Needles for skin rejuvenation? No, it’s not Botox but a more controversial form of therapy for aging skin – cosmetic acupuncture. Acupuncture is no longer a treatment reserved for chronic headaches and back pain. It could help to vanquish wrinkles and tighten saggy skin – but some skeptics aren’t so sure. Does acupuncture for facial rejuvenation really work?

Acupuncture for Wrinkles: How Does It Work?

Acupuncture for facial rejuvenation is based on the principle that skin aging is caused by an imbalance of the life force known as qi. Using a variety of acupuncture techniques, a skilled acupuncturist strategically places needles to help remove any blockage to the free-flow of qi. In this case, the needles are placed on the face to rejuvenate aging skin and reduce the appearance of wrinkles and lax skin.

A slightly different form of acupuncture called electroacupuncture for facial rejuvenation was developed by Ph. Simonin. Electroacupuncture is a technique where electrical pulses are delivered to strategically-placed acupuncture needles. According to a study discussed in Cosmetic Dermatology: Principles and Practices, 70% of volunteers who underwent ten to fifteen electroacupuncture sessions for facial rejuvenation showed visible improvement in wrinkles on their head and neck.

Should You Be Skeptical About Acupuncture for Facial Rejuvenation?

It’s hard to draw firm conclusion since this was a small study, but the results are intriguing. Electrical stimulation may boost collagen synthesis, thereby helping to restore the skin’s support structure and reduce lines and skin laxity. Collagen in the layer of the skin called the dermis becomes damaged over time due to sun exposure and the natural aging process – and its production slows down. The combination of these two factors plays a major role in wrinkling and skin sagging.

Not all cosmetic acupuncture involves electrical stimulation. Many cosmetic acupuncturists do it the old-fashioned way with ultra-thin needles placed on the patient’s face. More or fewer needles are used depending upon the degree of facial aging.

Is It the Next Big Thing?

There are strong advocates of this procedure – patients who believe cosmetic acupuncture improved the appearance of their aging skin, but there are lots of skeptics too. Studies show that acupuncture is effective for some conditions like chronic pain and nausea after surgery, but acupuncture for facial rejuvenation hasn’t been exposed to the scrutiny of scientific research as of yet.

If it really does work, cosmetic acupuncture could offer an alternative to people squeamish about Botox injections – and who fear going under the knife. This alternative facial rejuvenation therapy doesn’t come inexpensively. Most cosmetic acupuncturists recommend ten or more treatments at a cost of up to $150.00 each, and that could put a dent in some people’s pocketbooks. No one says staying young comes cheaply.

References:

Rev Fr Gynecol Obstet. 1991 Jun;86(6):461-6.
Cosmetic Dermatology: Principles and Practice. (2009). McGraw-Hill.

Joanna Vargas is a graduate from the University of Chicago and is a celebrity facialist that is well known for her unique facials and skincare treatments. Her facials and skincare treatment have been the source of rave reviews from the leading magazines such as Vogue, Allure and many others.

Joanna Vargas will soon have available her own skincare products line and full body LED light therapy bed, patent pending.

What is the most common thing that comes to mind when you think about weight loss? For most of the people out there who have weight loss in mind, the most common points that one can think of are:

• An exercise program that will help you burn the fats accumulated in your body
• Starting on raw foods as your new diet

Quite a number of people planning to lose weight also go for diet drugs that are sold at the local pharmacy.

But only a few of us are aware of the fact that vitamins can also aid effectively in losing weight. Read on to know how some vitamins can burn the fats in your body and make you slimmer.

Our body is in constant need of vitamins and they can be easily derived from the food that we eat on a regular basis. In some cases where this is not possible, dietary supplements are made to do the job.

Vitamins play a very important role in the development of our body, and also for it to function properly. As a matter of fact, vitamins are so essential that no person can survive without the intake of vitamins.

