Home » Beauty » Cosmetic Treatments » Face the Future The face is the most obvious area by which we judge someone's age. And as you grow older, your skin becomes progressively thinner and less elastic. The face lift, together with surgery to enhance facial features, will always have a major demand, but other procedures have been increasingly developed as a way of giving the face a boost, and possibly even lengthening the time until you decide you need a face lift.

Implants and injections of collagen, Gore-tax and Botox are the ways in which celebrities ensure that they stay looking their best. Now they are very widely available as quick in-and-out procedures.

Botox is used predominantly in the forehead to remove or diminish frown lines. For those who wear a permanent frown and cannot break the habit, it is now possible to inject a small amount to Botox (an inert botulinum toxin) into the muscle and send it to sleep for between three and six months. The consequence is a more youthful forehead. After two or three injections during a 12-months period, the lines diminish significantly and the tendency to frown is reduced.

Contrary to rumours, facelifts do not merely scrape everything back and tie it behind the ears! Six different types of facelifts are available, and technology constantly changes to tailor the actual techniques to suit individual faces. You could lift cheek fat over the cheek muscles to reduce the depth of nose-to-mouth lines, lift and tighten the neck skin and the muscle under the chin.

Your face will feel numb and tight for two weeks. During the recovery period you may experience minimal discomfort from bruising and swelling. But every day you will feel a little better. Taking vitamin C for two weeks before the operation can be beneficial.

Gore-tax, used in several ways, is particularly effective for areas like lips and nose-to-mouth lines. Because the implant is both soft and pliable, it is relatively simple to conform to your face shape. Unlike many injected substances, Gore-tax can actually be removed and it is, in effect, a rather more permanent way of enhancing the features than collagen, which disperses over a period of time.