Rejuvalife Vitality Institute
Beverly Hills CA

The 5-minute nose job

Walk down any street in Beverly Hills and I promise that within 5 minutes you’ll pass at least 10 people who’ve had a nose job. Beverly Hills is one of America’s top cosmetic surgery cities and rhinoplasty is one of the most popular procedures here.

Unfortunately, a rhinoplasty is expensive, might involve numerous revisions, and requires a fairly long recovery period during which it’s obvious to the world that you just had a nose job. Not to mention the whole general anesthesia issue.

There’s another option that’s gaining in popularity: the 5-minute nose job, AKA Nose in a Needle.

OK, it’s not exactly 5 minutes—maybe 10—but it is fast, vastly less expensive, much less risky, and the results are immediate with little down time. There’s no general anesthesia, no packing and no sutures. Instead of a scalpel, my tools are a syringe and natural dermal fillers. Unlike most cosmetic surgeons in Beverly Hills, rhinoplasty without surgery is actually one of my specialties.

There’s only one downside: it’s not forever. Because a 5-minute nose job uses dermal fillers, it lasts only about two or three years. However, this can actually be an advantage in that you aren’t “stuck” with one look forever. You can change it again later. In other words, as your nose “ages” and starts to droop, we can “perk up” your nose tip in a matter of minutes.

The procedure does come with its risks, as any procedure does. Too much filler can damage the tender nasal tissues, even compromising the blood supply. Infection is always a risk. A poorly done procedure will leave you looking funny for those 2-3 years unless you have a revision done. This speaks to the issue of having any procedure, whether a nose job or liposuction, performed only by a fully trained medical doctor who has done many of them. I’ve been doing these procedures for many, many years and love to do them. If you’re thinking about a nose job and want to investigate the potential of having a non-surgical version, schedule a visit with me. It doesn’t work for every nose, but it is appropriate for most of them.

Solutions for Acne and Chickenpox Scars

Anyone who’s suffered with scars as a reminder of teenage acne, chickenpox or measles, knows the  embarrassment those scars and pock marks have upon them as adults.  Facial pits are the pits but modern skin laser and filler treatments can help them disappear or, at the very least, fade.

These kinds of scars can be filled with dermal fillers or smoothed down with microdermabrasion or laser resurfacing, depending upon the scar’s depth. The laser that I use the most, the Pixel, is very effective for acne scars and pock marks, as well as a variety of fillers. A combination of laser treatments and fillers provide an excellent solution with minimal or no downtime involved.

Are you blushing or is that rosacea?

As we age, we may notice a blush on the cheeks that might extend into the jawline and onto the nose as well. While we’d like to imagine this is nothing more than a healthy glow, the truth is it might be rosacea.

Persistent red blotchiness, dry skin or bumpy, rough skin–perhaps even bumps that appear to be acne–might be rosacea. It tends to run in families, so if one or both of your parents had rosacea, you’re more likely to get it as well.

Rosacea is a chronic inflammatory condition in the skin. Although it can develop at any age, it’s more often seen after the age of 40. It can be triggered or worsened by alcohol, heat, stress or spicy foods.

If rosacea is giving you a blush, consider giving it the “blush-off” with a series of IPL treatments, followed by maintenance every 3 – 4 months, which can reduce the redness and repair the deeper layers of the skin. Gels, lotions, or creams containing metronidazole, an antibiotic available by prescription, is a frequently-used treatment that has also shown good results.

Obese children may be more likely to die prematurely.

On February 11^th, the NY Times reported on a National Institutes of Health study published in the New England Journal of Medicine that tracked nearly 5,000 American Indian children in Arizona for 24 years, showing that overweight children are “more than twice as likely to die early from natural causes, such as alcoholic liver disease, cardiovascular disease, infections, cancer, and diabetes as children whose weight put them in the lowest quarter of the population.”

The researches were quoted as saying that in addition to health problems, overweight kids were twice as likely to die before the age of 55 of “self-inflicted injury.” Further, although “youngsters with…pre-diabetes were at almost double the risk of dying before 55, and those with high blood pressure were at some increased risk,” it was obesity that was “most closely associated with an early death.”

As reported in one of my earlier blog posts, the number of overweight kids has tripled since 1980 with about 17% of our kids considered obese. There are serious health consequences down the road for these children. WebMD reported on 2/10/10 that “death rates from natural causes among children in the highest group of glucose intolerance (a risk factor for developing diabetes) were 73% higher than among the children in the lowest group of glucose intolerance.” While “no substantial links were found between cholesterol levels and premature deaths,” the study authors “did find that high blood pressure in childhood raised the risk of premature death from natural causes by about 1.5 times.”

Our kids are engaged in too many activities that involve sitting and, often, eating, as well as lack of control on portion size. We, as parents, must instill good food habits in our kids at the earliest ages, and I urge all of us to pay close attention to what our preschool kids are eating. If they’re in preschool, ask what’s served for snacks and lunch. Kids love hotdogs and cheese, but they are not healthy options. Once our kids get to elementary school and lunches are available in the cafeteria, our influence wanes even more. Depending on the school district, student lunches can be very high in fat and sodium, and most schools have multiple candy and soda machines throughout the building, encouraging kids to snack on junk.

