Summer is a time to celebrate outside with cookouts, swimming, and beach days. Soaking up the sun’s rays is often high on many people’s to-do lists, but if you don’t take proper care of your skin during summer, you risk experiencing skin cancer and premature aging.

Immediate effects of not protecting your skin this summer include mild to severe sunburn, dry and leathery skin, sun spots, freckles, and uneven skin tone. More long-term consequences include melanoma, the most common type of cancer among American adults – so it’s imperative to take care of your skin.

As a board-certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Gale knows the best ways to protect your skin while enjoying your summer to the fullest.

Use Sunscreen

Using a broad-spectrum sunscreen acts as a barrier between your skin and the sun’s harmful UV rays. Even if it’s cloudy outside, the UV rays will still be beating down, so make sure to apply sunscreen on any exposed skin regardless of the weather.

A minimum SPF of 30 works best, with higher SPF better if you’re going swimming or to the beach for several hours. Don’t forget to reapply after sweating or swimming – but dry off first!

Wear a Hat

The backs of your hands, top of the forehead and head, nose, and back of the neck are the most frequent places where skin cancer develops. Since these areas catch most of the sun, wearing a hat is an essential element of summer skin protection.

A broad-brimmed hat is ideal, but any baseball cap will make a significant difference in your skin’s future appearance and health.

Stay out of the Sun During Peak Hours

The sun’s UV rays are most potent when the sun is highest in the sky – between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. If you can, try and stay out of direct sunlight for extended periods during this timeframe to reduce any chance of sunburn, sun spots, and uneven skin tone.

Check Your Skin

Monitoring your skin and any current freckles or moles is an essential step in early detection of concerning issues. Look for any new marks or changes in size, shape, color, and texture of existing spots. If you notice something, book a consultation with an experienced dermatologist to get it checked.

Skin Treatments in Riverton, UT

Taking proper care of your skin this summer is essential for long, worry-free fun in the sun. To discuss the best products and procedures for healthy skin in Riverton, UT, contact us at (801) 506-6344 or fill out our online form today.

The post How to Protect Your Skin This Summer appeared first on Gale Facial Plastics.

In this article, Dr. Gale looks at the best ways to adapt to the changing season and to keep your skin as smooth, healthy, and blemish-free as possible.

Change Your Skin Cleanser

Many of us select a rich balm or lotion for our skin cleanser in winter. These are handy in winter as they often include moisturizing benefits, but as the weather isn’t as dry as spring and summer, it’s good to switch to a gel-based cleanser.

With the warmer temperatures in spring, your skin will start secreting more oils. Gel-based cleansers do a better job at getting through these oils and removing grime than richer balms.  

Stock Up on Water-Based Hydration

Like your cleanser, your skins’ moisturizing needs will change from winter to spring. As the days start getting warmer, water-based hydration does ideally without sitting heavy on your skin, which oils and creams are designed to do during the super-dry winter months.

Do Some Pore Deep-Cleaning with Exfoliation

After winter and the dry air, many people have a pretty thick layer of dead skin cells. The best way to deal with these is through exfoliation or even a cosmetic procedure such as a chemical peel or dermal laser resurfacing.

This process sheds your winter coat to reveal the underlying fresh skin cells, vibrant and ready for spring.

Get In Your Antioxidants

As we start spending more time outside and under the sun come spring, we need to help protect our skin repair itself in the face of inevitable sun exposure.

Antioxidants are one of the best ways to do this, so using a cream or lotion rich in antioxidants should become part of anyone’s spring skincare routine. Antioxidants also help slow the aging process by preventing the breakdown of skin cells.

Start Some Retinol

Retinol is an incredible product for eliminating fine lines, blending skin discoloration, reducing large pores, and brightening dull skin.

As our skin is generally less sensitive in spring than in winter (due to the dry and cold air), spring is a great time to introduce retinol to your skincare routine.

Skincare Procedures in Riverton, UT

As the seasons change, so too do the environmental demands placed on our skin. As such, changing our skincare routine is important to keep the skin as healthy as possible. To discuss the best products and procedures for healthy skin in Riverton, UT, contact Dr. Gale 801 506 6344 or fill out this online form today.

The post Use These Tips to Update Your Skincare Routine This Spring appeared first on Gale Facial Plastics.

With over 7 million Botox injections performed yearly, Botox is by far the number one minimally-invasive cosmetic procedure in the U.S.

Capable of eliminating even the most noticeable wrinkles, Botox is an effective anti-aging treatment that helps patients restore a smooth, youthful appearance to their face.

Here, Dr. Derrick Gale of Gale Facial Plastics takes an in-depth look at the Botox treatment and suggests just how frequently patients should look to get their touch-ups done.

What is Botox?

