Hollywood and the rest of America alike have been using botox and wrinkle fillers for ages.  Both are injections, and both are meant to solve wrinkle problems ranging from crow’s feet to forehead wrinkles to smile lines.  On one hand, botox is guaranteed but comes with multiple side effects.  But on the other hand, wrinkle fillers use less invasive methods, but don’t quite have the same effects most of the time.  Botox injections last about 4 months, and the time frame for wrinkle fillers ranges.

            I’m not one to use either one.  I’m not particularly fond of needles first of all.  But second, I’ve heard about all the side effects, the risks, the lack of effects in some cases, and the expensive costs.  And frankly, why not age gracefully instead of having that moot look on your face when using botox for example.  I mean the whole idea of injecting myself with a small amount of poison.  I don’t really feel all warm and fuzzy about ingesting a small amount of antifreeze known as the preservative propylene glycol.  I definitely don’t feel all warm and fuzzy about injecting botulism into my skin. 

            Specifically speaking, wrinkle fillers are meant to attack lines on the forehead and around the eyes, sunken acne sacrs, and nasal lines or wrinkles between the nose and lips.  Botox on the other hand is meant to target worry lines, crow’s feet, deep forehead wrinkles, eyebrow droop, down turned lips, and neck lines.  Both can make significant and yet temporary differences in these areas.  Some fillers can take a few months to show.  But the effects of botox are usually immediately visible. 

            Frankly, our skin ages, develops stretch marks, wrinkles, etc, because it loses its ability to produce collagen and elastin.  It really has little to do with fillers or the lack thereof in your skin.  Fillers have used ingredients like hyaluronic acid.  The unfortunate part is while hyaluronic acid can be found as a naturally occurring cushioner in the skin, it can also be found as a moisturizer in much more affordable creams.  It does not necessarily reduce wrinkles on a long term basis, but it does moisturize, and is quickly processed by the body.  Other fillers use bovine collagen, human based collagen, and body fat.  But none of these have any real side effects.

            Botox side effects include swelling, redness, bruising, and lumpiness most of the time.  But less common side effects include drooping of eyebrows, blank looks, double vision, tooth problems, facial pain, nausea, muscle weakness, indigestion, heartburn, high blood pressure, respiratory failure, difficulty swallowing, neck pain, headaches, anxiety, and death in extreme cases.

            Botox and wrinkle fillers are extremely pricey.  The natural market is always progressing, and many are finding better and more viable solutions there, both for long term health and avoidance of side effects.  If you are considering any one of these procedures, you should talk to your doctor and see if it is even an appropriate option for you in the first place.  But we would suggest staying away all together.