Many of us struggle with our weight and/or body image, and marketing companies know this! In today’s aesthetic market, there is a never-ending barrage of new devices that claim they can slim, sculpt, and smooth your shape. With so many options, how is someone supposed to know what works and what is all hype?! Never fear! The Saxy Squad is here to sort through all the different options, so you don’t have to. Here’s the good, the bad and the ugly of modern body shaping technology.
The Good:
It works! Well…some treatments do. It may sound way too easy to hook yourself up to a machine and lose inches and fat, but with modern technology that is a reality. VanquishME is revolutionary in its ability to get rid of unwanted fat, and since it hovers over the body without touching the skin it is virtually side effect free. Many other devices claim that they are FDA approved to reduce fat and/or contour the body, and they may even claim to have published studies supporting their claims, but few are peer reviewed by independent physicians to prove efficacy. A few devices like Coolsculpting do reduce fat, but nothing more. There is only one device on the market that is FDA and independently approved to not only burn fat, but also increase muscle tone and strength. Emsculpt by BTL Industries, uses electromagnetic energy to strengthen muscle, burn fat, and inspire the growth of new muscles fibers; something no workout regimen could ever do! It is compared to doing 20,000 crunches, squats, or arm curls in a single session. BTL also just introduced a device for cellulite destruction! Emtone uses radiofrequency and mechanical energy to permanently reduce and even erase cellulite. We recommend a regimen of Emsculpt paired with other devices like Emtone and Vanquish, to attack all the areas that cause body issues.
The Bad:
There are many devices on the market that just plain don’t work and just as many others that deliver lackluster results or only miniscule changes. Review websites are overrun with complaints of high prices and low return. Worse, all these devices are not without some mess and ufss, despite claiming to be “no downtime” Velashape, Venus, and CoolSculpting can leave behind swelling, bruising, and in a percentage of people a tingling or burning nerve pain that can last for days or even weeks. Then there is skin laxity. Many people look worse after treatments due to treating only one part of the problem. It is akin to letting the air out of a balloon. The fat is gone, but the skin has already been stretched out. Once upon a time, the only way to tighten skin was with surgery, but Exilis has proven itself to be a great tool for tightening skin all over the body, even the face! It can be performed alone to tighten or combined with Vaniqush and Emsculpt to tighten as the fat disappears and is replaced with muscle.
The Ugly:
Some of these fat reduction devices can be downright damaging to your body. Velashape can burn the skin if not done properly. CoolSculpting is the most notorious for negative effects; hard lumps, shape irregularities, nerve damage; there have even been reports of tissue death and skin necrosis. In addition, the device has been documented to cause an overgrowth of fat. This condition is called paradoxical adipose hyperplasia (PAH). In some very rare cases, fat cells respond to CoolSculpting by enlarging rather than dying. This is an under reported side effect that most med spas and doctors’ offices gloss over in consultation. However, the Saxy Squad is here to tell you that every single one of us experienced this supposedly “rare” side effect. Previously, the only way to try to repair it was with liposuction. Now that Emtone has come onto the market, there is finally a noninvasive way to break up the scar tissue caused by CoolSculpting and allow other treatments, like Vanquish and Emsculpt to work more effectively.
The takeaway from all this is that fat reduction by itself is unlikely to achieve the results most patients desire. Our trouble areas are usually due to a multilayered system failure; we lose tone, we gain fat, and our skin becomes lax. One device by itself is likely to give only moderate results versus combining multiple therapies to address all the issues of reducing fat, toning muscle and tightening the skin. Saxon MD, along with our med spa, is the only practice in Austin or Dallas that offers a full body package of four devices to address all these concerns. The Embodi Procedure combines Vanquish, Exilis, Emtone, and Emsculpt to give you back the youthful shape you once had. It is truly a no downtime, noninvasive way to reclaim your shape and help you achieve all your fitness goals.
To schedule your consultation with Dr. Saxon to determine if one of these procedures may be right for you click here or email: info@saxonmd.com.
