Botulinum Toxin
Botulinum Toxin (of which ‘Botox’ is simply a brand name version) is a neurotoxin which prevents the release of a neurotransmitter which is responsible for making muscles contract. Therefore, it essentially causes relaxation via paralysis of a muscle thus removing its contracting effect.
Botulinum Toxin is typically used to treat muscles of expression by reducing their activity. These muscles, when contracted, cause dynamic lines across the face; lines which are apparent during movement. Eventually, frequent and consistent activity of these muscles can lead to permanent static lines - lines which are present even when the muscle is relaxed. This is because the continual and repetitive formation of lines caused during the muscles activity has now somewhat “imprinted” on the face, and remain visible and almost permanently even when at rest.
An example of where this is the most known to occur is the horizontal lines which form across the forehead when one raises ones eyebrows. By reducing the activity of these muscles, we can effectively inhibit their ability to contract enough to cause these lines and thus the result is relaxed smoothness.
It is generally considered the more lines in a face, the more aged in appearance and conversely, the more youthful the appearance is.
Paralysing a muscle enough will also lead to the muscle atrophying (reducing in size) and so by reducing the bulk of a muscle, a more defined look can be achieved - this is typically done in the muscles either side of the jawline, reducing lower face width gives a more contoured impression.
Botulinum Toxin can also be cleverly used to reduce the activity on muscles which are responsible for ‘pulling’ on certain facial structures. Hence, when Botox is applied to these muscles, the structures that are normally pulled by them are relieved from this pull and can in turn result in an unopposed ‘lift’. A great example of this is when an eye looks hooded because of a droopy brow - paralysis of the muscle which pulls the brow downwards (which is the cause of the hoodedness) results in a brow lift - a more refreshed look!
The summary of Botulinum Toxins’ effects are to reduce lines/wrinkles, create contour by reducing muscle bulk, and lift certain structures. All of these lend themselves to a much more youthful, vibrant, cosmetically pleasing look.
Because we know all of the above to be true with time, it’s now becoming common that young people are getting ‘preventative’ Botulinum Toxin, they aren’t waiting around for the aged look to start and are stopping said lines from entirely forming in the first place!