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Nothing embodies joy and charm like face dimples, especially, when they appear as an extension of a beautiful smile. Sadly, one cannot say the same about body dimples, which cause quite a different reaction.
Nowadays, cellulitis affects between 85% and 98% of females, but can also be observed in males. Although typically found in people, who are overweight, practice unhealthy habits or a generally unhealthy lifestyle, cellulitis can also affect perfect athletes. Increasingly, it is not merely viewed as a cosmetic but rather as a health problem, which requires our undivided attention.
Peachy skin
Meaning the excessive and uneven accumulation of under-skin fat tissue, peachy skin leads to visible changes in the skin’s surface. The reason lies in its structure and above all in the distribution of fats.
Fats build a third natural skin layer under the epidermis (skin surface) and the dermis (under-skin layer). They are not positioned freely but are rather gathered around the vertically placed fibres of the connective tissue. These fibres descend from the dermis and are directly connected to the fascia under the hypodermis, where you can also observe fat tissues. Upon growing excessively, they raise the upper skin layer, but due to lack of elasticity of the connective tissue, a dent is formed in the area of connection to the dermis. The result, a set of nasty dimples and skin waves resembling a peach.
Fat skin cells can increase their size by up to 60 times, which not only poses an aesthetic problem. By increasing, the skin cells put pressure on the surrounding blood- and lymphatic vessels, which in turn inhibits the natural microcirculation of blood in the skin. This is why waste products are gathered under the skin, causing a lymphatic stasis, thereby turning cellulitis into a metabolic and a health complication.
Why exactly my thighs?
Sadly, neither medicine nor science can give us a definitive answer for the reasons behind cellulitis. There are plenty of risk factors, which not only predetermine the formation of uneven fat tissues, but their location of appearance on the body as well.
- Hormonal factors
Women are generally more susceptible to cellulitis and the main reason for that is the female sex hormone oestrogen. It participates in many life processes, such as the peripheral blood-circulation, fat processing and the condition of the connective tissue. According to many scientists, this explains why cellulitis appears during periods of abrupt hormonal disbalance – during puberty, pregnancy, menopause, the pre-menstrual period, as well as during prolonged use of contraceptives. Furthermore, “peachy’’ skin is attributed to hormones of the thyroid, together with insulin, adrenaline and prolactin.
- Genetic factors
Cellulitis by itself cannot be inherited. Sadly though, you can inherit all the underlying factors, such as metabolism speed, fat tissue distribution, skin elasticity, blood-circulation, water retention, muscle type and many more. Women with tighter skin, athletic bodies and a more male physique suffer less from cellulitis than women with thinner skin, less muscles and more feminine bodies.
- Unhealthy eating:
We don’t just mean junk and fast food, but also sporadic eating habits and excessive diets. In general, the wrong consumption of food lies at the base of every health problem and is in this case an incredibly important factor, as it clogs the fat depots with unhealthy substances. It is well known that trans-fats and saturated fats gather on the surface of blood-vessels and inhibit blood-circulation in the entirety of the body. Cells are the first to suffer, followed by all other bodily processes, including fat reduction. Excessively strict diets can also worsen matters, because while burning fat, they do not prioritize the already accumulated cellulitis. As a result, it become even more visible. Therefore, if you seek a good outer appearance, you should eat correctly and healthy above all else.
- Lack of exercise
Of course, we don’t expect you to spent hours in the gym, but you should definitely forget about the chair or the couch. Find a way to spend free time in movement and reduce static activities. A lazy lifestyle is not only a risk factor for cellulitis, but it is simultaneously one of the main reasons it becomes very difficult and time consuming to get rid of it. A healthy mobile lifestyle improves muscle tone, activates blood-circulation and increases elasticity of the connective tissue, thereby countering all processes of stagnation in the body. The visible result, no more excessive compilation of fats and by extension, no cellulitis.
- Unhealthy habits
The list is long, and it begins with alcohol and cigarettes. Spirits in high quantities are not only full of calories but are a main factor in fat accumulation. While drinking, the body processes calories from the liver with a higher priority, while the excessive rest that cannot be processed is stored as fats. Smoking further worsens the condition, as it causes a wide scale blood-vessel contraction, which in turn has a disastrous effect on their elasticity. You can not only expect cellulitis, but wrinkles as well. Try avoiding sleep medication, pain medication, anti-depressants and comparable products, because they are largely the cause of natural processes of detoxication slowing down and enabling the retention of unhealthy substances in the body.
Last but not least, we cannot ignore stress as a direct cause of fat accumulation. If you are subjected to stress for a prolonged period of time, you increasingly start synthesising a high amount of adrenaline and noradrenaline. For the body however, these are the so-called “fight or flight’’ hormones, which directly command the body to gather energy reserves in form of fats. To counteract this development, it is essential to ensure time to relax and settle down.
The medicine
- A healthy diet
If you find it hard to scrap your eating habits, try doing so step by step. First get rid of chips, soda drinks and sweets. Swap white bread and rice for their whole-grain alternatives and increase consumption of vegetables and natural fats (like raw nuts, olives, olive oil). Reduce alcohol consumption to one wine glass a day and dispose of all artificial juices from your menu. If you crave something sweet, eat fruits. Furthermore, combine all of this with regular exercise, to reduce the already accumulated fats under the skin.
- Exercise
Here you have no limits. The only condition is to pick a sport, which you enjoy doing, as this will be your natural weapon against stress in everyday life. Swim, jog, take a walk, try yoga or dancing. For any professional programs you can always consult the trainers in your local gym, why not even begin a new sports career.
- Massages
Massages are a very effective method in combating cellulitis, due to their local application. They can be done manually at home or in a cosmetic studio, as well as with the help of special equipment. Usually, massages are paired with specific anti-cellulitis cosmetics, the goal of which is to strengthen local blood-circulation, drain tissues, accelerate lipolysis and increase skin elasticity. When confronting especially durable cellulitis, you can always turn to mechanical massages with special equipment for help. Equipment such as massage rollers, vibrations, vacuum, ultrasound, electrostimulation and various others. These procedures are lipo-massages, cavitation, radiofrequency lifting, pressure therapy, cellutron therapy and vacuum massage.
- Mesotherapy
This therapy must necessarily be conducted by certified specialists and observed by a dermatologist. It is an aesthetic procedure, which injects a “cocktail” of active ingredients directly into the fat dimples, improving drainage and fat reduction. There are many combinations around the world, most common however is a mix of hyaluronic acid, L-carnitine, saponins, vitamins and various microelements. The disadvantage of this procedure lies in its invasiveness, its surmountable yet unpleasant side effects and the very high cost, making it one of the most expensive in aesthetic medicine.
A combination of a healthy diet, sports, anti-cellulitis procedures and cosmetics is still for now the best insurance against cellulitis.
