Is Cosmetic Acupuncture the New Botox?
Natural Skincare in the Heart of the Finger Lakes
In the past few years, cosmetic acupuncture (also called facial rejuvenation acupuncture) has taken the skincare world by storm. Magazines like Glamour, InStyle, and Cosmopolitan regularly feature articles about cosmetic acupuncture and its benefits.
But while the media storm is new, cosmetic acupuncture has deep roots in Traditional Chinese Medicine dating back to the Qin Dynasty of China, around 200 BC. It seems that it’s always been human nature to want to prevent or slow the signs of aging!
Here at Seneca Falls Acupuncture, we’re proud to specialize in this unique skincare treatment that considers the health of the whole person. We’re often asked by new patients, “How does cosmetic acupuncture compare to Botox?” Let’s discuss!
What is cosmetic acupuncture?
It’s a unique style of acupuncture on the face with the goals of reducing fine lines and wrinkles, brightening the undereye area, gently lifting and sculpting the jawline and cheeks, and giving the skin a fresh, youthful glow.
Cosmetic acupuncture is rooted Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), a system of medicine that focuses on holistic or whole-body health. According to TCM, the better your overall health, the better your skin will look and age over time. It’s a cute rhyme, but it’s true: Healthy skin glows from within.
For this reason, every cosmetic acupuncture treatment starts with acupuncture on the body to address common concerns like hormone imbalance, digestive issues, stress and anxiety, sleep concerns, and more.
We’ve all experienced a stressful, sleepless night and woke up feeling like our skin was a bit of a disaster. So we know firsthand how important our overall health and well-being is to the appearance of our skin.
This approach makes sense from a biomedical perspective as well. The skin is the body’s largest organ, and like any organ, it thrives when it is flushed with adequate circulation, nutrients, and oxygen.
Healthy skin is more resilient – able to withstand external stressors that can damage and age the skin – and better able to repair existing collagen as well as build new collagen.
How does cosmetic acupuncture work from a biomedical perspective?
The goal of cosmetic acupuncture is very similar to that of microneedling.
Insertion of tiny needles into the dermis of the skin is considered a “microtrauma.” Research has shown that there’s a natural physiological cascade of events after any kind of trauma to the skin, whether it’s scraping your hand or inserting a needle.
The healing response is to increase blood flow locally, which brings oxygen, nutrients, and the building blocks of proteins that the skin requires to heal and repair the area. This protein includes collagen and elastin, which is what can give the skin a lifted, smoother appearance.
In addition, cosmetic acupuncture includes specialized techniques for tightening or releasing the superficial muscles of the face (the mimetic muscles of expression). Tightening certain muscles can lead to a lifted, more sculpted and overall younger facial appearance. Releasing other muscles can allow certain kinds of wrinkles to relax and soften.
So now back to our original question – Is cosmetic acupuncture the new Botox? How do they compare?
It’s well-known that Botox uses botulinum toxin to temporarily paralyze muscles in the face, releasing those muscles so that certain wrinkles relax and smooth out.
This effect is usually visible in two to five days after the injection, so the change (wrinkle release) occurs relatively quickly.
Cosmetic acupuncture, as we have seen, works with your body’s natural processes with the goal of improving skin health and muscle tone to balance the face and reduce wrinkles.
Because it’s gentle, it takes time for results to build and become visible in the face. The general treatment recommendation for best results is two treatments a week for five or six weeks, depending on the patient’s skincare goals, age, and skin condition. So it is a slower process than Botox, because it has a very different action in the body.
In TCM, pain and many other disorders are thought to arise from a “stagnation” of the body’s natural processes. Freezing a muscle, as with Botox, is seen as a type of stagnation.
Where Botox “freezes” the muscles, cosmetic acupuncture focuses on suffusing the area with increased circulation, oxygen, and the building blocks of collagen.
And of course, an added benefit of cosmetic acupuncture is that it’s a whole-body system for beautiful skin that’s rooted in good health.
At the end of the day, the preference for cosmetic acupuncture or Botox depends on the individual, how fast they want to see results, and whether whole-body health is a priority.
Can cosmetic acupuncture be used in conjunction with Botox?
Absolutely. We see many patients interested in the benefits of cosmetic acupuncture to enhance and support their skin between Botox injections.
We recommend waiting about three weeks after your most recent Botox injection, then getting cosmetic acupuncture regularly (monthly at minimum) in between injections to help maintain skin health and radiance.
If you have questions about cosmetic acupuncture or general acupuncture, please feel free to contact us – our information is below.
We’d love to help you look and feel your best at Seneca Falls Acupuncture!
Michelle Grasek, MS, L.Ac. NCCAOM-Board Certified