Summary: Come summertime, there is one thing that women dread and are self-conscious about: Cellulite. What is cellulite? What causes it? And what treatments are available to get rid of it?
Cellulite is a term for fat cells pushing up against connective tissue beneath the skin.
What is cellulite and what causes it?
Cellulite is a term for when fat creases under the skin, pushing up against connective tissue, which is why it looks so lumpy and unpleasant. Although it can appear in anyone’s body, it is more common and more visible in adolescent and adult women with light-colored skin.
Common causes for cellulite include:
- Genetics: the more women in your family have it around their hips or thighs, the more likely you will have cellulite, too.
- A poor diet: if you eat a lot of fatty foods, those fats will stack up and bulge out.
- Lack of exercise: coupled with a bad diet, this can add to cellulite lumps.
- Hormonal factors.
- Color of your skin: lighter toned skin is more likely to show cellulite.
- Dehydration.
How can it be treated?
Diet and exercise
Losing weight through proper diet, healthy eating, and physical training is probably the best treatment for reducing cellulite. Toning the muscles of your body can significantly improve the appearance of cellulite areas.
Laser treatment
Some devices use laser technologies to melt the fat beneath the skin and excite the production of collagen which gives the skin a firmer, tighter look.
Liposuction and laser liposuction
During this procedure, the surgeon removes fat cells from the body. Laser liposuction extracts destroys fat cells and tightens the skin at the same time.
Cellulite ointments
Applying topical creams on areas where cellulite is visible can reduce it. This, however, is a long-term treatment which gives results after approximately 6 months.
