Mirco-needling away the wrinkles

Micro-needling is a fairly new beauty craze that has been popular with celebrities like Jennifer Aniston, Kim Kardashian and Angelina Jolie.  This revolutionary treatment is also referred to as Collagen Induction Therapy (CIT) and consists of a roller with hundreds of very fine needles.  

The concept behind micro-needling is that by punching tiny holes in the skin (sounds fun, right?) you stimulate collagen growth.  I first heard about this new beauty regimen while watching the The Doctors' Show (click here) and wanted to give it a try.  I did my research on what brands of derma rollers are the best and which size needles to use for the various skin areas you are trying to treat. Micro-needling is said to reduce the appearance of scars and wrinkles.  The average derma roller costs anywhere between $20-$40 which makes this beauty treatment possibly the cheapest wrinkle reducer out there.  I wanted to try it around my eyes so I got this derma roller (click here) and consulted with a certified esthetician on how to properly use it.  

How To Micro-needle:

First wash your face making sure to get rid of any makeup, lotions or oil and pat dry. Gently roll the derma roller over your target area in all different directions, making sure not to press too hard.  It is slightly uncomfortable and kind of hurts so if this is too much to bare you can always buy an over the counter numbing cream to put on beforehand.  Once your finished with your treatment use a high quality eye and face cream.  By applying a high quality product after micro-needling it allows your product to absorb better.  My favorite are Obagi ELASTIderm and Bobbi Brown Extra Repair.  I would suggest micro-needling only once a week because you could irritate the skin and cause damage.

One of the most important things when micro-needling is cleaning the roller.  If not cleaned properly you can get all sorts of infections so this is a must!  It's fairly simply, just pour 75% alcohol into the derma roller storage container or in a small cup.  The whole roller should be submerged for about an hour.  Then, run it under hot water and towel dry. 

Happy Micro-needling!