Facial acupuncture, the reportedly safer alternative to surgery or Botox. This cosmetic treatment is an extension of traditional acupuncture. It’s said to naturally help make the skin look younger, smoother, and all-around healthier. And unlike injection procedures, facial acupuncture addresses not only signs of aging, but also the skin’s overall health. Much like when you fall down and cut your skin, your body has a natural healing process that causes the production of new tissue — and the same works with acupuncture. By inserting needles into different points on the face, you are creating painless micro-traumas to the tissue, which in turn tricks the brain into stimulating the production of collagen and elastin that smooths the lines and wrinkles in that area.
On the face, the acupuncturist will insert 40 to 70 tiny and painless needles. As the needles puncture the skin, they create wounds within its threshold, which are called positive microtraumas. When your body senses these wounds, it goes into repair mode.
One study found that the majority of people saw improvements after just five sessions of facial acupuncture, but I recommend 10 treatments once or twice a week to see optimum results. After that, you can go into a “maintenance stage,” where you get the treatment every four to eight weeks.
