But is it really? Double sigh!
Fat chance!, says Dr. Howard Murad, one of America’s top-notch board-certified dermatologists . Here, he separates fact from fiction:
Myth: Cellulite does not affect young, thin women.
Fact: Cellulite affects 90 percent of women, regardless of age or weight. Cellulite can start right after puberty and many thin, fit, and hydrated women have cellulite.
Myth: Cellulite can be controllled by weight loss and exercise.
Fact: Weight loss and exercise cannot control cellulite because cellulite is found in the fat layer of the skin, not the fat of the body. The fat found in the skin cannot be metabolized and used as fuel. If we are to repair cellulite and stretch marks, we need to focus on repairing the dermis, not on burning fat.
Myth: Cellulite and stretch marks can never improve.
Fact: By simply adding key skin-hydrating, cell-fortifying nutrients to our diets, we can rebuild, re-hydrate, and revitalize our skin, forcing stubborn fat cells back invisibly below the surface and keeping them there.
Dr. Murad pinpoints the culprit: "The actual cause of cellulite is water damage and weakening of the skin cells and connective tissue, causing buoyant fat cells to push into the dermis, the middle layer of the skin and show through the surface."
Now comes Dr. Murad’s two-pronged answer to the cellulite problem: The Murad Firm and Tone Dietary Supplement Pack and Firm and Tone Serum. Used together, the result is cellulite – and, take double note, stretch mark – prevention to the max, and firmer and more flexible skin in just eight weeks. Yes, you read that right – eight weeks!
A true believer of beauty inside out – yes, show off your outer beauty with inner support, he enjoins women – Dr. Murad asserts, "Cellulite is not a new problem. What is new is the solution. The Firm and Tone Dietary Supplement Pack works internally as a definitive scientific roadmap to reduce and reverse dimpling, and improve stretch marks. The result is a reduction in the visible appearance of cellulite and stretch marks plus a comprehensive approach to improving your skin’s firmness."
Murad’s new Firm and Tone Dietary Supplement Pack contains 28 daily packets (seven tablets for day and six tablets for night) loaded with multvitamins/antioxidants (for healthy skin function and microcirculation), essential fatty acids (to hydrate the skin with water-attracting ingredients), cell energizer dietary supplements (to prevent skin cell damage while promoting cellular energy production), and connective tissue dietary supplements (to strengthen blood vessels, promote collagen and elastin production).
On the other hand, Murad’s Firm and Tone Serum contains cat’s claw (uncaria tomentosa extract) picked from the Amazonian forest to provide anti-inflammatory benefits, horse nut tree extract (esculin) to quench free radical damage and stimulate blood flow to restore skin firmness and smoothness, and cayenne pepper (capsicum fruntescens fruit) to stimulate blood vessels to increase circulation.
"It is a breakthrough serum containing encapsulated liposomes that deliver actives to skin tissue layers, assisting with reversing and preventing cellulite and stretch marks," Dr. Murad points out. "Designed to hydrate and exfoliate, the Firm and Tone Serum allows for tight, supple, smooth skin that demands to be seen."
A visionary and a constant innovator, Dr. Murad has indeed revolutionized skincare (think medi-spa, doctor-branded skincare, AHAs, Murad Recipe, infusion technology, pomegranate technology, technoceuticals, Vitalic, Resurgence, and the Murad Method). Author of the hot-selling The Cellulite Solution and Wrinkle-Free Forever, he gives deeper-than-skin-deep answers to questions women have always wanted to ask but didn’t know who to ask:
How does your approach differ from that of other skincare professionals?
DR. HOWARD MURAD: I treat the whole person rather than just their skin condition ... Getting a true picture of my patient’s quality of life is as important in planning their treatment as accurately diagnosing the condition affecting their skin. I can then treat their skin problem internally and externally with the appropriate internal skincare supplements and topical treatments ... Many of my treatments are backed by independent scientific research that proves the results. The most amazing breakthrough is based on what I have coined: The Water Principle. Regardless of what causes aging, disease or cellulite, the ultimate result is loss of water in the cells and connective tissue. The Water Principle is my method for attracting the water we drink into the tissue where it belongs, resulting in overall health and beauty.
The idea that diet alone can help cellulite is fascinating. What foods do you recommend for combating cellulite and which foods should we stay away from?
While diet is only one part of my three-step program, it is critical. To encourage healthy, hydrated cells and connective tissue, I recommend foods such as soy or tofu, cauliflower, spinach, oranges, and tomatoes. They all have lecithin, which strengthens skin and makes it harder for cellulite to show through...
I recommend eating less of these: Butter, margarine, and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils (check for this on packaged snacks); red meat and pork; heavily processed and high-fat cheeese; sugary snacks like cookies, candies, and cakes.
How did you come up with your anti-cellulite eating plan?
I have always believed in the power of healthy eating. My favorite saying is: "Before there were medicines, there were foods." Pomegranates are considered one of the oldest medicines known to man and I have used pomegranate in a standardized extract supplement and also incorporated it topically. Foods and healthy eating, plus consuming the proper amounts of nutrients I have recommended, are key to this program.
Excuse me while I take my Murad skin vitamins.