The New Age of Beauty - The Basics of Botox

Fear of aging has become so prevalent in our society that for beauty we have reached a new age. It is true that the ancient Egyptians used kohl, which we know to be harmful, to enhance their beauty, but they did not know it was harmful. Today, however, the allure of looking younger (which we associate with looking beautiful) leads us to take a toxin and turn it into a beauty aid. And that is just what Botox is — a poison that we inject to smooth our wrinkles and reduce the appearance of aging.

Botox is created from Botulinum Toxin Type A. This is a protein complex that the bacterium Clostridium botulinum produces. This protein contains the exact same toxin that is the cause of food poisoning. However, this toxin has been somewhat tamed and made fit for medical use. The United States Food and Drug Administration approved the use of Botox for smoothing frown lines in 2002, and deemed it medically acceptable for the use of frown lines. But even before this, Botox was approved medically in 1989 to treat uncontrollable blinking and misaligned eyes. In 2000, Botox was approved to treat cervical dystonia, which results in severe shoulder and neck contractions.

The reason that Botox can do all of this because it is used an injectable and sterile form of the purified toxin that helps to paralyze the muscles of the face. What happens is that the small doses block the release of the chemical (acetylcholine) meant to signal muscle contract. This means that the muscles below the surface of the skin cannot contract, and this results in smooth, paralyzed muscles that allow frown lines (and other lines) to smooth out. It only takes about a week for most lines to disappear completely.

<< Previous    [1]  2    Next >>