Even if the needles WERE that big, I'd still do mesotherapy (but they are tiny, trust me)!
Why yes, I am truly crazy!! Here I sit, in front of my computer, typing away with a 70% Glycolic Acid peel on my face, trying to erase some of the signs of jetlag before Mr.212Renew gets home! Anyhow, I just had to write to you about one of the most promising things that I caught wind of while in Monte Carlo. No, it’s not a new laser. No, it’s not a new filler. It’s an affordable skincare treatment that has been popular for years in Europe but has not quite caught on so much in the United States-- until now! I’m talking about mesotherapy. Most Americans have been exposed to mesotherapy as a controversial treatment for cellulite that involves the injection of phosphatidylcholine a.k.a. “dishwashing detergent” into areas of unwanted fat [eeeewwww]! That, I will politely refer to as “American mesotherapy.” I am talking about European mesotherapy, which involves the injection of vitamins, minerals, and vital amino acids into the middle “meso” layer of the skin.
Pause! 10 minute timer is up, wash off AHA peel, apply numbing cream, set timer for 20 minutes, AND…Blog!
Okay, so, what inspired me to get into mesotherapy? I’ll tell you, I met a female physician from South Africa who looks to be 26 years old but claims that she is actually forty-six!! Only 3 years older than me, yet looks younger?? This will not stand!! [Needless to say, she is my new best buddy]! She told me that, in her practice, she combines a traditional AHA peel, followed by cryotherapy where she freezes the skin to -18C, then follows with mesotherapy where she injects the vitamins & minerals into the middle layer of the skin. The glow is unbelievable! [Don’t worry, I am going to get the cryotherapy machine too, but let me tell you about how mesotherapy works, and yes, I HAVE THE VITAMINS- They are SO GOOD- I don’t know whether to inject them or take a bath in them]!
As I implied earlier, “meso” is fancy Latin doctorspeak for “middle.” Patients ask me time and again what products that they can put on their skin, or what vitamins they can take to prevent their skin from aging. The truth is, fancy creams don’t penetrate the stratum corneum layer of the skin (that’s why it’s commonly known as the “horny-layer” as in tough like a rhinoceros skin- you cheeky monkeys)! If an ingredient DOES penetrate the stratum corneum to reach the underlying collagen, it is considered a drug, and therefore needs a prescription, and is not available over-the-counter at those froo-froo department stores, e.g. those $$$$ potions don’t work!! Conversely, vitamins that we take by mouth are fantastic, but even in the highest concentrations don’t reach the “watershed” circulation where the collagen actually resides. Enter mesotherapy! Originally developed by the French physician Michel Pistor in 1952, mesotherapy involves miniscule injections of vitamins and minerals into the middle “meso” layer of the facial skin using the tiniest needle and the subtlest hand possible [namely, mine]! This places the vitamins and essential amino acids directly into the layer of the collagen where they are most needed (the watershed).
The technique itself is simple, just apply numbing cream, and then gently but quickly inject the vitamins just beneath the surface of the skin. “Bop, bop,bop!” The procedure is repeated every 2 weeks for 5 sessions, then monthly thereafter.
Who are fans? Let’s just say that my jet-set clients from France & Spain see people like (who’s that 50 something year old pop singer who looks thirty and dates pro-baseball players?), or (what’s the name of that sexy raven-haired Spanish actress who won an Academy Award for playing a nut-job in Barcelona?) sitting in the waiting rooms of these physicians. I rest my case.
So, my pretties, that is my most exciting news. I have an absolutely scrumptious mixture of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, nucleic acids, and coenzymes that I am currently keeping to myself, but once I unleash them through my practice to you, believe me, I will be preaching it!!
Stay Beautiful!!
Dr. Lisa
