A thick neck, unsightly folds of Venus, a hump or a fatty roll on the back of the head are not imaginary problems. They do not bypass even rich and well-groomed celebrities. You just have to look at the photos to believe it.
| Alec Baldwin | John Travolta |
| Aishvaria Rai | Adele |
Mariah Carey
Christina Aguilera
In this article we will talk in detail about the reasons for the formation of fat folds on the neck and analyze effective methods for eliminating them. Let's start with free, home methods. Then we will move on to new products in cosmetology and finish with modern plastic surgery techniques.
Fat neck has different causes
- excess weight,
- hormonal imbalance - Itsenko-Cushing syndrome or menopause (there is even a special term - menopausal hump),
- taking certain medications, such as corticosteroids,
- lipodystrophy - a lack of subcutaneous fat in the face and its accumulation at the base of the neck. In most cases, fat on the back of the neck - the so-called “buffalo hump” - is deposited in men precisely for this reason.
Fat is not always deposited evenly. For example, a fat hump on the neck grows due to a natural fat trap in the area of the seventh vertebra.
The adipose tissue of the neck is thin and loose. Excess fat quickly stretches the skin and sag. Therefore, a thick neck is often accompanied by a double chin and jowls. In the latter case, the correction program becomes a little more complicated and must be developed individually.
Whatever correction method you choose, to effectively combat hormonal fat deposits, you need to balance your hormonal levels and keep the underlying disease under control.
How to remove fat from neck and chin with diet
In order for the fat fold in the neck to “deflate”, we need to bring our body weight back to normal. It is possible to lose weight without stress - it is enough to reduce your intake by just 500 kcal per day. Look, the restrictions in this case are not great at all:
- 100 grams of spaghetti (340 kcal) and 20 grams of butter (150 kcal);
- 100 grams of wheat bread (242 kcal) and 100 grams of mashed potatoes (106 kcal), 100 grams of ham (150–160 kcal).
For calculations we use special calorie tables. The most high-calorie foods are fatty and fried foods, canned food, deli meats, flour products, pasta, and sweets. We remove products from this list from the diet forever.
The basis of your menu should be fruits and vegetables, cereals, low-fat soups, low-fat dairy products, lean meats and fish.
Expert comment:
“I strongly do not recommend complete refusal of food and single-component diets, for example, kefir, protein.
This way you will be able to get rid of extra pounds, and quite quickly. But you will do the body a “disservice” - your metabolism will be disrupted, and it will be very difficult to restore it later. In addition, the body must receive nutrients, and if you eat monotonously, you deprive yourself of this.”
Vasiliev Maxim, plastic surgeon.
Exercises against fat deposits in the neck
To speed up the reduction of neck fat, you need to start spending more energy. The large muscles of our body burn the most energy - so we focus on the muscles of the back and legs - we run, jump, dance, and exercise with weights.
To tighten and smooth your neck, a special exercise will help.
We stand up or sit down. Press the right palm to the area above the ear. Then we slowly press on the head, while resisting, count to 5. Repeat 8-10 times. We press our left palm and perform the exercises. Now we repeat the same for the forehead and back of the head.
After the exercise, the muscles become toned, the neck gradually acquires a contour, and sagging skin and fat decrease.
Expert comment:
“This exercise should not be done if you have intracranial pressure or epilepsy.
Please note that an isolated neck exercise will not help remove fat from the face and neck - too few calories are burned. It is necessary for tightening.”
Vasiliev Maxim, plastic surgeon.
Liposuction
To solve the problem of excess fat and double chin, liposuction is performed - vacuum removal of fatty tissue through small punctures. After such an operation, young skin, as a rule, is able to contract on its own, and you only need to follow the surgeon’s recommendations and wear a special elastic bandage for some time. If we are talking about performing surgery on aging skin, liposuction should be done with SMAS lifting, since, unlike young skin, aging skin has difficulty contracting on its own.
Slimming creams can help remove fat deposits on the neck
To achieve the effect, they should be rubbed into the neck and chin area in the morning and evening. Rough movements are unacceptable - this will stretch the skin. Only the hump can be rubbed intensively.
