Double Chin

If you have a bit of double chin and you’re not happy about it, what can you do? What causes a double chin in the first place? Don’t worry, there options out there!

Treatments:

• Fat Dissolving Injections

• Dermal Filler - Jawline

• Radiofrequency (RF) Skin Tightening

FAQ - Double Chin

What is a double chin?

The body is always looking for new places to put fat cells and one area it particularly likes is the top part of the front of your neck, right underneath your jaw. The technical name for this is ‘submental fat’. If too much fat gets stored in this area and the skin isn’t taut enough to hold that canopy up in the battle with gravity, you can look in the mirror and find that it looks like you’ve grown a second chin. This can even continue developing into a triple or quadruple chin. So, the two factors you need to be aware of are fat levels and skin tautness.

What causes a double chin?

If the levels of fat deposited under your chin get high enough, you can develop the appearance of a double chin. Where the body decides to store fat varies from person to person, so it’s possible (although more uncommon) to have a double chin even though you’re not overweight.

The incidence and prominence of double chins increase with age as the skin loses its elasticity. Up to about the age of 30, the body is pretty good at replenishing the levels of collagen and elastin in the skin. However, after 30, these stocks start to deplete at a much faster rate. Without the structural support of collagen and the elastin to pull things back to where they were before, gravity has the edge and starts to pull the skin south.

For most people, double chins are caused by a mixture of these two issues, with fat being the dominant problem. However, it is possible to develop a double chin without any fat deposits, though this is only really seen in later age.

What treatments can I use for my double chin?

There are several treatments that can be used to treat double chins, depending on what your chin, neck and jaw look like. You will need a consultation with our practitioner to advise you on the procedure or procedures that will give you the best results.

The main options are:

• Fat Dissolving Injections such as Aqualyx is procedure that can work to dissolve fatty deposits in stubborn areas.

• Dermal Filler is carefully placed under the corners of the jaw, along the line of the jaw and in the chin, it can strengthen the look of the whole jawline and tighten the skin a little to make a double chin look much less obvious.

• Radiofrequency heats the skin in order to tighten the jawline and neck area to make a double chin look less obvious.

• Liposuction. This is a surgical option which can work well to resculpt a double chin.

Which treatment is best for double chin?

Working out which treatment will suit you best very much depends on what your face looks like.

If you have a weak chin and a less obvious jawline, dermal filler could be a good place to start.

If you have a strong jaw but with pockets of fat beneath it, then fat dissolving injections may be a better option.

To help you decide, book a consultation with us to help outline the options for you, and help you choose the best plan of action.

Will fat dissolving injections get rid of my double chin?

Yes, they absolutely could get rid of a double chin. These injections, which are based on a chemical called deoxycholic acid, dissolve and destroy fat cells. There are various brands of fat-dissolving injections available in the UK but we have had the best results using the brand Aqualyx.

Will a non-surgical facelift help with my double chin?

A ‘non-surgical facelift’ involves injections of dermal filler to recontour the face by adding volume in areas we lose laxity as we age such as the cheeks and jawline. This dermal filler is also used to strengthen the jawline and accentuate the chin, they may help with the look of a double chin. The injections won’t affect the double chin itself, but by re-defining the jawline, the extra chin can look less obvious.

Do double-chin creams work?

No.

Why don’t double-chin creams work? Because they’re not removing the bulk of the fat cells which are creating the double chin, nor are they tightening up the sagging skin which is letting that double chin flop forward. Perhaps, if a double-chin cream is one that contains active ingredients such as high-strength vitamin C and retinol or another retinoid, it may be strengthening the skin, but this effect won’t be strong enough to rein in an existing double chin.