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Sagging Skin: a result of rapid weight loss
 Sagging
skin is caused by
losing too much weight too
quickly. Slow, gradual weight
loss does not result in excess flab, but rather, gives your skin and other
body parts a chance to respond to all the changes that weight loss brings.
Eat a
healthy, balanced diet that includes all the same vitamins and minerals that
keep skin
healthy, but most of all: Slow down!
Why loose skin?
To begin with, fast weight loss isn't always recommended. For one, you often
end up losing muscle along with
fat. Preserving
muscle mass is essential for keeping the
metabolism going
and, of course, keeping the body, bones and connective tissue strong.
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Rapid weight loss: when you lose weight quickly, especially with
dieting or weight loss
surgery, extra skin is left hanging that may be difficult to get rid
of. Loose or saggy skin can be a common problem after losing a large amount of
weight (more than about 50-100 lbs) in a short period of time.
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Age & genetics: Loose skin isn't just about rapid weight loss, of course.
Your age, genes and skin elasticity also determine how your skin responds,
even with slow weight loss.
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Pregnancy can leave
some women with extra skin.
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Sun exposure: Your past, present and future exposure to the
sun can damage
your skin.
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Nutrition and water intake: Your skin may not be as healthy or firm if you
aren't getting balanced
nutrition,
vitamins and minerals (especially
Vitamins C &
E) and staying
hydrated.
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Smoking: Smoking can speed up the normal
aging process
of your skin.
Weight loss and your skin
 The condition and elasticity of your skin before and during the weight loss,
determines how much -- if any -- loose skin you are left with. Your chances of
having excess skin is significantly affected by how much weight you have to lose
and how quickly you lose it. How long you have been overweight or obese
can also have a bearing on your skin's ability to rebound from being stretched
out. The less time you have spent overweight, the more likely it is that your
skin will return to normal.
Also, the older you are when you lose weight, the less likely it is that your
skin will "snap back" to its original shape. (This is due to the fact that skin
naturally becomes less elastic as it ages.)
It is idle to lose weight
as slow and steady as one or two pounds a week. The more quickly you lose your
weight, the more likely you are to have a problem with excess skin.
One of the best asana in order to tone up and achieve the
perfect skin is called
Bhujang Asana.
Lay down flat on your stomach and raise your face up off of the ground as
much as you can.
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Finding solution to sagging skin
Drink water: You should drink at least eight glasses of
water every
day, in order to keep enough
moisture
in your skin. Apart from this, water helps in flushing out those
toxins
of your system. It will give your skin that healthy feel and look.
 Exercise: When we talk about exercise, we are talking about
sit ups,
push-ups,
running and anything
else you can think of. When you are exercising, you will be building those
muscles up. This will plump up your skin from the inside and give it that
tighter appearance. When you exercise, you will be making sure you will not gain
all the weight back that you just tried so hard to lose.
Strength Training: A great way to get rid of that excess skin would be to
lift weight.
When you are losing weight, lifting weights is important. Do resistance training
3 times a week to build new muscle for the skin to adhere to. Lifting weights
and doing other exercise such as
crunches
and
lunges helps to tighten the muscles underneath skin, which firms up the
area.
Massage: Massaging the skin helps to build that elasticity back up. You should
use mustard oil in order to get the best results. A daily
massage
will also help your muscles develop. In mustard oil, you will find that there
are many medicinal properties in it that will help you to have healthy and
glowing skin.
Scrub your skin 3 times a week: When you
scrub
away that surface, you will be causing that skin underneath to generate faster.
By using a body scrub or loofah at least twice a day, you will be helping to
tighten up that lose skin that is caused by weight loss.
Maintain a good posture
throughout the day: As you are driving in your car, standing in lines, watching
television, playing video games and sitting at your desk, you could help tighten
up your skin. You can do this by pulling your stomach muscles in and holding
them for a couple of minutes.
Try over-the-counter creams: Take in a good vitamin E supplement and
apply vitamin E cream or oil twice a day in the problem areas. This will not
give you immediate results, but will slowly tighten up the skin and prevent
sagging. Skin is like elastic and it needs time to settle in. The use of coconut
oil, shea butter or glycerin has been shown to restore damaged skin so when you
look for soaps, creams or lotions try to find ones that contain these two
natural oils.
 Eat lean poultry and other proteins with each meal: Choose foods which are
high in vitamins and minerals and low in sugar, saturated fat and additives.
Include foods high in essential fatty acids such as avocados, olives, oily fish,
nuts and seeds and oils made from these and also ensure that you have an
adequate supply of lean protein.
Omega-3 fatty acids can help prevent skin
sagging. Making sure you get enough omega-3 in your diet, by taking fish oil or
cod liver oil regularly Omega-3 fats help to normalize skin lipids and prevent
dehydration in the cells. This keeps skin cells strong and full of moisture.
Omega-3 fats may have an anti-inflammatory effect that can help to calm
irritated skin. When choosing omega 3 oils try to choose oils that come wild
varieties of fish which are less likely to contain dioxin or other types of
smoke. The best sources of antioxidants are in raw fruits and vegetables.
However if you cannot find the time to eat your greens and brightly
multi-colored fruits you can buy powdered mixes that make a quick fix for people
on the run.
Lose weight sooner rather than later: Don't keep putting off your weight loss
program. The older you are and the longer you have been overweight the less
elastic and resilient your skin becomes and the more you need to stick
stringently to the other guidelines here to prevent skin becoming too loose. The
constant yo-yo dieting
stretching and then loosening the skin will harm your skin's elasticity too.
Avoid smoking: Cigarette smoke can also go a long way to preventing the
kind of collagen break down that causes sagging skin.
Smoke damages
the microcapillaries in the skin as well as its ability to absorb creams with
nutrients.
 Protect your skin from Sun damage: Sunburned skin is much more prone to
wrinkling and sagging over the long term. To prevent ultraviolet light from
causing free radical damage to your skin stay out of the sun during its most
intense time which is from ten am to two pm. If you must go out wear a broad
rimmed hat, sunglasses and plenty of sunscreen. Remember that your skin needs a
bit of sun to stay healthy, the idea is to avoid over-exposure. Ten minutes at a
day in direct sun on off hours is the right dose to keep your skin healthy.
Consider surgical options to remove sagging skin: Unless your
excess skin is causing an actual medical problem (e.g. chafing that leads to
skin infections), you need not consider surgery unless you choose to have
it for your appearance's sake. The surgery you are referring to is most likely a
body lift, a cosmetic surgery procedure that lifts and tightens skin at various
locations on the body.
Abdominoplasty lifts and tightens just the stomach area. Both are serious
operations and like other surgeries, pose serious risk of complications.
Insurance rarely covers these types of procedures.
If you have loose skin now, it's important that you give your skin time to
recover from your weight loss. You may find that in time, as you continue to
exercise, your skin will become more firm as you tone up and increase muscle. If
it's been a year or two, you may want to talk to your doctor and a plastic
surgeon about the risks and benefits of cosmetic surgery.
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