Intrinsic Vs Extrinsic Aging

Your skin is the largest organ in your body; it protects your body by regulating body temperature, preventing invasion from micro-organisms and, most importantly, preventing the body from loss of fluid.  By the age of 25 the skin begins to show visible signs of aging due to our genetic predisposition, called intrinsic aging. The aging process slows skin cell replacement, and there is a decrease in the number of skin blood vessels which leads to the loss of a youthful glow and shine.

External factors also play a part alongside our genetic makeup that leads to skin aging--based on your behavioral choices, which is called extrinsic aging. The best examples are long-term exposure to sunlight, smoking and even over-usage of cosmetics. Long-term exposure to these external factors and the chronological aging process can lead to skin losing its firmness, becoming thinner and developing fine wrinkles. For a long time it was believed that skin damage from either aging process was irreversible. But, of course, this was before the miracle of laser technology.

At my office I offer the classic cure for skin aging and damaged skin.  The gold standard treatment to reverse skin damage is the CO2 laser.  The CO2 skin laser is commonly used to treat mild to severe wrinkles, pigmentation changes, acne scars, pucker marks and photo damage. While removing damage, it also stimulates the formation of new underlying collagen.

To your health & beauty,

Dr. Martin O'Toole