The results of using creams appear after some time: fatty deposits in the neck become smaller, the skin is smoothed and tightened.
Expert comments:
“To rule out allergies, it is necessary to conduct a test before using the cream. To do this, apply a small amount of cream to the forearm. Why can’t you test the cream directly on your neck?
The recommendation is related to the anatomical proximity of the respiratory organs. If you are allergic to any of the ingredients in the product, you may not be able to stop inhaling it. Then the risk of developing edema of the larynx and airways is high.”
Vasiliev Maxim, plastic surgeon.
Reasons for the appearance of Venus rings on the neck and how to resist them | L'Officiel
Dermatologist, cosmetologist and certified iS CLINICAL® trainer Alisa Onopko told the editors of L'Officiel why Venus rings appear on the neck and how to deal with them.
Did you know that the rings of Venus on the neck are considered one of the key signs of aging, which, together with the skin on the neck, reveal our age? Paradoxically, these are essentially transverse, clearly visible wrinkles and folds on the neck, which can appear at a young age. Moreover, today millennials are increasingly complaining to dermatologists about this problem, one of the triggers for the development of which is smartphone culture.
“Horizontal creases in the neck have a lot to do with the positioning of our body. Fact: The more you move, the more you will strengthen the muscles and skin in your neck area. If you can't change the fact that you have to use your smartphone a lot, remember to at least raise it to eye level and not look down,” explains New York dermatologist Jeannette Graf.
The editors of L'Officiel learned about the reasons for the appearance of Venus rings on the neck and how to resist them from cosmetologist and certified trainer of the iS CLINICAL® brand Alisa Onopko.
- What are the rings of Venus?
You've probably heard the following phrase: “We grow old from birth” - this is partly true. Today we will not talk about wrinkles, but will pay attention to the details of appearance, which are our individual anatomical feature and inherent in us from birth. Even at the stage of embryogenesis, the mesenchyme (primordial connective tissue) is transformed into muscle bundles, from which muscle layers are formed, overgrown with connective tissue, which subsequently form into folds. These include the rings of Venus - these are transverse wrinkles that encircle the neck and therefore received such a symbolic name.
- Tell us about the main causes of Venus rings (genetics, poor posture, weak muscles, smartphone abuse, etc.).
The skin on the neck loses elasticity over time and tends to become very stretched. The situation gets worse with age: wrinkles on the neck become deeper, darker, wider, and the skin sags. Let's consider several reasons that affect our body as a whole and contribute to the fact that the rings of Venus become more pronounced with age:
Hereditary predisposition associated with rapid thinning of the subcutaneous fat layer. And in thin people who are not predisposed to excess weight, this layer of skin can gradually atrophy completely.
Habitual incorrect posture during long hours of work at the computer, when we involuntarily point our heads forward towards the monitor, prolonged sedentary work, reading for several hours - all this can lead to the development of a disease such as osteochondrosis of the cervical spine.
Salt deposits in the area of the seventh vertebra - the so-called "widow's hump", due to which your neck is constantly tilted forward, which also contributes to the formation of wrinkles.
Sudden weight changes and even wearing clothes with a collar that is too tight have a negative impact on the formation of deep wrinkles on the neck.
The development of hypertonicity of the platysma leads to the fact that the tone of some muscle fibers is significantly reduced, while others, on the contrary, increase in a compensatory manner.
In the modern digital age, the formation of the rings of Venus occurs at a young age. Americans introduced the concept of tech neck to refer to the neck of people who are constantly on smartphones and in front of a computer. Pay attention to how we use the phone. In 90% of cases, when viewing messages on the phone, we tend to tilt our head down towards the smartphone screen, rather than looking straight ahead and raising the phone to eye level. And if, on top of everything else, we still have problems with the spine such as stoop and scoliosis, then the formation of the rings of Venus is 100% guaranteed.
Due to this, people begin to form the rings of Venus at a younger age. Without proper and regular care, the skin on the neck begins to age at around 22-25 years of age. But playing sports, maintaining correct posture, and regular neck skin care can delay the appearance of Venus rings and skin aging to 30-35 years, and with good genetics, even later.
