04.12.08
the truth about botox
The Ugly Face of Botox
A recent study appearing in the April 2nd issue of the Journal of Neuroscience suggests that Botox does not necessarily remain at the injection site as previously believed. It has been shown to migrate along axonal pathways, for example, in the case of injection into the optic tectum, Botox effects appeared in synaptic terminals within the retina. The report concluded with the mild comment that their findings will “have important implications for the clinical uses of this neurotoxin.”*
Indeed they will, and I am glad to see clinical studies confirm what I had long suspected, namely, that Botox does not necessarily remain at the injection site, but may migrate to other areas.
The potential problems don’t end there. Botox works by blocking neurotransmitter release at synaptic terminals. For example, over time a message telling your brow to contract may create vertical lines between the brows called scowl lines, or sometimes “Botox lines” because this facial site is a common treatment area. When the message gets blocked the muscles governing scowling are effectively paralyzed, and the brow remains smooth.
Nature, however, has other ideas. Your body views paralysis as a problem to be fixed, so it begins to look for other nerve pathways that still work in order to keep sending messages. The end result may mean muscle contractions in other parts of the face, with a patient developing expression lines in unexpected areas if Botox is continuously injected in the same sites. Therefore it is advised that Botox injections be site-alternated where treatments are on-going.
Aside from these potential aesthetic problems Botox users should be very conscious of the other serious risk associated with prolonged usage. Imagine you’ve just taken your newly healed broken arm out of its cast after three months of immobility. The first thing you must do is exercise the arm muscles, which have become quite flaccid through non-use. The same principle applies to facial muscles—if you don’t use them, you lose them. For this reason it is very important that Botox users in particular make sure that in between injections the facial muscles get some exercise. If too many muscles remain in a permanently frozen state the result may very well be absence of lines accompanied by irremediable sagging.
Natural solutions
Cosmetic treatments are fine up to a point, but the law of diminishing returns applies to beauty as much as to economics. When you cease getting the same bang for your buck it’s time to search out alternatives. Facial exercise of the right sort (the kind that doesn’t cause dynamic wrinkling) can make a huge difference in delaying the visible effects of aging such as sagging, and should be a crucial part of maintenance for anyone who uses Botox regularly.
Web links
For more information on facial exercise please go to www.marieveronique.com or www.organicskintherapy.com.
To read the article in The Journal of Neuroscience please refer to the page on my blog or go to:
http://www.jneurosci.org/cgi/content/abstract/28/14/3689?lookupType=volpage&vol=28&fp=3689&view=short&eaf
