It's not a new treatment (it
launched in the latter part of 2010), so you're probably wondering why I'm
about to tell you about the non-invasive, fat-freezing treatment otherwise
known as Cool Sculpting by Zeltiq. Here's why: Thousands of treatments are
being performed worldwide (over 650,000 so far!), yet new important updates
have surfaced since Cool
Sculpting first launched. Here's everything you need to know before
freezing your fat:
1. Fat cells self-destruct when the
skin gets cold enough. The
FDA-cleared procedure suctions in the skin surrounding the area of fat you
want to freeze, then uses controlled cooling (aka cry lipolysis) to drop the
temperature of the skin down to where the fat cells die. The body then
eliminates the cells in the following weeks.
2. There is a tendency for uneven
removal. It's not skill-dependent, since a
vacuum-like head suctions the skin in to freeze it, so there is a risk of
uneven removal, says Paul Jarrod Frank, MD, a cosmetic dermatologist in New
York City.
3. It can be pricey. Depending on where you live and the area you're looking to
get treated, a Cool Sculpting session can run you $500 and up.
4. One treatment has been said to be
enough, but that isn't always the case.
So, in the end, it might not be the most cost-effective option to get the
results you're looking for. Be sure to talk to your doctor before going in for
the treatment to see if you're the perfect candidate for this procedure.
5. The procedure is for very
discreet fat removal. Picture a
thin man with love handles or a woman with small pockets of fat on her inner thighs.
"Broader areas are not good for this treatment because that won't come out
evenly," Dr. Frank adds.
6. There is literature that
Paradoxical Adipose Hyperplasia (PAH) can occur after cry lipolysis. According to Dr. Frank and the National Center for
Biotechnology Information, fat can grow back rather than disappearing forever.
"Of course, there are risks with everything, but this is the only fat
removal process that has this particular risk though low," Frank adds.
7. It takes an hour to treat
each section. So, it could take a long time,
depending on how many areas you want to treat.
8. You might experience cry
lipolysis-induced numbness that can last for weeks. "It does something to the superficial nerves when the
skin is frozen that can leave you without feeling for hours," Dr. Frank
says.
9. You can also have bruising. There's minimal downtime with this treatment, but you might
experience bruising since the areas treated will have been pulled, tugged, and
pinched in the suction process. And you could be sore for days or weeks after
the treatment.
10. Full results take weeks or
months to show up. This depends on how well your body
reacts to the treatment. You should expect to full results by the second or
third month.
11. You need to maintain a healthy
diet and exercise routine to keep the results. But you probably already knew that.