- How to properly care for the skin of your neck to prevent the appearance of rings of Venus?
To prevent the development of early formation of the rings of Venus, you should:
- First of all, ensure correct posture;
- raise smartphones and gadgets to eye level, rather than bending your neck;
- exercise and yoga to maintain healthy back muscles;
- and the main rule: you need to start taking care of the skin of your neck as early as possible.
It is imperative to develop a beauty habit when caring for your neck: cleansing, applying moisturizers and sunscreen, since the neck is also subject to photo- and chronoaging. Proper and regular care will help, if not remove wrinkles completely, then at least make them less noticeable on the neck.
NeckPerfect™ Complex cream from iS CLINICAL® is suitable for daily care - starting from 35, and preferably from 25 or even from 18 years (if there is a need and indications). The formula of this cream was specially developed both for the prevention of formation and for the further treatment of formed deep wrinkles and creases on the skin of the neck. The combination of peptides, fruit acids, hyaluronic acid, as well as effective plant extracts allows you to gently exfoliate the skin and provides a visible lifting effect: tightens the skin and models the contour of the neck, increases skin elasticity, intensively moisturizes, evens out skin tone and texture. The minimum course is 3 months, and ideally applied both morning and evening.
- Are massages effective for removing the rings of Venus? What non-invasive procedures can also help fight them?
Massages, face fitness exercises, masks and patches will be ineffective and will not remove the rings of Venus on the neck, since the folds are already formed and every tilt and turn of the head will inevitably lead to the formation of wrinkles. These are all preventive measures. A back massage will be more effective in combating the rings of Venus, but if you also get a face and neck massage, this will promote muscle relaxation and overall relaxation.
- What beauty treatments in the salon can help get rid of the rings of Venus?
A course in neck skin care is a lifelong course, especially if you are not ready to give up using gadgets. Home care should be daily, but procedures in a salon or clinic should be done on the recommendation of a specialist, and they will be individual in each case. It is worth paying attention to peelings, injections of mesopreparations and fillers, botulinum toxin (if there is muscle hypertonicity), laser resurfacing, and in more complex situations you can resort to plastic surgery. Take a small step now - watch your posture and regularly care for the skin of your neck.
Cosmetology and lipolytics for the neck
- Ultrasonic non-surgical liposuction. After exposure to ultrasound, fat is partially dissolved and removed from the body through lymph and blood currents. The procedure is effective for small fat pads and shows a visible effect only after a series of procedures.
- Only Aqualix, a new safe drug for non-surgical liposuction, can remove a pronounced fatty hump on the neck. It's very effective. Suffice it to say that this is the first remedy that was recognized by plastic surgeons as an alternative to liposuction.
Aqualix contains deoxycholic acid, which is normally present in bile and helps process fats. As it turned out, it is also effective when applied topically.
To remove fat from the withers of the neck, you will need from 2 to 5 sessions of 10 minutes each. The drug promotes the destruction of cell membranes, but acts in isolation, only at the injection site. Decay products are removed from the body by the lymphatic system.
The effect appears within 20–30 minutes after the procedure – the fat on the back and front of the neck is literally blown away.
Laser liposuction of the neck and chin
If you urgently need to remove fat from your face and neck and achieve a tightening effect, opt for liposuction. Modern laser nano-liposuction has little in common with classical methods and requires literally a few days for recovery.
- fatty deposits in the neck area are removed not through incisions, but through micro-punctures, which are performed unnoticeably in physiological folds,
- Liposuction of the cervical hump is performed with the finest cannulas. This eliminates the appearance of unevenness and bumps. Fatty tissue is removed evenly, the border transition is absolutely invisible.
- the laser acts on fat specifically and does not affect surrounding tissues,
- During the procedure, the laser seals the vessels, eliminating bleeding and bruising.
- Laser lipolysis has several modes of operation, one of which – pulsed – we use to stimulate collagen synthesis and skin contraction. Therefore, even liposuction of the withers on the neck does not leave behind a skin fold.
High-precision equipment and experience allow us to successfully work even in areas of previously performed liposuction and with dense fibrous male fat.
