Cellulite Treatments: Which Work, Which Don’t
With several decades already spent on finding the “cure” for managing or eliminating cellulite, it would seem that nothing really works as people have hoped for. Otherwise, we clearly wouldn’t be having a wide array of so-called anti-cellulite treatments. But this is not to say that our search for the best way to eliminate cellulite is futile. There have been breakthroughs and setbacks. Here are some of the cellulite treatments that have been proven to work and those that clearly don’t.
Treatments that Work
These treatments have been proven to provide the best results in eliminating cellulite. Again, it is important to note that individual differences may play a role in the outcomes of such therapies.
- Exercise – It’s cheap, doesn’t have any side effects, and practically anyone can do it. Since cellulite is almost always equated with an abnormal accumulation of fatty tissues that compresses the muscles, exercising can help reduce the amount of fat that gets stored in the subcutaneous layer of the skin. Additionally, even if cellulite is still present, increased muscle tone will make it less noticeable.
- Weight loss – Exercise without sensible dieting is useless since you are still consuming large amounts of fat that can still be stored in depots. That is why losing weight by making more sensible food choices and exercising can all give the benefit of making those pesky cellulites go away. Plus, losing weight means your cellulite are not as noticeable compared to being fat and obese.
- Acoustic wave therapy – This work by shaking up those fat globules and help in their elimination. Unfortunately, you’d need several sessions with the addition of lifestyle modification for it to work.
- Laser treatments – These are targeted, very precise concentrations of light that heat up the fat globules supposedly to melt them away. Regrettably, without diet and exercise, you’re more likely to gain cellulite in the future.
Treatments that Don’t Work
There are plenty of cellulite treatments that either lack the scientific proof or are purely anecdotal in their claims. Again, these treatments are considered useless if we are to base them on empirical evidence alone.
- Supplements – There are many supplements that are being marketed as anti-cellulite products simply because they contain ingredients that have been shown to exhibit a mechanism that can play a role in the reduction of cellulite. Sadly, these have not been empirically proven to help eliminate or even reduce cellulite.
- Mesotherapy – This involves the injection of certain substances into the muscles where cellulite is seen. Unfortunately, because different mesotherapists use different substances, there is no way of telling which of these is making a huge impact on cellulite.
There are many treatments against cellulite today. Some have been proven by science to work to some degree while others are simply farce. It’s always best to seek your dermatologist’s advice if ever you need cellulite management.