London - For years, it has brought smiles to the faces of Britain’s celebrities – not to mention the odd permanently startled expression.
But it seems that Botox’s days as the wrinkle-removing treatment of choice could soon be over.
Instead, growing numbers of the rich and famous claim to have found a new way to turn back the clock – without ending up with that tell-tale frozen stare.
Mel B and Amanda Holden became the latest celebrities to admit to using collagen wave therapy, which works by blasting the skin with radio frequency waves. This apparently encourages cells to produce collagen, which tightens the surface of the face.
Their confessions come just days after singer Tulisa Contostavlos, 26, admitted the procedure is responsible for her extraordinarily smooth forehead.
X Factor judge Miss Brown, 39, said: “I’ve been having it for a few months and my skin has never looked better. I don’t want to have Botox or surgery because I want to have expression in my face. But I want to look after myself. I’m not an idiot. Looks do count in this business.”
Miss Holden, 43, a mother of two, said she gave up Botox following the birth of her two-year-old daughter Hollie.
The This Morning presenter said: “For the last three years I haven’t bothered [with Botox] and have instead been having collagen wave facials. It’s done amazing things to my face.”
Numerous stars have admitted using Botox, including Kylie Minogue, Nicole Kidman and Lulu. The procedure involves injecting chemicals into the skin that prevent muscles from moving.
This can produce the frozen look which often reveals when someone is a user. Beauty therapist Lisa Harris said it is a short-term treatment that ultimately causes damage. She claimed that collagen wave is better because it promises long-lasting effects.
Miss Harris, who offers the treatment at her clinic in Weybridge, Surrey, said: “It gives you an even skin tone, helps to smooth the pores out and prevents the aging process by encouraging skin to produce collagen.
“It’s very good for the neck and it just gives the skin a fantastic lift.”
Most customers do a course of three to ten treatments, costing from £150 to £250 (about R2 700 R4 500) to per session. Each lasts between 30 and 60 minutes and they are usually carried out weekly or fortnightly.
Botox comes at a comparable price – injections for one area of the body can cost around £200.
But Miss Harris said: “If you don’t use your muscle you lose muscle mass. Botox paralyses the muscle. So the long-term effect is that your muscle will deteriorate.
“What we try to do is improve skin health, muscle tone and skin appearance. Botox isn’t an anti-ageing treatment at all, it doesn’t do anything healthy for the skin.” - Daily Mail