Botox is a medical-grade product derived from the botulinum toxin, which causes localized paralysis at and around the injection site. The neurotoxin interferes with the communication pathways between nerves and muscles, helping muscles responsible for wrinkling to stop contracting.

Botox is beneficial in areas where dynamic wrinkles form – primarily the forehead and between the eyes.

How Long Does Botox Last?

The duration of Botox’s effects depends mainly on the patient but generally ranges between 3-5 months. The patient’s lifestyle and metabolism are the most influential factors on how long Botox will last. More active people with higher metabolisms see shorter results as their bodies break down the Botox compound faster.

When Should I Start Getting Botox?

Traditionally, patients have turned to Botox once their wrinkles start to become more troublesome.

More recently, however, patients have been getting smaller amounts of Botox earlier to eliminate the initial fine lines and prevent wrinkles from becoming more noticeable.

Generally, wrinkles and fine lines on the forehead and between the brows become more noticeable around the mid-late 30s’, with patients starting to get Botox at this age to counteract the onset of aging.

How Often Should I Get Botox Touch-Ups?

The frequency of Botox touch-ups depends on the patient. Lifestyle, metabolism, and age all play significant factors in determining the frequency of your Botox touch-ups.

It is important not to overdo Botox and consult a trained and experienced surgeon familiar with long-term planning of the treatment. It is best to use Botox sparingly to provide the most natural results for the most prolonged period of time possible.

Botox in Riverton and Salt Lake City, Utah

Restoring and maintaining your youthful appearance is a dream of most patients. Botox is a tried-and-tested treatment that can be used in small doses for years to provide exceptional anti-aging results when administered by a trained, certified, experienced professional. To consult with a leading authority in the business, we encourage you to arrange a commitment-free consultation with Dr. Gale by calling 801 506-6344 or filling out his online form today.

The post How Often Should I Get a Botox® Touch-Up? appeared first on Gale Facial Plastics.

As summer winds down, you may be seeing the effects that all your fun outdoor activities have had on your skin, even adding to the damage that’s been accumulating over the years. These could include wrinkles, scaly patches, age spots, and cracked skin. Even worse, skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, and dermatitis may also flare up during these cold, dry months.

To help repair and refresh your skin, here are our favorite tips on keeping your skin glowing all winter long.

Stay Hydrated

In winter we prefer hot drinks like tea and hot chocolate, and as a result, tend to drink less water. Our skin needs hydration, best provided from the inside by fresh water throughout the day.

Furthermore, once we close the windows and turn up the heat, our homes tend to become very dry. The best way to combat this is to invest in a humidifier, which restores moisture into the air and back into our skin.

Wash in Lukewarm Water

Although taking showers and baths in hot water may feel good in the winter, switching to lukewarm water helps prevent the stripping away of oils from the skin.

Choose Your Moisturizer Carefully

As the air becomes drier, adjust your skincare routine by incorporating an oil-based moisturizer and not one that is water-based. The oil will create a protective barrier on your skin that holds more moisture than a lotion or cream. Night-time moisturizers are often oil-based.

Protect Exposed Areas

While you’ll be wearing gloves and scarves for protection against cold winds, rain, and snow, don’t forget the sunscreen. Since the sun in winter can be just as damaging as it is in summer, before going outdoors, apply a liberal coating of sunscreen of at least SPF 30 as part of your daily skincare routine.

Restoring Your Skin’s Healthy Glow

Following these tips may not reverse all the sun damage that’s accumulated over the years, but with a little help, you can restore your skin’s healthy glow and without the need for surgery.

Dr. Derrick Gale, a board-certified, multi-disciplinary plastic surgeon, offers several non-surgical clinical skincare treatments to improve a wide variety of skin conditions. These can be fully customized to restore your skin’s youthful glow.

Next Steps to Keeping Your Skin Glowing All Winter Long

Apart from following the above tips in taking care of your skin during winter, this is the best time of the year to treat yourself to one of our chemical peels. With your skin becoming especially sensitive afterward, winter is the perfect season for these treatments. Dr. Gale’s customizable surgical and non-surgical cosmetic treatments can remove the signs of premature aging, making your smooth and unblemished skin a reality. Erase years of sun damage and look your best by contacting Gale Facial Plastics in Salt Lake City, UT by calling (801) 506-6344 or scheduling a consultation today!

The post Tips to Keep Your Skin Glowing All Winter Long appeared first on Gale Facial Plastics.

Incurring any form of facial trauma is a distressing life event. Not only does the victim of facial trauma experience psychological damage, but their physical appearance and physical functioning can be severely altered in a traumatic episode.

In the terrible event of you or a loved one experiencing facial trauma, highly specialized and experienced facial reconstructive surgeons offer many procedures that can help restore your appearance.

Depending on the nature of your injuries, your doctor will need to fix traumatic facial lacerations, traumatic facial fractures, or a combination of the two.

