Health Treatments For Weathered Hands

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

05 Nov 2006 12:18 AM

Have you ever seen someone who has elected to turn back the hands of time by undergoing a facelift? Or, perhaps you know someone who is a regular user of botox. People can nip and tuck their faces all they want to combat time, but ultimately, I find in most cases their hands still give their age away. Personally, in winter my dry and wrinkled hands look like they belong to someone twice my age.

Enter the "Handspa." You may have heard or even seen the product featured on television. It looks like a nail dryer, and in my opinion, it works like magic. Just ten minutes in the Handspa can make a big difference. My hands not only felt smoother, they looked much healthier.

So what is the "magic" behind the fabulous results? It's all about the light. Lights inside the Handspa stimulate cell activity under your skin. Doctors explain that the light therapy activates certain cells that can increase the binding of collagen. In essence the Handspa's lights plump up your hands, diminish fine lines and help erase age spots.

I grew up in Hawaii and baked in the sun on a regular basis (I grew up in an age prior to the "sunscreen... SPF" craze). Unfortunately, I paid the price for it with sunspots. The Handspa helped fade the spots. I was told melanin--the dark age spots--absorbs certain wavelengths. The wavelength, which is emitted by the Handspa helps break down the melanin pigment in the skin.

Interestingly, the machine wasn't developed as a beauty tool; it was actually designed to treat patients with hand pain by increasing blood flow. But doctors found it made hands look younger so they decided to market it to patients who were interested in reversing the sign of aging.

Most dermatologists have the machines in their offices and treatments only take a few minutes. Each treatment costs between $10 and $30. Most doctors will recommend six treatments, but you could start seeing results earlier, especially if your hands are as rough and weathered as mine were.

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Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

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