Photos "before" and "after"
Neck lift, results before and 12 hours after! After the operation: the oval and contour of the lower jaw are emphasized, the jowls are corrected, the double chin disappears, the chin does not sag when the head is tilted! Performed by surgeon: Maxim Vasiliev .
Performed facelift-smas, lipofilling, face, co2-lifting. Before and 9 days after. Performed by surgeon: Maxim Vasiliev.
Dynamic platysmoplasty. Photos were taken “before” and 12 days “after” the operation. The patient's head tilt is the same. After Hollywood platysmaplasty, even when the head is tilted, the chin does not fold into folds. Performed by surgeon: Maxim Vasiliev.
Neck lift with installation of a Medpor chin implant. The result “before” and 12 days “after”. Surgeon: Vasiliev Maxim.
Platysmoplasty. Author's technique. “Before” and 9 hours “after” the operation. The head in both photos is tilted approximately the same. Surgeon: Vasiliev Maxim.
Neck lift, results “before” and 12 hours “after”. Author's technique. Performed by surgeon: Maxim Vasiliev.
Neck lift (author's technique). Photos “before” and 2 days “after”. Completed by: Vasiliev M.N.
Hollywood neck lift. The result “before” and 12 hours “after” the operation. Surgeon: Vasiliev Maxim.
Neck lift using dynamic platysmoplasty - the chin will not sag even when tilted. Result 10 hours after surgery. There is swelling and markings. Surgeon: Vasiliev Maxim.
Photos “before” the operation and on the 5th day “after”.
Reduction of the cheeks and formation of sunken cheekbones, installation of a Medpor chin implant (USA), laser nanoliposuction of the chin, thread lifting of the lower third of the face. Surgeon - Iskornev Andrey Alexandrovich.
Hardware methods
With the help of massage, you can eliminate or significantly reduce a double chin if it has increased slightly. The procedure improves blood circulation in the problem area. Metabolic processes and skin nutrition will change. The skin will become more elastic and the neck muscle more elastic. The mechanical action of the massage will break up the granules of deposited fat. If the double chin is very noticeable, and a large fold of fat forms when the head is tilted, then hardware procedures are resorted to. • LPG – massage is performed using equipment that creates a vacuum and has a pinching effect on the skin. To get a noticeable effect, you will need up to 25 sessions. With the help of massage, the fat layer is broken down and the lipolysis process improves. The work of the sebaceous glands and the metabolism of epidermal cells are normalized: the skin is tightened. The effect is noticeable after 10 sessions: wrinkles on the neck are smoothed out. 1 session lasts 30 minutes. • RF – massage – the procedure is based on the action of electric current. The problem area is exposed to a high-frequency electric field. At the same time, a tingling sensation is felt: there is no painful sensation. The current destroys the connections of fat cells, activating the process of fat release. There is an intensive outflow of lymph and fluid: swelling is relieved. Blood circulation and metabolic processes in the skin accelerate: it becomes elastic. • Photorejuvenation – the upper layer of the epidermis and subcutaneous fat layer are exposed to light pulses. Regeneration processes are accelerated, lipolysis and fluid removal are improved. The muscles of the chin and neck are tightened.
Hollywood platysmoplasty
If fat is deposited in the lower jaw and under the chin, if the skin is stretched and there are signs of sagging, if you want to get an ideal result for life, then liposuction of the face and neck will not be enough.
Expert comment:
“If neck fat is adjacent to a sagging cervical platysma muscle or a small chin, weight loss, exercise, and even isolated liposuction will not be effective.
In this case, only multi-level correction can restore beauty - a combination of Hollywood platysmaplasty and installation of a Medpor chin implant.”
Vasiliev Maxim, plastic surgeon.
Causes
Before dealing with the problem, it is important to understand its etiology. The following reasons for the appearance of this cosmetic defect (regardless of its types) can be called the most common:
- age-related changes (decreased production of collagen and elastin);
- improper skin care;
- its increased dryness;
- exposure to ultraviolet radiation;
- unhealthy diet and bad habits;
- incorrect posture;
- insufficient motor activity of the neck muscles.
