Can Fifty Be The New Thirty-Five? A Dermatologist Says Yes

Looking younger seems to be on nearly everyone's mind. With the explosion in plastic surgery procedures performed on women (and increasingly men) of all ages, the demand for age-defying medical procedures has grown into a multi-billion dollar business sector.

A trend has become apparent, according to Pasadena, CA dermatologist Dr. Robert Seltzer. "People want to look younger and fresher, but they don't want to go under the knife unless they absolutely must," he says. "Most people wish not only to avoid surgery, they want to achieve their goals with little or no downtime taken from their busy schedules."

While the numbers and age ranges of people who seek cosmetic rejuvenation or enhancement continue to increase, so has the demand for ways to rejuvenate one's appearance without the need to spend time healing for days or weeks afterward

Just a few years ago, that would have been difficult if not impossible, says Dr. Seltzer. "For example, if you had a sagging neckline, you'd need to have a neck lift, liposuction or a combination of surgical procedures," he says. "For wrinkles, sun damage and other skin problems patients would often need  harsh chemical peels or lasers that created a controlled 'burn' to the skin, all requiring one to three weeks' healing time before returning to work and social activities."

New devices that are now available are allowing dermatologists to rejuvenate faces and bodies with very little or no downtime. Dr. Seltzer says that one type of laser, the "Fraxel Re:Pair" resurfaces the skin in  a fractional "pattern" that reduces healing time while achieving similar results as previous generation lasers that caused noticeable redness which persisted for weeks after treatment.

Another device, called the "Trinity" has three different modes;  using various combinations of radio frequency and intense pulsed light, the device can actually tighten skin without surgery, promote collgen production to "fill in" or soften facial lines and wrinkles. and correct years of sun damage, all  at the same time.

"By reversing the effects of sun damage, softening lines and and tightening the skin, 50 is becoming the new 35 as women are being helped to turn back the clock on their appearance," says Dr. Seltzer. "Now it's not unusual to see women in their fifth decade who look as young and vital as thirty-something women of  a generation ago."
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