This may come as a surprise to many people, but the truth is that vitamins can also help in losing weight. Some very popular forms of vitamins that help in weight reduction are vitamin B complex, B2, B3, B5, B6 and also vitamin C.

When vitamin B is consumed and digested by the body; it converts the present carbs to glucose. The glucose formed is then further processed and burned for the production of energy which is then utilized by the body.

Keeping this is mind; you are advised to consume foods which are naturally rich in these vitamins. Each of the vitamins mentioned above has its own characteristic function when it comes to weight loss.

The most important and also popular among these is vitamin B2. This is explained below in some detail. Also explained are some forms of vitamin B.

• Vitamin B2 – This is also medically known as Riboflavin and is responsible for the proper metabolism to take place in the body. Some foods that are rich in Vitamin B2 content are milk, almond and hard cheese.

• Vitamin B3 – One another important form of vitamin B that helps in the reduction of weight. This is of utmost importance when it comes to the production of normal thyroid hormone. Eggs as well as leafy and green vegetables are known good sources of vitamin B3. If you do not like eggs or green vegetables, you can also get this vitamin from other forms of food such as meat, salmon and wheat bran.

• Vitamin B5 – Essential for the sufficient production of energy that is needed to keep the body functioning properly. These are obtained from foods such as bread made from whole bread, nuts, liver and poultry.

• Vitamin B6 – Taking vitamin B6 injections might fasten the weight loss process. This vitamin also promotes muscle growth while you are on a diet.

Although these vitamins can be consumed by almost anyone, it is recommended that you first consult your nutritionist or doctor before you start on any of these supplements.

Citations:

• Image Source

Samuel Ken writes highly informative articles on health related topics, such as vitamins, minerals, and  health supplements. Learn how you can use nutritional health supplements for vibrant health.

A trip to the sauna used to be seen as a means for relaxation and nothing more. While there are still plenty of relaxing features to a standard sauna, there are infrared models out nowadays that go a step beyond helping people relax. With one of these in your reach, you can actually experience a variety of health benefits simply from sitting in the heat for half an hour. Investing time and money into a sauna is now more logical than ever. Here is a look at some of the ways an infrared sauna can make you healthier.

An infrared sauna heats your core better than other saunas can. As a result, you can sweat more. Sweating has a variety of health benefits, with one of the most notable ones being weight loss. A person can sit in a sauna and actually lose weight without ever having to move. This is especially beneficial for those who have no mobility because they can work at getting back on their feet even if they cannot actually move to do so. If you have a relative in this situation, investing in a sauna for their home may be the perfect solution for the issues.

Another benefit to sweating is that it removes some of the toxins from the body, allowing it to fight off diseases and other issues in the air. Using an infrared sauna can be a great way to detoxify your body and get your energy back up. If you have noticed that you have been more depressed or sluggish lately than you normally are, it may be because you have a buildup of toxins in your body. Thirty minutes in a sauna could remove a significant amount of those, and regular sessions like that will make your body stronger in the long run.

You can improve your circulation and your overall mental state simply by using an infrared sauna. Different people experience different levels of health benefits from the saunas they use, so you cannot tell how much you are going to benefit from one until you install it in your home. A simple investment like this could make a huge difference in the way you feel on a regular basis. If you have been looking for a way to improve your life as a whole, you should think about using a sauna. It does not take much effort from you at all, and it could make your life much better in the end.

We offer the line of saunas used by more wellness providers and endorsed by more health professionals than anyone due to our ability to safely and most effectively deliver the sun’s naturally healing radiant heat.

One of the inevitable facts of growing older is that at some point in our lives we will need glasses for reading. This is just as inevitable as getting grey hair or wrinkles and unfortunately there is not a lot we can do to stop it. That is unless of course you have a time machine!

In order to read things close to us, the natural lens in our eye has to change from a flat shape to a more rounded shape. With age our lens become more rigid and therefore less flexible, meaning it is unable to change shape to a sufficient degree to enable us to focus near objects. This natural ageing process of our eyes is called presbyopia and normally happens to people aged around 45 years old.

