In the spectrum of beauty care, MBTs really fall between spa treatments (such as facials) and surgical treatments (such as face lifts). MBTs employ prescription strength products and so should only be administered by trained and experienced medical personnel. MBTs take about the same time as spa treatments (e.g. an hour or less), last longer, cost a bit more and have more significant results. Compared to surgical alternatives, MBTs are significantly less costly, less risky, require minimal or no recovery time and produce more subtle results.

At botonics, we are committed to making MBTs as accessible to as many people as possible. This is why we've pioneered innovative payment and subscription plans for our customers. But the cost of treatments should be kept in perspective. For example, if you found an outfit that made you look fabulous 24 hours a day, seven days a week for months, what would it be worth to you?

Regular treatment by a botonics Practitioner will certainly defer your need for surgery to achieve a desired look, particularly if treatment is started early enough. However, sometimes surgery is a more appropriate option. We will give you our professional opinion as to whether our treatments are appropriate for you during your consultation.

While both treatments are partially preventative and partially corrective, Wrinkle relaxing injections do more to prevent future wrinkles while Dermal fillers do more to reduce the appearance of existing wrinkles.

A regular skin care regime with good quality products makes sense for everybody. However, regardless of the claims of manufacturers, skin care products will only ever be a complement to Medical Beauty Treatments since they only act on the epidermis, or outer layer of your skin. The condition of the epidermis determines how your skin looks and also how well your skin absorbs and holds moisture. Small lines are formed in the epidermis and can be treated with a botonics Skin peel. Wrinkles, however, are formed in lower layers. The dermis is the middle layer of the skin and the skin's support structure. It is the thickest layer and comprises a network of collagen and elastin fibres. Wrinkles can only be corrected with Dermal filler or Wrinkle relaxing injections.

The treatments you can benefit from will depend on which parts of your skin are showing signs of ageing. Our various treatments target the three principal layers of the skin structure. Wrinkle relaxing injections treat underlying muscles, Dermal fillers treat the dermis, and Skin peels treat the epidermis. The three treatments are compatible with each other but would normally require several visits to your botonics Practitioner. For example your botonics Practitioner may prefer to treat you for Wrinkle relaxing injections in one visit then Dermal fillers a few weeks later so that the fillers are applied to relaxed muscles.

If a client has regular treatments from their twenties then in theory it is possible to prevent the formation of wrinkles. However, our aim at botonics is to achieve a natural result leaving you youthful and energetic looking regardless of your age. The formation of some wrinkles as you age will give you a more natural appearance.

Our faces change minutely every day. If, for example, a semi-permanent dermal filler were used, it could look unnatural after a number of years as your face changes. By using only non-permanent products, treatments can target the specific needs of your skin at the time of treatment. This ensures you get the most natural looking result possible.

At botonics, we firmly believe that less is more! During your consultation, your Practitioner will discuss your particular objectives and you will jointly agree the treatment approach. Completely removing lines and totally relaxing muscles would result in a conspicuous and unnatural result. The optimal treatment leaves you looking younger and less stressed, while maintaining a normal range of expression.

Of course it is! Everyone knows that beauty is more than skin deep; it comes from style and elegance as well as your outward appearance. To be fulfilled you must nurture your body, mind and spirit. But does taking care of your outside make you any less of a good person inside?

Before deciding on the ideal wrinkle treatment, it is important to understand the difference among facial wrinkles, and their various causes. Once the underlying cause is identified then the appropriate wrinkle treatment can be applied, virtually turning back time on your skin.

There are three types of wrinkles: dynamic wrinkles, static wrinkles, and wrinkle folds. Dynamic wrinkles are caused by contraction of muscles that are attached to the overlying skin. Each muscle contraction causes the skin to bunch together, forming lines between the bulk of the muscle. The most common locations for dynamic wrinkles are between the eyebrows, across the forehead, and on the cheeks near the outer corners of the eyes, referred to as 'crow's feet'. It follows, then, that weakening these muscles will cause a reduction in the severity of the facial wrinkles, or can prevent them altogether when muscle relaxing injections are done before wrinkles form.

Static wrinkles are due to lack of elasticity of the skin caused from sun damage, smoking, genetics, poor nutrition, or from prolonged dynamic wrinkling. Static facial wrinkles are visible regardless of muscle contraction; they stay (hence the name 'static') even when the muscles are not contracting. This leads to the classic 'crepiness' and multiple cross-hatching as is often seen in wrinkles on the cheeks and around the eyes. Techniques that increase the thickness of the skin or that remove the damaged skin are effective wrinkle treatments. Skin peels remove the damaged skin and stimulate new collagen formation to improve the skin's appearance, elasticity and thickness. Topical creams and ointments such as Tretinoin (Retin-A), Vitamin C serum, and new collagen growth factor formulas are good maintenance systems to restore and maintain the skin's youthfulness. Of course, daily sun protection is essential in preventing further sun damage and skin cancer.

The third type of wrinkles, called wrinkle folds, is often due to sagging of the underlying facial structures, most notably causing the deep grooves between the nose and mouth known as the naso-labial groove. These folds can be camouflaged temporarily by plumping up the groove from beneath with Dermal fillers.

Most people have a combination of all three types of facial wrinkles, especially with advanced age. Regardless of your wrinkle type and your desired degree of correction, there is a solution available for you.

The study, "Long-Term Safety Review of Subjects Treated with Botulinum Toxin Type A for Cosmetic Use", was presented at the American Academy of Dermatology Academy '04 meeting in New York.

The study shows Botox is safe and well-tolerated for facial cosmetic procedures when used in multiple treatment sessions over an extended period of time, and when administered by a qualified and trained healthcare professional.

The study encompassed 50 patients who underwent 853 treatment sessions. To be included in the study, subjects had to have received a minimum of 10 injections, with the first treatment given before January 1999. The median number of treatments received per patient was 19 and the median interval from first to last treatment approached six years.

Through chart review and patient follow-up, only 10 adverse events were identified. They occurred in association with nine (1 percent) of the treatment sessions and involved eight patients--six had a single adverse event and two experienced two adverse events.

Only five adverse events were considered probably or definitely related to treatment; the majority (80 percent) were mild, and none were serious. In addition, all were transient, without sequelae, and none affected patient willingness to receive further injections.

Combining cosmetic surgery with a holiday to a low cost country is an option growing in popularity. It generally only makes sense for larger, surgical procedures but if a Medical Beauty Treatment is done abroad a few things need to be taken into consideration. It is extremely important to not fly within 48 hours of having a treatment since the changes in air pressure can cause the medicine to shift position. Also, since Medical Beauty Treatments are generally non-permanent, be sure to factor in the cost of future maintenance.