Alternatives to Buccal Fat Removal

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Buccal fat removal isn’t the only method you can use to reduce your cheek size. In fact, you have multiple options open to you spanning surgical and non-invasive cosmetic procedures, through to completely natural methods and lifestyle changes.

Facial Liposuction

If your certain surgery is what you want, but aren’t sure that buccal fat removal can produce the results you want, another option is facial liposuction. As a replacement for buccal fat removal you’d be looking at liposuction of the jowls which would rid you of any excess pockets of fat around the bottom of your cheeks.

Facial liposuction is performed by injecting fluid into the area whilst sucking the fat out. It is generally considered very effective and, for some people, provides better results than buccal fat surgery could.

The recovery process is relatively similar, although can be shorter. Mild discomfort, swelling and bruising is to be expected, as it is with all surgical procedures, and should alleviate after a week or so. You may require stitches to seal the hole used to enter the instrument which breaks-up and sucks out the fat, but this isn’t always necessary.  You’re normally able to resume normal activity after about a week.

The best candidates for this kind of procedure are those looking to get rid of annoying pockets of fat in the lower cheek area. Anyone looking to have this surgery should be within 30% of their ideal weight. This procedure, in terms of scarring or sagging following the operation, is also better suited to those with more elastic skin. If you don’t have elastic skin you may require additional treatments, like a face-lift, to re-tighten the skin. A good surgeon should be able to advise you as to which of these surgeries would better suit your needs.

Botox

A less invasive way you could slim the face, or enhance its shape, is by the strategic use of botox. Using botox on the massetter muscles in the sides of your face can be particularly effective as they run from the cheek bone right down to the jaw. Botox works by paralysing the muscles, which, in terms of slimming the face, also onsets a degeneration of the muscle due to disuse. As the massetter muscles span such a large area of the cheeks and jowls this treatment can be quite effective and is less invasive than buccal fat removal.

The potential side effects of botoxing these muscles include difficulty chewing, but as you have many other muscles in the same area to help you do this it’s not much of a problem. In addition if you chew too much gum or eat too many foods which work the massetter muscles the freezing effects of the botox will diminish much quicker.

Lose Weight

It seems like an obvious or maybe unfair thing to say but for many people a surgeon might say the same thing. Surgeons are happy to consider someone who has an un-proportionately chubby face, however for some losing weight is the best solution. If your face is proportionately chubby buccal face removal my not be a complimentary procedure for your face.

Natural Methods

If over-all body weight isn’t the problem there are a few natural ways you can lose weight on the face, one of which is performing facial exercises which have been known to be quite effective if done habitually. Other things that could help include:

• Drinking lots of water
• Maintaining a healthy diet
• Reducing your carbohydrate, fat, and salt intake
• Limiting consumption of alcohol and caffeine
• Weight training
• Using make-up strategically to make the cheeks appear smaller

Sticking to a strict, proven, facial exercise regime, along with adherence to the dietary guidelines given above, have been proven as an effective, harmless, and un-invasive method of fighting facial fat. In addition facial exercises are thought to reduce the likelihood of wrinkles and define your facial structure.

Wait

The younger you are the more this alternative applies. As we all grow older our faces naturally thin as we burn off the fat in our faces. This is actually one of the biggest risks attached to buccal fat removal. If you remove what looks like just the right amount of fat at the time, particularly on a younger patient, over time they will possibly end up looking gaunt or haggard.

Whilst it’s true that some people have naturally chubby faces, unfortunately there isn’t really anyway that you can definitively know if you will be one of them. You can look at your parents and see how much their faces have thinned out, but even then this is only an indication; everyone is different.

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