You know cellulite, don’t you? This describes dimples and ripples on the thighs and buttocks that are medically harmless, but usually quite unattractive. Various studies have been devoted to this topic and found out that almost every woman (85 to 98%) over the age of 20 has orange peel skin – and many literally “suffer” from it, because the dimples do not fit into their own ideal of beauty at all. What really helps against cellulite, we show you in our blog article.
Cellulite is pure “women’s stuff”
Anatomy, skin and connective tissue are to blame for a woman getting cellulite. Her epidermis is thinner than men’s, and the underlying dermis is more flexible. In addition, in the female subcutaneous tissue there are several and larger fat cells than in the male. They are grouped together in fat chambers and can increase in size by up to ten times. In addition, they form food reserves during pregnancy. Women’s connective tissue is also different from men’s: it consists of very fine strands that run perpendicular to the surface of the skin and almost parallel to each other. They are extremely stretchable and yield easily to the pressure of the fat chambers.
Enlarged fat cells crowd along these connective tissue strands. This manifests itself in the typical golf ball pattern on the surface of the skin, cellulite. The female sex hormone estrogen does the rest: it is responsible for the fact that in women, fat is stored primarily on the thighs, hips, buttocks and abdomen. In other words, everywhere where dents can become easily visible. It’s a nasty problem, especially if a woman has a genetic predisposition to it.
Men, by the way, have smaller fat chambers that are also firmly anchored in the subcutaneous tissue. Their connective tissue runs horizontally to the skin surface and is strongly interconnected. As a result, they can tie up larger quantities of fat into smooth packages. The result? No cellulite!
Dr. Tatjana Pavicic
Dr. Tatjana Pavicic is a specialist in dermatology and venereology with her own practice in Munich. She is an internationally recognized expert in aesthetic dermatology with a special focus on dermocosmetics, botulinum toxin, fillers and lasers.
Help for cellulite
The appearance of dimples can be improved on its own: A balanced diet rich in vitamins and abstaining from everything that can weaken the skin structure (e.g. alcohol, nicotine, too much sun) is a good start and sport is the ideal supplement. Some women are also helped by regular brushing massages.
Effective is also the treatment with anti-cellulite creams (e.g. the cream Anti-Cellulite by skin689®, which with its exclusive active complex CHacoll® stimulates the collagen synthesis in the subcutaneous tissue and in this way can smooth the skin; available in our practice).
If these options do not help or if you have very pronounced cellulite, we recommend the Cellfina and/or BTL Exilis Elite™ device-based treatments.
Cellfina therapy is based on loosening individual, thickened strands of connective tissue in a minimally invasive treatment. As a result, the tension of the skin surface eases and the skin can return to its original level. Cellulite dimples and holes can thus be effectively smoothed. The appearance of cellulite disappears, and the skin structure is improved in the long term.
Cellulite dimples can be treated with BTL Exilis Elite™. This method adopts radio/ultrasonic energy. We move the handpiece of the device over the affected areas with circular movements. This heats the deep tissue under the skin to about 45 degrees, and the skin surface to about 40 to 43 degrees. The heat causes fat cells to die off, while at the same time new collagen is formed. The skin and connective tissue are tightened and the severity of cellulite can be alleviated or even made invisible.
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