Normally, you can develop a saggy skinafter a major weight loss. While this can be frustrating, several measures have been put in place to help eliminate the excess skin. What are these solutions for saggy skin? Keep reading below for answers.
Toned arms,flat tummy, and sexy shape are our expectations when we get into a weight loss plan. Losing weight comes with excellent health benefits like a healthy heart, balanced hormones, and a toned body. However, one annoying can happen too; saggy skin. Losing lots of fats, more than 100 pounds,may give you hanging skin, and that isn’t very encouraging. The saggy skin can even make you regret getting into a weight loss program. Please don’t get frustrated. We’ll provide you with evident-based ways to control and treat your loose skin, either naturally or with medical solutions.
What Causes Loose Skin?
Several contributing factors lead to loss of skin after weight loss. Skin, the largest part of the body, contains collagen protein and elastin fibers. These components make the skin firm and allow it to fall back into place after stretching. The collagen and elastin fibers get damaged when the skin is stretched too much for a long period. After weight loss, the skin may not have the required proteins to get back into its normal shape. The skin will eventually lose all its firmness, and it’ll sag around the body.Keep in mind that losing weight reduces collagen content in the body, which will mess your young, healthy skin.
Factors That Lead To Loss of Skin Elasticity
Skin elasticity is the ability of the skin to stretch and get back to its initial shape. Many factors can prevent your skin from gaining its original state. They include;
Genetics– your family history may affect how your skin responds to excess weight gain or loss.
Sun exposure– getting exposed to strong sunlight for a long time reduces collagen content and elastin production, which may cause saggy skin.
Age-older people have a low amount of collagen in their skin than young people, so their skin will get loose faster.
Smoking- smoking reduces collagen production and destroys the existing collagen, leading to saggy skin.
The period of being overweight– an individual will have looser skin if he has been overweight or obese for a long time.
Amount of fat lost– losing more than 46kg or more leads to a huge amount of hanging skin on the body.
What Are The Common Locations For Loose Skin?
The abdominal area is the most common area forhanging skin. However, excess skin can settle at other areas of the body like;
- Arms
- Bra line
- Thighs
- Butt area
What Are The Side Effects of Loose Skin?
Skin irritation– the sagging skin folds onto itself and rubs together, leading to painful and irritating rashes.
Infections- It isn’t easy to clean folded skin. This accumulation of fats will cause bacteria and infections to spread in the body.
Pain and discomfort-excess skin is uncomfortable and makes physical activity a struggle or painful.
Poor body image– Loose skin may damage an individual’s appearance. It may cause low esteem and lead to emotional pain.
Home Remedies for Loose Skin
You don’t necessarily have to go to seek medical treatment to treat your condition. It’s possible to get results by trying at-home treatment. They can help you make babysteps that’ll make you look better and reduce the sagging. The remedies won’t directly address the cause for the loose skin; neither will they completely solve the problem. But they’ll help you improve your body image.
Exercise
Staying physically active will help you to maintain a healthy weight and build strong muscles. The newly formed muscles will fill in the sagging skin. Usually, the body doesn’t have enough fat after weight loss. Strengthening the muscles, particularly with strength training,will add strong muscles that’ll help you eliminate extra fat hanging around your body.
Change diet
Some foods and drinks can help you boost your skin elasticity. Increase your intake of vegetables and fruits, which are rich in antioxidants. Add nuts and beans for their power in replacing dead skin cells. Increase your intake of protein, Vitamin C, and omega 3-fatty acids. They help in collagen production, mayincrease skin tightness. Don’t forget water! Staying hydrated improves skin appearance.
Use creams
Certain creams containcollagen and elastin. Such creams can boost your skin tightness for a while. They may not have long-lasting effects because collagen and elastin molecules are large thus cannot be fully absorbed by the skin.
Use compression clothing
Probably you’ve heard of tummy trainers or waist trimmers. Such clothing helps to hide the annoying fats that hang around the abdominal area. Compression stocking and other tight garments hold the skin together and prevent the skin from rubbing against each other. This reduces pain, irritation, itching, and infections. Compression clothing doesn’t eliminate the excess skin, but it helps manage the side effects of the sagging skin.
Medical treatment
Medical treatment or surgery is the surest way of getting rid of hanging skin. Body contouring surgery-The surgery is done by a professional plastic surgeon.The procedure implicates removing excess skin and fat from the body.It involves;
- Tummy tuck- the excess skin is removed from the abdomen
- Arm lift-removal of skin from the upper arm
- Thigh lift-removal of skin from inner and outer thighs
- Upper body lift-removal of skin from breast and the back
- Lower body lift-removal of skin from belly, butt, and hips
Are Surgeries Safe?
Before opting for surgeries, ensure you’ve confirmed from your doctor that the procedures are safe for your body.Body contouring is particularly a big help for the obese. The surgeries can only make you hospitalized for one to four days. Once you’re released, you’ll only need less than a month to recover and get your normal life back. Still, be ready to experience side effects like bleeding and infections after the surgery.
Alternative Medical Treatment
There are other options if surgery isn’t appealing to you.Velashape and Thermitight are procedures that can help you address loose skin. They’re effective if you have a small amount of loose skin that needs to be eliminated.
Velashape stimulates the growth of collagen and elastin to make your skin more firm. It uses radiofrequency, infrared light, and suction to massage the cells inside your skin.
ThermiTight- Catheter is used to deliver radiofrequency in the cells. The tissues are heated to shrink, and after about 4 months, you’ll see results.
Conclusion
It’s challenging to lose excess skin. But, come on, if you’ve managed to reach your weight loss goals, what makes losing sagging skin seem impossible? It’s possible. If you get loose skin after weight loss, don’t rush for surgeries. Wait for some time to see if your body will change. If the hanging skin becomes troublesome, seek professional advice to find the perfect solution for your situation.
I believe that nutrition science is a wonderful helper both for the preventive improvement of health and adjunctive therapy in treatment. My goal is to help people improve their health and well-being without torturing themselves with unnecessary dietary restrictions. I am a supporter of a healthy lifestyle – I play sports, cycle, and swim in the lake all year round. With my work, I have been featured in Vice, Country Living, Harrods magazine, Daily Telegraph, Grazia, Women's Health, and other media outlets.
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