Baby fat can be really cute and cuddly — on a baby. But on a grownup... not so much. If you’ve got a double chin, you know how it can alter your entire appearance. Even if the rest of you is slim and trim, that excess fat under your chin can make you look overweight and out of shape. And if (like a lot of us) you happen to be overweight, under-chin fat (also called submental fat) can add more than a few pounds to your appearance. What’s worse, as you get older, the weight of that extra submental fat will start to sag, giving you what’s sometimes not-so-affectionately referred to as a turkey neck or wattle.
There is good news though: Not so long ago, the only thing you could do to diminish the appearance of a double chin was to camouflage it with a turtleneck or strategically-positioned scarf. Then came liposuction, which is still used to get rid of excess fat under the chin. Liposuction can provide good results, but it is a surgical procedure, and that means it has the same risks as other surgical procedures, including risks associated with bleeding, infection, and tissue damage.
Today, there’s another option, one that involves no surgery, no incisions, no anesthesia, no scarring, and no downtime. It’s called Kybella®, and at Concord Medspa, we use state-of-the-art Kybella injections to help women and men improve their facial contours so they look slimmer, fitter, and more youthful.
Kybella is a special, patented solution that contains deoxycholic acid. This acid works to dissolve fat inside our tissues — in this case, in the submental area. Deoxycholic acid occurs naturally — in fact, our own bodies produce it as part of the digestion process. When we eat food, the liver excretes deoxycholic acid, and our bodies use it to break down food — specifically, the fat content in the foods we eat — making it easier for our bodies to use the fat or to eliminate it.
The acid used in Kybella solutions is synthetic, produced in a lab, and it’s very pure. When Kybella is injected into the fat under your chin, it works the same way as the acid produced by your liver, targeting the fat and breaking it down so your body can metabolize it and eliminate it from your body over time. Once injected, the Kybella solution breaks down fat cell walls, dissolving the walls and releasing the material the cells contain. The resulting cellular debris and liquefied fat is carried off by the body’s lymph system over a period of several weeks following your treatment.
Before your treatment even begins, your chin will be carefully evaluated to determine the best placement for the injections. Most people need about 15 injections spaced throughout the treatment area to ensure the solution targets all the fat in the area, producing a more consistent result. After your chin is evaluated, you’ll receive a local anesthetic to numb the area to reduce any discomfort the injections might cause. Your treatment won’t take long — no more than a half hour or so.
After the treatment session, the area under your chin might be red, mildly swollen, and tender to the touch, similar to how you’d feel after any type of injection. You might have some light bruising for a few days afterward. You can reduce any residual soreness with an ice pack or over-the-counter pain medication.
Since Kybella relies on your body’s ability to flush away fat over time, it takes a few weeks to see the complete results of your treatment. While most women and men achieve the results they’re looking for in a single treatment, if you have a significant amount of fat, you might need a second treatment to get the contours you want.
With Kybella, your unwanted fat is gone for good. And since there's no downtime, it's easy to fit your treatment into your busy schedule. To learn more about Kybella injections at Concord Medspa or to find out if Kybella is a good choice for you, book an appointment online today.
