Cosmetic issues can make taking pride in our appearance difficult, especially since our appearance naturally deteriorates as we age. The natural progression of age means we eventually reflect our age with physical traits. Unfortunately, the traits that arise with age are seldom pleasing to the eye and can impact our self-confidence.
While there is nothing wrong with looking your age, some people develop these traits earlier than they should. This can be because of genetic factors, overexposure to elements, or deficiencies of essential nutrients. Regardless of the cause, some people still considered young show physical signs of being a decade older. This can be devastating to anyone who takes pride in their appearance and wants to restore their original youthful visage.
The world of cosmetics has generated several products and procedures designed to help people look young again. Whether the individual is showing natural signs of age or has developed a condition that causes their appearance to look older than it should, these services have no shortage of customers. Some are vague and unknown to anyone not actively seeking ways to preserve their original appearance. Others are more commonly known due to media coverage or portrayal in television series.
One of the most well-known procedures is called a collagen lift, which has garnered much controversy among more conservative demographics. Nevertheless, those considering a collagen lift to restore their appearance might be curious about the details.
What is a Collagen Lift?
A collagen lift is technically a sub-category of an existing cosmetic procedure designed to undo the effects of aging on your skin. You have likely heard the term "facelift" before, possibly without the necessary context to understand what is involved. Facelifts fall under 2 categories:
- Surgical: A surgical facelift, technically called a rhytidectomy, involves a surgeon cutting the skin on the face to tighten it. The process usually includes a redistribution of fat around the face or adjustment of the facial muscles. For obvious reasons, this procedure can only be administered within an accredited hospital, and general anesthesia must be applied before the surgery.
- Non-Surgical: A non-surgical facelift does not involve any form of surgical intervention and is strictly non-invasive. However, there are several types of non-surgical facelifts, all of which involve different steps depending on the specific procedure. The particulars of how a non-surgical facelift is performed are too varied to explain fully in this article, but it impacts how a collagen lift is performed.
The good news is that collagen lifts are non-surgical procedures, meaning you do not have to worry about being indisposed because of the process. Collagen lifts do not involve adding collagen to the body but instead focus on stimulating your body's natural ability to produce more. This helps our body protect itself from natural wear and tear by stimulating its ability to reinforce its collagen supply naturally.
This might come as a surprise to anyone unfamiliar with the role collagen plays in our biology. Many people are under the impression that dermatologists created collagen for cosmetic surgery. Others are aware that our bodies naturally produce collagen and realize its importance to our health and appearance.
Because of the misconceptions surrounding collagen, many believe it involves a doctor injecting collagen into our bodies, primarily our faces. The truth is that collagen lifts do not involve injections and are designed to stimulate certain nerves and body parts. There are 2 distinct types of facelifts that are designed to promote collagen production:
- Laser Skin Resurfacing: Laser skin resurfacing might sound like an invasive procedure from a science-fiction film, but it is a mild treatment. The process consists of beams of intense light projected on key areas of the face to remove older layers of skin. This helps rejuvenate your complexion, but the heat from the lasers has an additional benefit that stimulates the body's collagen growth. As a result, the benefits of an increased collagen content are compounded with your complexion's new appearance.
- Microneedling: Microneedling is a slightly more intimidating process that involves tiny, thin needles being used to poke tiny holes in your face gently. The process is not painful despite its appearance and is akin to acupuncture, but the penetration from these needles stimulates the growth of 2 important substances: collagen and elastin. Microneedling can help reduce loose skin, wrinkles, enlarged pores, and sun damage, but the results can take up to 6 months to manifest. Furthermore, you will need multiple sessions to yield favorable results since the effects are temporary.
Some cosmetic facilities employ other methods for collagen lifts, such as using a massage wand to stimulate the nerves under the skin. Ultimately, major medical professionals recognize laser skin resurfacing and microneedling as the only collagen lift procedures. Nevertheless, they are increasingly popular among individuals facing premature signs of aging and are pursued with great enthusiasm. Some people are understandably skeptical about the value of collagen lifts (and facelifts in general) since a stigma surrounds them, like most cosmetic treatments. Therefore, we must investigate the pros and cons of collagen lifts and whether they are worth the expense.
What Are the Pros of Collagen Lifts?
Collagen lifts are highly praised by most of the people who undergo the procedure, and those who doubt them can rest a little easier knowing they are non-invasive. Nevertheless, knowing the benefits of collagen lifts is essential to making an informed decision. People mainly seek non-surgical facelifts to restore their youthful visage and get their skin feeling firmer and smoother.
Seeking a collagen lift is designed to improve the body's collagen content, reinvigorating our body's ability to heal the skin without outside intervention. Collagen is a special protein that we generate during the early stages of embryonic development. It is the main protein our bodies use to create our skin, and the collagen we produce after birth is used long-term to repair and revitalize the skin. The collagen left in our bodies rehydrates the skin and maintains its elasticity while generating new skin tissue to repair damage from scrapes and scars.
