How to Get Rid of Cellulite - What it is and How to Treat It
Cellulite is a condition mostly found in women where there’s a dimpled appearance on the skin, most commonly on the thighs, legs, butt, and lower stomach area. This is caused by irregular patterns of connective tissue beneath the skin: the lumpiness itself is caused by fat deposits that are irregularly shaped and push against the connective tissue under the skin, thereby distorting it. Mind you, cellulite is in no way related to the disease cellulitis, which is a nasty bacterial infection of the skin (trust me, you’re glad you don’t have that).
The main determinant of cellulite is gender, followed by body fat percentage. If you’re female, you’re significantly more likely to have cellulite than if you’re male (it’s not unheard of in men, but it’s extremely rare), after that the most likely cause of cellulite is excess body fat in combination with a genetic predisposition to get cellulite (you may have the genes for it, but if your body fat percentage is low enough, you’ll never know it). Age can also influence how likely you are to get cellulite and how severe it will be–as you may have guessed, the older you are the worse the odds get. Skin thickness, diet, and whether or not you smoke can also play a role–just like with many other health problems, the better your diet and exercise regime, and not smoking, the better you’re going to look and feel.
There are several treatments currently available for getting rid of cellulite. You can go to a spa, many of them offer a deep tissue massage specifically targeted at cellulite, and these are, in fact, effective. Although, the caveat to these massages is that they are only a temporary solution and you will have to keep going back every couple of weeks or so to maintain the effects. In addition to that, the FDA has also recently approved laser light therapy for the temporary reduction of cellulite. Liposuction is a possible solution, but do keep in mind that it will require general anesthesia, you’re going to be in pain for a few weeks afterward, and it’s pretty expensive plus many insurance policies don’t cover it.
There are also various drugs that can be injected into the affected tissue, this is known as “mesotherapy”, but it is still considered controversial because the drugs being injected are not specifically approved by the FDA for the treatment of cellulite (this is known as a medication being used “off-label”, meaning that the drug is FDA approved and considered safe, it’s just not approved to treat the specific condition in question).
A quick bit of advice I can give you is to drink lots of water (I swear to you, the great majority of people are dehydrated most of the time, in all likelihood you don’t drink enough), stop smoking if you do, and do your very best to improve your diet and get more exercise. Just cutting out sodas and junk food will, I promise you, it will work wonders for you–I personally know three people who have lost between 20 and 60 pounds each just by completely eliminating soda and other junk food from their diets.
There are several other treatments available that are very effective at eliminating cellulite altogether, each with their various pros and cons, to learn about this and more I suggest seeing my article on how to get rid of cellulite where I discuss and explain things much more in depth.
Popularity: 1% [?]
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
Tips For Using Facial Moisturizers Correctly
A good facial moisturizer is an important tool in a good skin care regimen. However, like any tool, if they aren’t used properly then they aren’t much good at all. You might think that all there is to the proper use of skin moisturizers is simply applying it to your face after you wash, or when you’re experiencing discomfort from dry skin. That covers the basics, but to really get the most out of a facial moisturizer, you have to know how to optimize its use.
The basic function of a facial moisturizer is to retain moisture in the outer layers of skin. Normally, any moisture evaporates from the skin quite quickly, which can leave it dry. This problem usually gets worse as people get older. A good moisturizer will keep the moisture in, making dry or aged skin feeling smooth to the touch, and looking a lot nicer too. The ingredients in the moisturizer do most of the work, but there are things that we can do when we apply moisturizer to help it work to its fullest potential.
The first useful tip is to always use your moisturizer right after you finished cleaning you face, while the skin is still damp. Remember that a moisturizer works to lock in water, which it can’t do especially well if there’s nothing to lock in. After a washing, your will have a good amount of moisture to seal in. If you opt to use toner on your face as well, you shouldn’t wipe it off before moisturizing. Apply the moisturizer while the toner is still damp and it will help to seal in the beneficial ingredients in the toner. Remember that the key word is damp - if you try to apply moisturizer when the face is still sopping wet, it will simply drip right off.
Next, pay attention to where you’re moisturizing. You would think that facial moisturizers would be usable on the entire face, but that’s not exactly accurate. In particular, you should avoid moisturizing around the eyes. The skin that surrounds the eyes is somewhat different when compared to the skin from other areas of the face. Facial moisturizers may be too potent and can lead to irritation and other problems if used on the eyes. They make specific creams for the eyes, and those are what should be used.
You also might think that they’d only be useful on the face, but that’s also incorrect. For instance, the neck area can benefit from the application of facial moisturizer. Start at the base and apply the moisturizer in broad upward strokes. A lot of people don’t consider the effect that the neck has on their overall appearance, but a neck with bad skin can look very unappealing.
A final tip: while you should apply moisturizer to a damp face, you should let the moisturizer dry completely before applying any cosmetic foundation. Otherwise, it can become very runny or get completely ruined.
These tips aren’t exactly life changing, but they do show you a few ways that you can better use your facial moisturizer.
Featuring, pure, high quality organic essential oils and essential oil products for aromatherapy, natural skin care products, organic eye cream and natural fragrances.
Popularity: 1% [?]
