Q: What should I do to help a piercing heal faster?

A: Great timing with International Body Piercing Day being this month! Piercings provide a way to adorn yourself and express your personal style. However, you slice it (or pierce it), piercing still involves making an opening in your body and requires special care. To minimize the chances of infection and avoid any health problems or complications, I recommend the following after care for piercing:

• No matter the type of piercing, always wash and sanitize your hands before touching or cleaning the pierced area.
• Follow specific instructions according to the area pierced.
• For oral piercings: Clean cheek, lip, or tongue piercings with an antiseptic mouthwash after eating and before bed. While alcohol sounds like the ideal disinfectant, the stinging will make you wish you'd gotten an Alcohol-Free version. Gently clean around the pierced area and the jewelry with a soft-bristled toothbrush daily to remove any debris or bacteria.
• For skin piercings: Clean the skin around the piercing twice daily with soap and water or a saline solution for wound cleaning. Refrain from using hydrogen peroxide or iodine, which could damage the pierced skin.

• Skip hot tubs, pools, lakes, rivers, or the ocean until the piercing heals.
• Refrain from touching or twisting the jewelry during the healing process, except when cleaning it.
• Avoid clothing or activities that involve friction or rubbing that could cause irritation and prolong healing time.
• Do not remove the jewelry for at least six weeks or several months to keep the pierced hole open and allow complete healing.

If you don't follow these recommendations or those provided by your piercer, swelling, redness, tenderness, or bleeding could occur. Should these inflamed conditions not subside in a few days or spread, become painful, and exude pus-like fluid accompanied by fever, promptly get checked by a healthcare professional for treatment to help prevent more serious complications. When searching piercing shops near me, ask the piercer about their certification and process to ensure they will uphold the highest safety standards. Make sure that the piercer is properly trained and licensed, washes their hands, wears disposable gloves, and uses properly sterilized equipment with a fresh, sterile, disposable needle.

Don't be shy—asking to see their autoclave, a heat-sterilization machine they should use to sterilize non-disposable equipment is okay. If you have allergies, especially a nickel allergy, consider hypoallergenic jewelry made of surgical stainless steel, titanium, niobium, or 14- or 18-karat gold to minimize the risk of an allergic reaction. Be aware of these other piercing health risks before you get pierced:

• Keloid scars may develop. If you or your family members are prone to these raised scars, piercing may not be advisable.
• Tongue piercings may damage the gums, cause inflammation and tongue swelling, and affect chewing, swallowing, and even breathing. They can also cause chipped or cracked teeth.
• Improperly sterilized piercing equipment may spread blood-borne diseases like hepatitis and tetanus.

Q: Does Botox® in a bottle really work? What exactly is it?

A: Products marketed as “Botox®-in-a-bottle” promise to deliver dramatic wrinkle-smoothing results that mimic the original injectable neuromodulator and its kin. However, some of these non-surgical topical alternatives to injections vary greatly in ingredients and results.

What does Botox® in a bottle do? That depends on the actives in the formula. The intention is to soften wrinkles and expression lines with a needle-less alternative to neuromodulators. What are neuromodulator injections? They are injections of substances designed to inhibit nerve impulses that cause us to tense our facial muscles. Normally, if we want to smile or frown, our brain releases transmitters that trigger our muscles to contract. But with neuromodulators on board, the transmission of these impulses is temporarily interrupted.

What is considered Botox® in a bottle? This term typically refers to non-invasive products with argireline or matrixyl, but there is also a natural Botox® alternative called Escutox® for those wanting to age well with plant based clean skin care products. Just like Botox®, though? No! Albeit similar in intention, you can’t completely “freeze” a muscle with topical products as they do not penetrate deeply enough to produce the same results. However, you can smooth wrinkles and help relax neuromuscular contractions with these ingredients:

• Argireline (Acetyl hexapeptide-8) temporarily disrupts the messages from our brain that tell the muscles in our face to contract, but the results aren’t as dramatic as those of injectables. Some people experience irritation with this synthetic peptide, and people seeking injectable-like results may overuse it, which, some sources indicate, leads to sagging.
• Matrixyl or Matrixyl 3000 supports collagen, elastin, and hyaluronic depletion but doesn’t specifically target muscle movement. Brands have combined it with argireline to achieve “Botox®-like” effects, but the results are much more subtle and okay for younger consumers.
• Escutox® is a trademarked topical alternative to Botox® that features a unique blend of natural, non toxic, and effective skin care ingredients to achieve outstanding and non-invasive pro-aging results.

Hydrolyzed hibiscus esculentus extract is a nutrient-rich complex of oligopeptides from okra. It works on the shallow nerve-ending network system of the skin by helping reduce local acetylcholine uptake, the neurotransmitter that tells our muscles to contract. It gradually reduces the neuromuscular contractions of the skin, restraining movement. Plus, it surpasses other topical neuromodulators by providing anti-free radical activity and promoting collagen biosynthesis, further helping reduce wrinkles. In a Double-Blind Clinical trial, hibiscus esculentus demonstrated a 48% improvement in deep wrinkles, with even more dramatic results after eight weeks. It is combined with oligosaccharides from algae that act as bio-adhesives, repairing skin’s broken cellular structure. Together, these actives relax and smooth dynamic lines, aka expression lines, created by repetitive muscle movement. And while Escutox® helps diminish crow’s feet, no crows, other animals, or insects are harmed in manufacturing! This active is also available in Pevonia treatments, such as the Myoxy-Caviar® Mask Treatment, Escutox® Freeze-Dried, Anti-Wrinkle Treatment, or SkinFit Mask Treatment.

• Faux-tox synthetic Syn-Ake snake venom and snail venom Botox®-mimicking formulas, and bee venom formulas don’t align with the clean beauty philosophies of those wanting to avoid using products that are potentially toxic, unnatural, or harmful to living creatures. With bees on the decline and many people allergic to bees, these formulas are not advisable. Snap-8 and other synthetic “faux-tox” ingredients simply do not align with clean beauty philosophies.
• Other products marketed as Botox® alternatives feature collagen-stimulating peptides, hyaluronic acids, and retinol. Although helpful for wrinkles, these do not function like neuromodulators and should not be included in this group.

What is the best Botox® in a bottle serum? Pevonia's Myoxy-Caviar® Timeless Repair Serum fills this bill naturally! Amplify results and seal in the science backed skincare ingredients with the Myoxy-Caviar® Timeless Eye Contour and Myoxy-Caviar® Timeless Repair Cream.

Who is a good candidate for Botox®-in-a-Bottle? Botox®-in-a-Bottle candidates include people who are embracing a more holistic approach to aging, people who want to look their best but are needle-phobic, pain-averse, on a tight budget, or just aren’t interested or ready to undergo injections. Those who are not candidates for actual Botox® or other injectables are potential Botox®-in-a-bottle candidates. This includes people with medical conditions like muscle or nerve disorders (like ALS or myasthenia gravis), diabetes, infections, serious illnesses, and people who are allergic to cow milk protein, egg protein, or Botox® itself. Many topical Botox® alternatives are ideal for women who are breastfeeding or pregnant, people on blood-thinning medications, prone to bruising, or have bleeding disorders. However, read your labels, as some of these formulas include certain retinoids or bakuchiol which may not be suitable while breastfeeding or pregnant.