LOSING WEIGHT AFTER 40: DO WOMEN STILL HAVE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN THEIR FACE OR THEIR FANNY?
When it comes to weight loss, iconic French actress Catherine Deneuve, reportedly said, “After a certain age, you have to choose between your fanny and your face.” What she meant by this is that while calorie counting and exercise maintains a svelte body; a thin face after age 40 can make a woman look tired and older.
“Women who are over 40 and physically fit often find their faces thinning out too,” says Dr. Zannis; board certified plastic surgeon in New Bern, North Carolina . “ They often complain about slightly sunken eyes, hollowed out cheeks and a general loss of firmness and elasticity. Maintaining a low body mass index (BMI) exacerbates the problem because fat is the very thing that helps plump out lines and wrinkles. At the same time, gravity comes into play, and the elastin and collagen fibers that allow skin to stretch and spring back weaken, causing skin to sag.”
Thanks to dermal fillers and fat injections women can achieve a youthful fullness in their faces to match their tight, toned bodies they work so hard to maintain.
Dr. Zannis, a master at creating a healthy, vibrant look without it seeming obvious or overdone; turns to dermal fillers and fat injections as a solution. “The key to any facial procedure regardless of how invasive is to maintain the integrity of the natural features and bone structure,” offers Dr. Zannis.
Dermal fillers can p lump thin lips, enhance shallow contours, soften facial creases and wrinkles, can improve the appearance of recessed scars, and can be very helpful to address early signs of aging.
Fat injections uses fat harvested from one’s own body then is re-injected to enhance facial fullness, fill creases or build up shallow contours. It’s important to understand however that this procedure is more extensive than “off-the-shelf” soft tissue fillers.
First, a “donor area” must be determined (such as the abdomen or buttocks) then liposuction is used to extract the fat. The suctioned fat can then be transferred to the face as a graft. The grafted fat then has to redevelop a blood supply in order to survive.
Areas of the Face Affected by Weight Loss
The Eyes- After weight loss the eyes can appear sunken if the cheekbones have hollowed. If this is the case Dr. Zannis recommends injections of Restylane into the tear troughs under the eyes.
Nose- Believe it or not, even your nose can appear slimmer after significant weight loss. If this is not a desirable look, Dr. Zannis can perform a “non-surgical nose job” using Juvederm Ultra XC to plump area where volume has been lost.
Cheekbones- While many women are happy to have more pronounced cheekbones, for some, weight loss can lead to a harsh or witch-like appearance. Although the “chipmunk cheek look” of too much filler is not attractive, there are subtle ways to add volume to the cheeks. Dr. Zannis turns to long-lasting volumizing fillers like Juvederm or Voluma.
Chin- Excess weight often gathers under the chin. Losing weight can erase a double chin if one is lucky, or it can simply cause loose skin. If that is the case, Dr. Zannis suggests a neck lifting procedure.
Lips- Restylane Silk, Juvederm, or dermabrasion can be used to sand down and smooth out fine lines. Dr. Zannis encourages women to go easy on the plumpness with more of a focus on lip shape and over all facial symmetry.
Nasolabial Folds- These are the creases that run from the nose down to the lips. With weight loss, the folds lose volume and more pronounced creases can be visible. To plump these lines Dr. Zannis uses injects ofJuvederm.
The good news is that with minimally invasive plastic surgery procedures; women can keep both their faces and their fannies looking youthful.
Dr. Zannis is board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio and studied Human Biology and Studio Art at Stanford University prior to entering Medical School. He obtained his Doctor of Medicine degree (M.D.) from the University of Cincinnati College Of Medicine.
After medical school, Dr. Zannis received his formal training in General Surgery and Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina under the guidance of world-renowned plastic surgeon Dr. Louis Argenta. During this time, he performed over 5,000 surgical procedures and covered all aspects of plastic surgery including cosmetic surgery of the face and body, complex reconstructive procedures of face and body, cleft lip and palate surgery, hand surgery, facial and jaw fracture repair, and reconstruction following massive weight loss. He has given numerous national academic presentations and keeps abreast of the latest technologies in Plastic Surgery at symposia across the country.
Disclaimer: I Received no compensation for this post.
