QUESTION: I have developed ugly little lines on my chin and upper lip. The rest of my skin is just about wrinkle-free. What is the best way to diminish these lines? I won’t use Botox or Juvederm (too invasive) or any of those laser therapies (too expensive, uncomfortable, and risky). I have been using Strivectin-SD for about a week now and do not see any appreciable results.
D'LYNN'S ANSWER: This area is a problem area for a lot of people. The quickest and most effective solution is certainly a dermal filler product such as Juvederm or Restylane and a small amount of Botox. Laser treatments such as Fraxel or Fraxel Re:Pair, which help to stimulate collagen and resurface the skin texture, also work well.
But as you mentioned in your question, if you are not ready or willing for those sorts of procedures you can approach the problem topically. However, you will need to be patient as the results will take longer and will be more of a subtle and gradual improvement.
A “must have” is to incorporate a retinol product into your nightly skin care regimen. Retinol and retinoids help to resurface the skin by increasing cellular turnover and stimulate growth within the epidermal layer. I really like Remergent’s new Progressive Retinol Therapy 0.4% and SkinMedica’s Retinol Complex because they tend to not irritate the skin like some others may.
You will also want to incorporate a growth factor product. These help promote the formation of collagen and reduce wrinkles and pigmentation. My favorite is SkinMedica TNS Recovery Complex.
Vitamin C products, such as SkinMedica Vitamin C Complex, also help to prevent collagen breakdown and protect against free radical damage.
You may want to consider the SkinMedica TNS Regeneration System as it includes all three of these products. But if that is product overload for you, I would at least go with a retinol and growth factor product.
Last Updated: April 30, 2008