If it is to be, it’s up to us to actively monitor both our kids’ food intake (quantity as well as quality) and activity levels. Make it a goal that your kids go outside daily to play. Go to the gym and take them with you. Go for family walks, play ball outdoors. We have beautiful weather here in California, so be sure to take advantage of it as often as you can and set that good example for your kids as if their lives depended on it. According to the studies above, they do.

Pending Italian Breast Ban?

The Italian Parliament, concerned that 36% of Italy’s teenaged girls are displeased with their appearance, has proposed a ban on cosmetic breast implants for girls 18 and younger. The hope is that, by making it illegal to obtain breast implants before the age of 18, even with parental consent, the emphasis on physical perfection may be diminished a bit. Of note is that there would be no ban on breast implants inserted for medical reasons, such as tuberous breasts, for example.

The bill also provides for a breast implant registry, to track and trace breast implant problems, and enhanced privacy guarantees for cosmetic surgery patients.

I suppose we’ll soon  see an Italian stampede of 19 year old girls getting breast implants.

Move over Juvederm!

There’s a new filler in town. It’s safe, proven to work, hypoallergenic, cost-effective and the results last from 6 months to a year.  It’s made from your own cells but it’s not fat and it’s not stem cells. Give up? Read on…

Imagine (A) going to the doctor and (B) within 20-30 minutes the doctor has removed a little blood from your arm, spun it around in a machine to remove the concentrated growth factors (these are the potent ingredients in your own blood that will stimulate the production of very high quality collagen) and (C) injected it into the wrinkles or acne scar depressions. You leave the office and go about your day—no downtime.

Within 3 weeks you see visible effects as your own collagen begins to fill in the scar depressions and/or wrinkles. During this time your skin quality becomes more luminous and soft in texture. It actually begins to go back in time in terms of its appearance.

Your growth factors can be injected to the face, hands or any other area of the body.

This can also be used to enhance the results of fat transfers by adding these highly concentrated growth factors into the fat injected into the face, breasts, back of hands, etc.  I actually tip the threads for our Beverly Hills Silhouette Lift procedures in these factors to enhance the results of our non-surgical face lifts.

This procedure, which we call RejuvaPhyl, is available now in our Beverly Hills office!

Watch this video to learn more!

Scientists discover new secrets of aging

Can we become younger?

One of the biggest puzzles in biology – how and why living cells age – continues to be a subject of investigation and research. An international team based at Newcastle University in NE England, along with researchers at the University of Ulm in Germany, has added some new evidence to the discussion.

The answer to the secret of aging is complex, and will not produce a magic anti-aging elixir in the foreseeable future. However, we can certainly expect better treatments to be created to fight age-related illnesses, such as diabetes and heart disease, not to mention things like wrinkle treatments, as a result of these new insights into the biochemical pathways involved in the aging process.

The research teams used a comprehensive systems biology approach, involving computer modeling, experiments using cell cultures and genetically modified mice to investigate why and how our cells age. They learned that old cells either stop dividing or self-destruct. Those cells that continue to divide, and the tissues they make up, show physical signs of deterioration, from wrinkling skin to a weakening cardiovascular system.

The research, which was recently published by the journal Molecular Systems Biology, shows that when an ageing cell discover serious damage to its DNA (caused by the wear and tear of life) the cell transmits specific distress signals that trigger the cell’s energy-producing power packs, the mitochondria, to manufacture free radical molecules, which in turn give the directions to the cell either to destroy itself or to stop dividing. The cells likely are programmed to do this to avoid allowing the damaged DNA to exist, as that causes cancer.

This study identifies additional major causative factors in addition to the role of telomeres, the protective tips on the ends of human chromosomes, which gradually become shorter as we grow older. This new information does not deny the importance of telomere shortening, but it illustrates that there are additional, vital factors, and the biology is very complicated.

These new findings indicate that we have a much better chance of making a successful attack on age-related diseases while at the same time avoiding the risk of unwanted side-effects such as cancer. We need to be very careful in researching new ways to prevent cellular aging, however, because the last thing we want to do is to help age-damaged cells to become malignant ones.

Body-Jet: Not Your Everyday Liposuction

Imagine a liposuction method that’s kinder on your body and one of the most potent methods to yield ready-to-inject fat for fat grafting into your hands, face, breasts, into wrinkles and acne scar depressions. It’s here and we know you want to know about it.

As many of my readers know, liposuction was originally created back in 1974 by Dr. Giogio Fischer, an Italian gynecologist. Over the years it’s become more refined, to eliminate excessive bleeding, pain and rippling of the skin after the procedure. The tumescent technique ultimately enabled patients to benefit from liposuction under local anesthesia without the fear of undesirable skin depressions or excessive bleeding. I warrant that the Body-Jet is tumescent squared. Better than anything I’ve seen so far.

This is why I think Body-Jet is the best liposuction method available today

First, in traditional liposuction, the anesthesia is combined with the saline and infused into the body at the beginning of the procedure. In Body-Jet, the cannula distributes a continuous spray of Lidocaine (liquid anesthesia) into the area, which makes it much more comfortable for the patient and eliminates much of the bruising and bleeding of the procedure. This makes for a faster recovery and, hence, less time away from business and social activities. Patients both look and feel better, sooner.

