty good when the event was over.

Acne and Rosacea Sufferers: Need a boost?

2008-04-07T18:18:00.000-07:00

Check out this article from the American Academy of Dermatology: Acne and Rosacea Getting You Down? Laser, Light and Cosmetic Treatments Give Patients a Much-Needed Boost

It talks about treating acne with laser, IPL and photodynamic therapy, treating acne scars with lasers and fillers and treating rosacea with IPL.

If you are bothered by any of these problems, come and see me. I can help.

Who knew?

2008-04-07T17:54:00.000-07:00

I just found this article on the Health Canada website. It gives some general considerations you should think about when considering a laser or IPL treatment.

Here's an excerpt:

Minimizing Your Risk

The best way to minimize your risk is to make informed decisions based upon thorough research. Find out whether you are a suitable candidate for the procedure you have in mind. Look into the requirements for recovery time and follow-up care. Investigate the risks, and weigh them against the benefits expected for someone with your type of skin and/or hair.

If you decide to go ahead, be sure that the person who will operate the laser device has the training and experience needed to perform the procedure safely and effectively. Ask the operator for references. Experts in cosmetics with proper training in laser techniques should be able to perform hair reduction treatments with minimal risks to the Canadian public. Avoid tanning before and after treatments for laser hair reduction. Tanning increases melanin production in your skin and can reduce the effectiveness of the treatment.

Pretty good advice.

I'm kind of surprised that Health Canada publishes articles like this but if you go to their full list of articles, you'll find all kinds of interesting information.

Way to go, Health Canada!

What to do about acne

2008-04-07T06:52:00.000-07:00

With prom season and graduation coming up, a lot of younger people (and their parents!) are worried about clearing up acne.

I had a very nice couple in the clinic last week who asked me about what could be done for their son. His dermatologist wants to start him on Accutane but 2 family members developed depression on Accutane so they don't want to go there.

We have a number of treatments that clear up acne, including treatments for the severest form of cystic acne.

The first line of treatment for acne is the skincare regimen, including a retinoid and, often, benzoyl peroxide. A topical antibiotic helps with mild papular acne (zits) but has to be stepped up to an oral antibiotic for moderate acne (zits and pus).

In addition to skincare, we offer chemical peels and intense pulsed light (IPL) treatments that can make a big difference to acneic skin.

Our receptionist and makeup specialist, Claire, had mild-moderate acne when she started here and now has a beautiful complexion, thanks to her skincare regimen, IPL treatments and peels.

In the case of severe cystic acne, we offer photodynamic therapy -- a supercharged form of IPL -- that can really cut down sebum production for 6 - 12 months.

If you are thinking about clearing acne up in time for a big event, we really need 2 or 3 months to make a big difference.

One last point: if you are older than your early 20s and dealing with acne, please don't use products like ProActiv which are really meant for the oily skin and hormonal shifts of teenage acne. We have much better products to clear up your acne without drying out your skin.

10 Years Younger in Burlington

2008-04-06T15:42:00.000-07:00

We're getting lots of applications coming in and we can see that the application is being downloaded frequently. Excellent!

I'm glad that so many women are embracing this opportunity for a chance to turn back the clock.

I've even had a few men offer to model outfits from The Oyster if it would make them eligible to be the one chosen for the program (lol!).

You can now go to a blog that is specifically about the 10 Years Younger program. It will feature lots of great material from all of the businesses that are contributing to the program.

You'll get lots of good information about what you can do to update your wardrobe, makeup, skincare, how to deal with internal issues that are blocking you, what you should know about your teeth, and so on.

Check out our 10 Years Younger in Burlington blog.

Progress with Sculptra

2008-04-05T14:14:00.000-07:00

We've been doing a lot of Sculptra since the beginning of February and I have to say that I'm thrilled with the results.

If you remember, I mentioned the volume of fluid that the Sculptra is diluted in gives you a preview of what the Sculptra will eventually do. This fluid is absorbed and disappears in 2 or 3 days but I get to see the effect of the volume when I've completed injecting a dose of Sculptra.

