Caffeine's Use In Cosmetic Dermatology

Main Category: Cosmetic Medicine / Plastic Surgery
Also Included In: Dermatology;  Women's Health / Gynecology
Article Date: 09 Dec 2007 - 4:00 PDT

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A new study recently published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology reports on the discovery of caffeine's novel benefit in slenderizing thighs.

The Brazilian researchers studied 99 women treated with a cream consisting mostly of a 7 percent caffeine solution. The women used the cream twice daily for 30 days.

When the researchers took their subjects' measurements at the end of the study, the slimming effect was clear. More than 80 percent of the women had a reduction in the circumference of their upper and lower thighs. Nearly 68 percent also reduced their hip measurements.

Whether caffeine banishes cellulite is less clear. The researchers assessed cellulite changes with a handheld imaging instrument that reveals microcirculation in fat tissue. Imaging showed little change in cellulite even in the hips and thighs that slimmed down. The researchers speculate that the 30-day trial might not have been long enough for the cream to act on cellulite.

"This is no cure for cellulite", said lead researcher Omar Lupi of the Federal University of then State of Rio de Janeiro. "But it can help women who want to look thinner. Exercise is still the best way to go."

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Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release.
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This study is published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology.

Professor Omar Lupi, MD, PhD is affiliated with the Federal University of then State of Rio de Janeiro.

Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology is the official journal of the European Society for Cosmetic and Aesthetic Dermatology (ESCAD). Both the Journal and ESCAD wish to foster the highest standards of patient care in cosmetic dermatology. Each aims to facilitate continuing professional development and provide a forum for the exchange of scientific research and innovative techniques.

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Source: Amy Molnar
Blackwell Publishing Ltd.