Unfortunately, the collagen we produce loses potency and breaks down faster with age, making it hard for the body to keep up with its cosmetic duties. Undergoing a collagen lift procedure can help your body produce collagen more effectively despite its age-related weaknesses. Increasing your body's collagen production means it will have more to use and might be able to reprioritize the reduction of wrinkles and improve skin elasticity rather than focusing entirely on preserving your skin's structural integrity. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a "perfect process," and collagen lifts have downsides.
What Are the Cons of Collagen Lifts?
Despite their popularity, collagen lifts are far from perfect and have issues that could make them unpleasant for certain patients. The truth is that all non-surgical facelifts carry several risks and issues that could render them unsustainable. The biggest issue with non-surgical facelifts is the price tag associated with the procedures.
The price of a facelift varies depending on the individual's needs and the extent of the damage. However, non-surgical facelifts usually have an average price range between $200.00 and $3,000.00 per session. This price tag can be unrealistic if you are living on a tight budget or have other outstanding expenses. For some, paying $200.00 for a session might seem sustainable and might not cause many issues, but this leads to the second major issue.
Most collagen lift procedures, especially microneedling sessions, require multiple treatments to yield results and are not permanent. As a result, you could quickly burn through thousands of dollars in treatments for minimal improvements to your collagen content.
These cons are primarily problems for people from lower-income brackets who cannot afford to spend large quantities of money on cosmetic care. While this frustrates people who might need the treatment but cannot afford to spend $200.00 on a single session, other problems affect everyone. The main issue is that non-surgical facelifts have inherent risks that can damage your skin or injure you.
These risks include:
- Bleeding
- Blisters
- Dry Skin
- Infection
- Pruritis (itchy skin)
- Peeling Skin
- Scars
- Swelling
- Skin Burns
- Skin Redness
There are other possible complications, but these are primarily limited to more invasive cosmetic treatments. For example, botulism injections and dermal fillers can cause fever and nausea, but these symptoms are not likely if you are undergoing laser skin resurfacing or microneedling. The other risks are caused by the pressure and stress caused by having a heated laser or sharp instrument applied to your skin. This can cause inflammation and injury because our skin is more sensitive than we care to admit.
Regardless, people continue to undergo facelift procedures to improve their physical appearance, which is understandable since modern society puts more stock on physical appearance than it probably should. Nevertheless, the issues with collagen lifts make them somewhat unsustainable as an effective skincare treatment in the long term. Unfortunately, this leaves us with the problem of finding a sustainable alternative to overcome the main issues with collagen lifts.
Consider Using Collagen Supplements
The main goal of collagen lifts is to rejuvenate the collagen content in your body, thereby restoring its ability to retain a youthful complexion. Generally, the complications associated with collagen are because our bodies cannot sustain the same production level we enjoyed in our youth. Other people suffer from collagen deficiencies that prevent their bodies from producing enough to maintain the protein's full range of benefits.
Collagen lifts can stimulate your body's natural ability to generate collagen, but this could prove fruitless if your body already struggles with creating new peptides. Fortunately, collagen deficiencies are enough of a problem that several groups have begun manufacturing supplements. Unlike collagen lifts, which rely on stimulating your body to fix the problem, supplements provide a direct source of collagen that your body can immediately assimilate to its reserves.
Collagen supplements have spiked in popularity, overtaking collagen lifts in several ways, making them one of the more sought-after products. Additionally, collagen supplements have the added benefit of having their effects scientifically backed. There was a review of 11 studies that focused primarily on women whose skin was suffering from skin issues associated with age or collagen deficiencies.
The review showed that the subjects in the test groups took between 3 to 10 grams of collagen daily (depending on the study). The studies lasted an average of 69 days, giving the collagen supplements time to assimilate into the subjects' bodies. The results showed that the subjects in the test groups had improved skin hydration and elasticity. These studies reinforced that collagen supplements can enhance and repair skin quality in people with lowered collagen concentrations.
Collagen's status as a naturally occurring protein makes the supplements safe when consumed according to instructions. The biggest challenge with substituting collagen supplements for collagen lifts is finding a supplement from a reliable vendor.
Keep It All Natural!
Collagen lifts are a fairly popular cosmetic service for people with premature aging signs. With most cosmetic procedures, the results can be a lottery since not everyone responds to treatment. The same could be said of supplementation, but the expense of a cosmetic treatment like facelifts makes a failed procedure a cost-prohibitive problem. If you have the finances to spare and are not concerned about the potential side effects, you could realistically seek a collagen lift. If you prefer a more cost-effective alternative, collagen supplements might be preferable. The problem is finding a supplement you can trust.
We at Bella All Natural believe that the best solutions come from nature rather than laboratories, so we have dedicated ourselves to producing natural health and beauty products. Collagen deficiencies can devastate your appearance and inhibit your body's ability to repair itself, so we have created a collagen supplement that uses natural ingredients. Our Collagen Powder (available in watermelon or strawberry flavors) will give you the daily dose of collagen you need to reinvigorate your body's ability to counteract premature aging. We encourage you to visit our website and try our product firsthand so you can see the results for yourself. Regardless of your decision, remember always to keep it All Natural!