I did Sculptra on a nurse that I have worked with for 18 years. As I'm doing the injections, my focus is on each little area where the needle is. When I was done the injections and stepped back to look at the overall effect, I blurted out "Oh my god, M---! I remember when you used to look like that!"

I recently did the second set of injections on a man with a long, thin face with flat cheeks. The first set of injections had plumped up his face a little, softened the lines, but hadn't really given him a more youthful shape. When I finished putting the second set of injections in, he had apples in his cheeks! He looked so natural and youthful and handsome that I was blown away.

I was working with a lovely lady yesterday. She had always looked young for her age and has excellent skin but in the past few years, the volume had really disappeared from her face. Her cheeks were just skin over her cheekbones. I customized the shots to build up her cheeks and when I was done, she and I were thrilled to see the rounding of her cheeks. She looked beautiful.

These images are from the UK's Sculptra website so I can't tell you the exact age of this woman but I love her results.

If you don't mind watching your results develop gradually over 6 months, Sculptra is definitely the best product for rejuvenating your face.

Budgeting for medical cosmetic treatments

2008-04-04T07:25:00.000-07:00

I witnessed an interesting situation between a married couple the other day. One spouse has been having various treatments here, getting amazing results and is happy as a clam with how things are going. The other spouse would like to have some treatments but feels that they can't afford them. The latter was actually radiating hostility while at the spa.

The question is, can they afford to have treatments? Probably.

If I tell you that they are both professionals with good jobs, would you think they can afford the treatments?

So many factors go into answering that question, including what their financial priorities and obligations are, their other expenses, actual incomes and so on but I would like to introduce to you the system that T. Harv Eker recommends for budgeting so we could really know whether this couple can afford these treatments.

Harv recommends that you handle your money this way if you want to be wealthy: take all of your income, take the taxes off the top and divide your net income into 6 categories, Financial Freedom Account (FFA), Necessities (NEC), Long-term Saving for Spending (LTSS), Education (EDU), Play Fund (PLAY) and Charitable Giving (CHAR).

Your FFA is where you save money for creating your financial freedom through investments such as RRSPs, stocks and business ventures that create passive income like vending machines, parking lots and so on.

NEC covers all of your financial obligations such as mortgage payments, debt repayment, food, clothing, transportation, memberships and so on.

LTSS is where you save for any big expenditure like a special vacation, a new TV or car, major renovations and so on. You can subdivide this into several accounts if you are saving for a number of big expenditures.

EDU is the money you spend on yourself for your personal development -- books, courses, lectures, seminars, and so on. It is definitely not your kids' college fund (that would be an LTSS project).

PLAY is money that you spend however you want, completely guilt-free, every month. If you normally feel guilty about eating at a fancy restaurant, buying novels or going to the casino, then you can do these things completely guilt-free as long as you pay for them out of your PLAY account.

Your Charitable Giving account is for supporting the charities that are important to you and giving back to the community. If you don't have a lot of money, your charitable giving could take the form of action, that is, volunteer work, rather than money.

The usual breakdown of the 6 groups is FFA 10%, NEC 55%, LTSS 10%, EDU 10%, PLAY 10% and CHAR 5% but you may have to play around with these figures depending on your personal situation. Harv discusses this in detail in his book, Secrets of the Millionaire Mind and at the Millionaire Mind Intensive seminar.

Where would cosmetic medical treatments fit into the budget?

Cosmetic medical treatments might be a necessity if you are in the public eye a lot so they would be paid for out of the NEC account. They might be a LTSS project. They might be something you would pay for out of your PLAY account if you felt they were an indulgence that you couldn't justify any other way.

I think this is a really good system. It can really help a couple who are at odds on their finances come up with a plan that covers all the bases and that both parties can live with.

My friends above could map out how much money goes into each account and feel secure that they could afford to spend a certain amount on medical cosmetic treatments and still be working toward creating wealth for the future.