People who have had perfect vision all their lives may be in denial about the fact that their reading vision in deteriorating, so the following are the 5 most important signs to look out for:

1.       Screwing your eyes up when reading: The reason people do this is because it results in them focussing through a smaller pupil. This helps to reduce the amount of blur on the retina and hence improves their vision.

2.       Headaches when reading: If you find you are getting either temporal or frontal headaches after reading then this is almost certainly a result of your eyes straining.

3.       Holding things further away: People who need glasses for reading will find they have to hold things further away when they are trying to focus on things. The reason they do this is because the lens does not have to exert as much focussing power when objects are held further away from the eye.

4.       Problems changing focus: If you are finding it takes longer to change focus from near objects to far objects (or vice versa) then this is an early sign that the lens in your eye is not changing shape as quick as it once was. This is what normally occurs just before you need reading glasses.

5.       Problems reading in low light: As you start needing glasses for reading you will begin to notice the importance of light. You will find that you struggle to read in low light levels and this will especially be the case if what you are reading is small.

If you have answered yes to any of the above signs then the very least you should do is get your eyes tested. The vast majority of people will opt to just wear reading glasses but there are other options available to you such as contact lenses or laser eye surgery. Although laser eye surgery has generally previously been used to correct peoples distance vision, there are now new methods being developed that also treat reading vision. To find about more about laser eye surgery you could consider researching in a laser eye surgery forum or alternatively asking your Optometrist.

According to a popular story online, a New Zealand woman showed up at a hospital with partial paralysis after receiving two large hickeys on her neck.  The woman was said to be in her forties, and one might logically ask what a forty-something year old woman was doing getting hickeys in the first place.  I think I got a hickey somewhere around the age of 16, but I suffered no ill effects short of being chased around the house by a mother with a broom for letting someone suck on my neck.

The woman apparently had a blood clot develop, break loose and then travel to her heart causing a stroke.  This led to the temporary paralysis, but was resolved when the woman was given anti-coagulants.  Bottom line, she survived the ordeal though was almost certainly nearly killed by the embarrassment.

Hickeys have a long and storied history in our society, but upon searching the web I found no other instances of it causing a problem as serious as a stroke.  Hickeys are essentially broken blood vessels under the skin, and they arise from one person sucking on another person long enough to create a bruise.  The hickey is generally thought to be a way of showing possession.

In high school, a guy or girl might give their boyfriend/girlfriend a hickey to show that they are taken.  Hickeys are most commonly given on the neck, but they can also be given in various other places on the body.  Getting a hickey used to be one the rites of puberty.  Once you got your first hickey, you were considered to be a man/woman among your social circle.

Some people consider hickeys to be sadism.  Although getting a hickey is not really all that painful, it is still inflicting pain as a form of pleasure.  There are some people in society that get and give hickeys in a much more drastic form, though the group is rather small on the whole.  Hickeys are largely just innocent examples of teenagers exploring their sexuality.

Given the number of hickeys that have been given and received over the years, the fact that this woman suffered a stroke from one is rather incredible.  You would think that somebody, somewhere would have had a similar experience.  Perhaps it was the woman’s age or the fact that she had some type of existing medical problem that set the stage for this medical oddity.  Hickeys causing strokes are clearly not in the average medical manual.

It certainly could be something that parents could now use as ammunition to prevent their teenagers from participating in the silly act.  The risk of stroke might be a pretty good deterrent for a puberty filled teenager that is considering making their necks a slobber playground.  Then again, puberty is blind to all dangers it would seem.  If sexual disease is not a strong enough deterrent, then a silly thing like a hickey stroke would hardly make a blip on the radar.

Rodney Southern has been writing for the web for many years.  Rodney regularly contributes health articles covering a variety of common diseases.