Category Archives: Skin Care

“Pucker Lines” Around The Mouth?

Dr. Bonnie Marting

I frequently get clients in my office complaining about the lines around their lips. The lines that seem to resemble spokes of a bicycle wheel are commonly associated with “smokers’ mouth,” but anyone, smoker or not, can get these wrinkles.

Even women in their early 30′s can acquire these fine lines. They develop from the normal puckering we all do. If you make that face often enough, those lines eventually become permanent. When I explain this, I often get confused looks. They equate puckering with kissing or smoking. So if your love life has been nonexistent and you’re tobacco free, but you still have wrinkled lips-consider yourself a great Thinker! Seriously, pensive people create wrinkled lips.

Even when we sleep, we’re still thinking, and when we’re thinking, our mouth is using muscles that create that pensive, puckered look. Since you obviously cannot turn off the ability to think, (though I believe anyone with teenagers would argue that point), what other ways can you delay or remove the wrinkled look from your lips?

One way is to simply be more aware of your facial expressions and try to stop making unnecessary animations when reading, studying, working on the computer, and talking. You can’t help what you do when you’re asleep, but you can be aware of it while you’re conscious.

In the past, skin treatments using heavy-duty lasers were able to treat the area but left a whitish appearance on the targeted area. This hypo-pigmentation drew even more attention to the upper lip and so it’s not used very much today.

So here’s a near-perfect treatment I call the “Lip Rescue”. It’s a combination of carefully placed filler such as Radiesse, Botox, and a moderate peel. Your wrinkled lips can be nearly eliminated with this treatment plan. By using a retinoid or glycolic, we can turn your cells over faster and increase your skin’s dermal depth. This creates skin thickness (see there is something to be said for having thick skin) and now it will look healthier, and smoother. When this happens, your mouth lines will diminish greatly.

If coming to see me to iron out those wrinkles is not possible, make sure that when you choose a practitioner- they’re a skilled expert at placing Botox in this area of the face. You don’t want too much around your mouth placed incorrectly or the results can be disastrous- and it can last for over a month! That’s a long time to have people staring. If they’re going to stare, have them do it because you now have a sexy, wrinkle-free smile! You’ll be stoked, not spoked!

Wrinkle Relief without Botox?

Dr. Bonnie Marting

Every now and then I’ll get asked if wrinkle removal around the eyes is possible without using Botox. They want the lines to disappear but for whatever reason they don’t want to use Botox or Dysport.

This is a good question, though the answer is a bit tougher. See, the beauty of Botox and Dysport is they work by stopping the muscle movement that causes the wrinkles to appear. If you don’t stop or at least minimize that movement, the lines will continue to form. And as we age, our skin loses our hydrating body lubrication (hyaluronic acid) that allows our skin to literally slide over our muscles. When that liquid is gone, the skin begins to adhere and actually cling to the muscle underneath. That is what causes our skin to look wrinkled- it has actually taken on the shape of the contracted muscle.
This is most obvious on our foreheads, around the eyes, and on the chin.

So if you want to see a reduction in the wrinkled appearance on your face, certain changes must occur. First, a product to increase new skin production is essential. Most of us have heard of Retin-A by now. Retinoids like Retin-A and Tazorac speed up this process and increase your skin’s depth. Many people think it thins. That’s a misconception -it thins the epidermis but thickens the actual skin depth. Imagine your bed is made of sticks and straw all woven together to create a mattress. Now which would you rather have lying over that mattress?- a thin flimsy sheet that shows every stick and straw poking underneath it or a fat downy comforter which floats above the mattress, not giving way to the sticks and straws underneath? I liken our skin and faces to that. When it comes to our skin, thicker is better!

Other great items to use with Retinoids are Apha-hydroxy acids and micro- dermabraisions. These three things coupled with good nutrition contribute to better skin. You may find the most difficult part in battling wrinkles is not in getting treatments or buying products, but in actually training yourself to make less animated movements with your face. The more expressive your face, the more wrinkles you’re likely to develop. (I should do a self-help seminar for Mimes. I bet they get lots of wrinkles!)

Another thing to note is how fillers such as Restylane and Juvederm can help facial lines. These aren’t great for fixing crow’s feet but they are super for the vertical lines (Angry 11′s) that crop up between your eyes.

I hope I’ve answered your question on ways to reduce eye wrinkles without Botox. But I do hope you’ll consider the significant difference these products are making in facial rejuvenation today. It’s because they work. Regardless of the route you take to combat those wrinkles, take good care of your skin and you’ll look beautiful naturally, with or without them.

