At the end of September, at Paris Fashion Week the actor Pamela Anderson was photographed attending a runway show. Her photograph shocked the world.
Why?
Because she was wearing no make-up, and she looked fabulous! Shortly thereafter, Jamie Lee Curtis tweeted, ‘this is the beginning of the natural beauty revolution!’
So, what does natural beauty revolution mean? Does it mean embracing grey hair and wrinkles and celebrating them? Yes! but it may also mean a whole lot more.
There has been a lot of interest in the idea of aging well naturally. And there are many theories as to how to do that. More Vitamin D and antioxidants, cold water plunge therapy, intermittent fasting, Mediterranean diet, strength training… Most of these theories or practices hinge on the idea that if you give your body the right inputs or experiences you can resist or avoid the nastier aspects of aging and maybe even turn back the clock.
Challenge-based therapy is another way to put it. Challenge your body to improve and see what it’s capable of doing. Supply the building blocks it needs, and you will show time who’s the boss.
Getting back to Pamela Anderson, she looks her age, but also exceptionally vibrant and healthy. What might Pamela Anderson be doing that makes her confident enough to face the cameras without makeup?
It is likely she is engaging in a little aesthetic challenge-based therapy and so can you.
For example, IPL is a treatment where skin is exposed to intense full spectrum light. Certain wavelengths be used to treat specific skin issues – redness, hyperpigmentation, fine lines and more. IPL (or its even better cousin BBL) stimulates your body to make corrections and improvements. It recruits your immune system to activate a wound healing response to eliminate pigment, repair redness and grow new collagen and elastin.
The same idea pertains to other challenge-based treatments such as micro-needling, ultrasound (Sofwave), radiofrequency and fractionated laser. All these modalities stimulate your body to repair itself and in doing so you will regain youthfulness and slow aging. There’s nothing wrong with choosing to wear makeup, but great skin makes going without an easy choice.
What about things like botox and dermal fillers? Surely those are not natural?
When toxins like Botox are used to freeze muscles completely, or fillers are used to plump the face/lips beyond its youthful baseline, then that would be considered augmentation and be considered unnatural.
But there is a role for neurotoxins and fillers in the ‘natural beauty’ category, especially when they’re used to restore function and reverse deficits. For example, as we age our facial muscles start to exhibit habits of use that can be damaging especially when we lose the ability to fully relax muscles between movements.
Anyone who grinds their teeth even when sleeping has experienced this phenomenon. If you’re stuck in a perma-frown no matter how relaxed you are, your frown muscles are demonstrating an inability to return to resting length. Properly dosed neurotoxins can release chronic muscle tension without freezing muscles thereby restoring the muscle to its natural condition of use when we were younger.
Similarly, if you have volume loss in your face due to age-related fat, bone and collagen loss then the muscles of the face are not strapped from below as tightly as they should be, and their function is impaired, and sagging ensues. Restoring lost volume and strapping those muscles tightly improves use and appearance. Medical studies on the use of dermal fillers to restore volume loss after stroke or major illness show exceptional improvement in muscle strength and function. Volume restoration is akin to returning to the ‘natural’ state and the optimal function we once enjoyed. Of course, overdoing it is not functional or natural and should be avoided.
Challenge-based aesthetic treatments and use of toxins and fillers to restore losses or improve function can be healthy part of aging if approached sensibly. Look for a clinic that takes the time to educate you about options for ‘keeping it natural’ and look fabulous at any age!
ArtMed in Guelph offers a variety of skincare solutions. Contact them online to learn more.
This article was sponsored by ArtMed, a 2023 GuelphToday Reader Favourite.