Facial exercises help the treatment take effect.
THE SCIENCE
Botox typically takes three to four days to kick in, but there’s a way to speed up the process, according to new research in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
For the study, 11 women got Botox injections in their foreheads. One group did facial exercises in the four hours after the treatment and the other group went about their day as usual. In the women who worked their faces, the Botox reduced fine lines and wrinkles after just two to three days compared to three to four days in those who didn’t. The results would also hold true for men.
EXPERT INSIGHT
Botox works by temporarily paralyzing the muscles in your face that allow you to do things like smile, frown, and smirk. For that to happen, the toxins need to attach to the nerve receptors that activate those muscles, explains lead study author Murad Alam, MD, professor of dermatology at Northwestern University in Chicago. Activating your facial muscles post-Botox stimulates the nerves and helps the toxins latch onto them more quickly.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Regardless of where you get Botox, engaging the targeted muscles can make your face look smoother, sooner without affecting how long the treatment lasts.
For forehead injections, raise and knit your brows following treatment. Doing this in any capacity could help, but Alam recommends completing 3 sets of 40 reps, 10 minutes apart for 4 hours after treatment. That might sound like a lot, but the study participants found it doable.