Cold Weather Equals Dryer Skin

Dr. Bonnie Marting

It’s that time of year again- cooler weather, changing leaves and fireplaces burning. The coats and sweaters are being pulled from the closets and the thermostats are now set for heat. All these changes are great, and a natural part of life. But with the colder weather comes something not quite so attractive- dry flaky skin.

The top layer of our skin consists of dead keratin cells. While this is normal, when our skin is excessively dry, our dead cells look even more shriveled and dried up. Though our dead cells serve a purpose in protecting the skin underneath, when they’re excessively dry, they will suck up much needed moisture from the cells below. You’ll know this is happening if you start shedding, peeling and cracking. This can lead to painful chapping. Not only does your skin hurt, but it looks as bad as it feels. You’ll look old and withered with skin like that.

So how do we prevent dry chapping skin in the colder months? Well a good start is to realize why it happens more at this time of year. It may sound like a no-brainer, but the outside temperatures aren’t the direct reason for your skin problems!

It’s the inside- of our cars, our apartments, the restaurants, our workplaces and our homes that are becoming dryer. Why?-because we run the artificial heat to keep warm. Nothing makes you look older as quickly as dry aged skin.

The best way to make it look younger (and make us feel better) is to replace the skin with moisturizers and retinoids. Use Retin-A, and add a good solid ceramide-based moisturizer that will help replace lost skin oils. Ceramides are a family of lipid molecules found in our cell membranes. When the concentrations of these lipids drop, our skin loses its full, replenished look and takes on the hideous shriveled appearance we never want. That’s another reason why using moisturizers feels so good to our skin. They actually facilitate healing as it soothes the dry layers. Eczema, and that urge to peel and scratch will be alleviated when we add moisture to our cells.

But moisture isn’t just water. Otherwise, I’d tell you to go jump in the swimming pool and all your dry skin would be fixed. That’s why I suggest TNS ceramide Treatment Cream ® by Skin Medica. Another good one is CeraVe® by Coria Laboratories, or Triceram Cream® by Osmotics Corporation. (If you feel uncomfortable using Parabens, then know that Triceram® has them in its formulation but it’s not a concern I worry about).
So, start replacing lost skin oils and start moisturizing your body now. Your skin really does crave it this time of year. You’ll instantly feel better and start looking more beautiful

Seven Secrets For Sensational Skin

Dr. Bonnie Marting

Knowing these seven secrets will give you the advantage you need to look spectacular.

Secret One: Hands Off! Frequent touching of your skin (especially your face) will leave dirt deposits that not only clog your pores, but can increase dryness by removing moisture barriers. If you have sunscreen on, (you do, don’t you?)when you touch your skin you can also remove that protection.

Secret Two: Always Use Sunscreen, even if you don’t think you will be out in the sun. Remember, you get some incidental rays just by walking to your car. UVA light is constant even in winter months and penetrates much deeper than UVB (the burning rays). UVA damage is responsible for most skin “aging”.

Secret Three: Drink plenty of water. Even though water does not directly translate into hydrated skin, it helps your body and skin remain healthy. If you become dehydrated, it can be visible in your skin, your eyes, and even your tongue. Water helps everything in your body to work properly. Please don’t skimp.

Secret Four: Cleanse skin twice daily. If twice is out of the question, at least cleanse you face in the morning, after your body has gone through the night-time regeneration process. Cleansing your face at night before bedtime has the advantage of an extra cleaning, and a reminder to use whatever product your practitioner recommends. If you use a retinoid (highly recommended unless you are pregnant) this is when it goes on.

Secret Five: Change your sheets at least weekly. It may sound silly, but not everyone changes that often. If your pillow case isn’t clean, your face will re-absorb much of the nasty residue shed by your skin as you toss and turn at night. Keeping linens clean is healthy for your skin.

Secret Six: Routinely clean your make-up brushes. I have patients who keep the same brushes for years, and never clean them! While it doesn’t need to be done every day, it should be done at least once a month. If you loan a brush to a friend, go ahead and clean it right away. You never know….

Secret Seven: This may be the most important secret: Forget About Your Skin! From my perspective, the damage caused by folks obsessing over their skin is huge. If you get a pimple, leave it alone. Spot treating can cause dryness or irritation, and picking may very well result in a scar. When is it OK to be concerned? When you have a “pimple” that has lasted for months, or a “dry patch” that just doesn’t go away. These problems are reserved for your dermatology office.

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