POST 1
Favour Ogundare
Published: March 16, 2015
Updated: August 5th 2015
Updated: August 5th 2015
BOTOX
Like most people I've heard of
Botox. Whether in passing, on TV or in just in conversation. Admittedly I
didn't know a lot about Botox, I knew it was lauded as an ‘anti-aging ‘solution
and that it made people look younger, but that's where any real knowledge
stopped. As per this assignment I took the weekend to dig deeper.
Botox, also known as Botulinum
toxin and onabotulinumtoxinA is used for both medical and cosmetic purposes.
In the case of medicine it’s been
used to treat severe underarm sweating, cervical dystonia (neurological
disorder that causes severe neck and shoulder muscle contractions) and even
chronic migraines.
Botox in the case of cosmetic treatment
costs from $200 to $400 or more depending on the physician, location and units
purchased, and any ongoing sales/promotions.
It, “can temporarily erase or
reduce horizontal forehead lines, vertical frown lines, and crow's-feet. “The
injections slow muscles that contract hundreds of times a day, eventually
etching lines in the skin," says New York City plastic surgeon Michael
Kane, author of The Botox Book (St. Martin's Press). Botox can also lift the
corners of the mouth that sag with age, smooth out the "pin cushion"
look in some chins, soften smoker's lines around the mouth, and soften vertical
neck cords.”
How it works:
Injected in extremely small doses
Botulinum toxin works by preventing signals from the nerve cells to reaching
muscles, since the muscles are no longer receiving instructions from the nerves
to contract, they are paralyzed. The botulinum toxin is administered by
diluting the powder in saline (sodium chloride) and injecting directly into
neuro-muscular tissue, requiring 24-72 hours to take effect, which is long
enough to disrupt the instructions from nerve cells to muscles.
Common side-effects of Botox include:
- Redness and swelling
- Bruising
- Bleeding and pain at the injection site
More serious complications include:
Problems swallowing, Problems
breathing, Muscle weakness or loss of strength, Double or blurred vision,
Drooping eyelids, Change or loss of voice, Trouble enunciating words, Loss of
bladder control, Headache, Dizziness or feeling faint, Itchiness or rash.
Personally I think society
punishes women in particular for getting older. Commercial cosmetics like Botox
are just ways women attempt to deal with a society that tells you you’re only
worth your body so any signs of aging is heavily frowned upon because that’s
not sexy/beautiful. While I support a person’s right to modify their body as
they like, I really wish it wasn't almost required for many women in certain
job fields. (Quick, google the ages of male actors and their female love
interests and you’ll see the glaring discrepancy. Many of these men are well
past the age of 30 and yet their female co-stars stay under the age of 30 with
usually a decent age gap) "Leading Men Age, But Their Love Interests Don’t"
In conclusion Botox is an
interesting drug used by many for varying reasons at the forefront of an
industry making millions of misogyny and the fact that women in most cultures
are conditioned to always look a certain way and stay that way regardless of
aging and the laws of physics even if it means going through all sorts of
treatments that usually have various detrimental effects.
Also Referenced: http://www.wrinkles.org/dermal-filler-comparison/
Also Referenced: http://www.wrinkles.org/dermal-filler-comparison/