Secondly, in traditional tumescent or laser liposuction, the fat cells are physically forced apart. In Body-Jet, the fat cells are sprayed with the fluid so that they essentially float out, preserving them in a way that makes it easy to use those fat cells for immediate injection into another part of the body. They literally are sent into a special container so that they require less processing to inject. I can rapidly remove fat from one part of you and inject it into another part of you where you need it—such as into wrinkles, into the backs of your hands, into scars, into the breast tissue, just about anywhere. And the quality of the fat is better, too! Therefore, it lasts longer—about 80% of the fat is retained compared with only about 50% of the fat retained from fat cells that are put through the centrifuge.

Third, traditional liposuction is more traumatic to the surrounding tissues and blood supplies. Body-Jet is gentler and safer. The final appearance of the skin is much better in Body-Jet as well, with much less risk of dimpling or uneven contours.

Check out our website for more info about Body-Jet and watch my video for more info on this amazing new technology!

6 Steps to Boosting Your Metabolism

As you know, some people are blessed with a fast metabolism and the ability to eat whatever they want without gaining an ounce. For others, dieting and weight loss aren’t as easy. There are a few diet tricks that can help you shed the pounds without crash dieting.

Follow these six steps to kick your metabolism into high gear and keep those temptations in check:

Eat mostly vegetables with lean protein: Half your plate should be brightly colored vegetables (spinach, kale, red peppers, broccoli), considering those with deep colors contain the most nutrition. One quarter should be good quality, low fat protein sources, such as eggs, tofu, fish, chicken and turkey, which will give you a feeling of fullness for a longer period of time and, thus, minimize cravings. One quarter should be complex carbohydrates, which could include whole grains or legumes.

Keep blood sugar healthy: Shedding pounds is difficult when blood sugar levels are elevated, which impairs carbohydrate metabolism and increases sugar cravings. Avoid simple sugars along with artificial sweeteners, which have been shown to cause increased sugar rebound cravings. Indeed, research has shown an increase in cravings 2-3 hours after consuming sugar substitutes such as Sweet n’ Low, Equal, or Splenda.

Eat thermogenic foods daily: Foods with natural fat burning compounds, such as cayenne, ginger, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, cinnamon, green tea, hot peppers, citrus and apple cider vinegar, can really help take – and keep – those pounds off when eaten on a regular daily basis.

Optimize your digestion: Break down your food properly and more efficiently so your cells may best utilize the nutrients. Chew well, take apple cider vinegar before each meal, eat in a relaxed setting and breathe while you eat.

Drink green tea: A mug of piping hot green tea is one of nature’s most perfect energy producing health-restoring beverage! Studies show that the catechins found in green tea assists in burning fat. Green tea is also full of antioxidants, which may help in the prevention of cancer and, when used topically, reduce the appearance of wrinkles.

Take your temperature regularly: Be sure to get an accurate thermometer and check your temperature just after getting up in the morning daily for about a week. If it’s running low at less than 97.8 you very likely have a functionally low thyroid, and would benefit from treatment.

Diabetes Medication May Decrease BMI in Obese Teens

The obesity rate among children has tripled since 1960, with 32% of US children considered overweight or obese, and many of them suffering the same weight-related problems as adults: diabetes mellitus type 2, hypertension and cardiovascular disease.  In the February issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, a report by Darrell M. Wilson, M.D., of Stanford University and the Lucile S. Packard Children’s Hospital, Stanford, Calif., along with colleagues in the Glaser Pediatric Research Network Obesity Study Group showed that teens given Metformin, a common pill given to type 2 diabetics, helped lower their BMI score. BMI is an indicator of body fat percentage—the lower your BMI the less risk you have for cardiovascular disease and other weight-related disorders.

The research group split 77 obese teenagers, ages 13 to 18, into two groups. Both groups were put on a “lifestyle intervention program” which included dietary changes and increased physical activity. One group received 2,000 mg of Metformin XR per day and the other group received a placebo. After 38 weeks, the kids receiving the Metformin XR showed a significantly lowered BMI than the teens receiving the placebo, even though all the teens were on the same diet and exercise plan. Unfortunately, once the drug was discontinued, the BMI in the teens previously taking Metformin again went up. This certainly lends credence to my long-held belief that Metformin can be an effective weight-management tool for some people.

In addition to helping with weight problems, Metformin works very similarly to Resveratrol and has significant anti-aging properties. Like Resveratrol, it helps regulate the Sirt-2 gene, helping protect DNA from damage, so it’s a very important product.

I think Metformin can be a helpful treatment for kids who are overweight. It will improve insulin resistance which will assist with weight loss, which is a great thing! Many of these overweight young kids have developed insulin resistance, so many of them do need this extra boost. Metformin can actually help some overweight teens avoid the development of type 2 diabetes, when used in conjunction with diet and exercise.

It’s not a magic pill, and you still need diet and exercise to get the best results, but this combination certainly shows promise.