Here, Dr. Derrick Gale, a highly respected facial reconstructive specialist and founder of Gale Facial Plastics, explains when and why patients may start considering facial reconstruction.

How Patients Incur Traumatic Facial Injuries

In the United States, there are over 3 million non-fatal traumatic injuries each year, which leave patients with psychological and physical scars and trauma. 

The most common causes of these injuries are from falls, violence, and transport accidents, respectively. Other accidents that often lead to traumatic facial injuries include animal attacks and athletic pursuits.

Depending on the scenario where facial trauma occurred, physical injuries fall into either facial fractures, facial lacerations, or a combination of both. While a patient’s appearance can be significantly changed in such an event, the physiological functions of sight, hearing, chewing, and breathing that can also be impaired in such tragic circumstances.

This is why facial reconstructive surgeons are amongst the most highly specialized surgeons in the field—they are tasked with helping patients get their appearance back and must have the intricate physiological understanding to restore function to traumatically injured facial organs.

Traumatic Facial Lacerations

Facial lacerations occur when the face’s skin or organs are cut or sliced, leaving significant scarring or even removing part or all of the organ completely.

Patients with traumatic facial lacerations will consider facial reconstructive surgery as a way of reducing or eliminating scarring and restoring organ function.

Traumatic Facial Fractures

The brow, eye sockets, cheekbones, and jawbone are the facial features most susceptible to traumatic fractures. In such events, these bones may be broken or shattered in such a way that requires the use of plate-and-screw fixation devices to restore appearance and function.

When Might you Consider Facial Reconstructive Surgery?

For most patients, health insurance will cover facial reconstructive surgery as it is likely to be deemed a necessary surgery—one that is required to maintain quality of life.

As such, you should consider facial reconstructive surgery if you have experienced any form of traumatic accident that has altered your appearance or physiological function. Doctors are here to help, and they can help.

Facial Reconstruction in Riverton and Salt Lake City, Utah

Facial reconstruction is a wonderful solution to a tragic accident. In many cases, facial reconstruction is your best chance at reclaiming some degree of normalcy after a traumatic accident or episode.

But to do so successfully, facial reconstructive surgery demands intense specialization, which is why we strongly encourage all those considering facial reconstructions to consider the doctor carefully.

To consult with a leading specialist in the facial reconstructive fields, we encourage you to arrange a commitment-free consultation with Dr. Gale by calling 801 506-6344 or by filling out his online form.

The post Reasons to Consider Facial Reconstruction appeared first on Gale Facial Plastics.

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Every time you see your face in the mirror, especially as you grow older, are you increasingly taken aback by how dark and drooping your lower eyelids are becoming? Do friends or family make comments about how sad or tired you look even when you’re happy and well-rested?

Dark circles under the lower eyelids are widespread in both men and women of all ages. Often accompanied by bags, these may make you appear older than you really are.

As you age, puffiness under your eyes often becomes more visible. Unfortunately, this drooping of the skin beneath the eyes can happen a lot sooner than you may expect. Regardless of when you first notice it, which could even be in your 20’s, the dark circles and puffiness under your eyes is never welcome.

Causes and Risk Factors Treated at Home

Some of the causes and risk factors leading to dark circles under the eyes can be treated at home, and these include:

• Extreme fatigue: Sleep deprivation can cause dark circles to form under your eyes, allowing for dark tissues and blood vessels to become visible beneath your skin.
• Eye strain: This can cause blood vessels around your eyes to enlarge, and as a result, the skin surrounding your eyes may darken.
• Allergic reactions: When accompanied by eye dryness, this can trigger dark circles as your body releases histamines causing blood vessels to dilate and become more visible beneath your skin.
• Dehydration: When your body is not receiving adequate amounts of water, the skin beneath your eyes may begin to look dull, and your eyes appear sunken.
• Overexposure to the sun:  Too much sun — especially around the eyes — produces an excess of melanin resulting in pigmentation in the surrounding skin to darken.

Causes and Risk Factors Treated With Surgery

If the home remedies, corrective steps, and precautions outlined above are not doing enough to help reduce the dark circles under your eyes, then you should schedule a visit with board-certified, multi-disciplinary plastic surgeon Dr. Derrick Gale. He’ll be able to explain to you how blepharoplasty or eyelid surgery can tighten droopy upper eyelids, reduce bagginess from under your eyes, and help you regain your fresh, vibrant look.

Causes and risk factors leading to dark circles under the eyes that require expert medical advice include:

• Older age: Loss of fatty tissue and the thinning of the skin around the eyes is part of the aging process, making dark circles appear more prominent in older adults.
• Genetics: Dark circles can be hereditary and found in other family members. Having parents with dark eye circles probably means you are more predisposed to have them as well.
• Natural aging: As you get older, you lose the fat, collagen, and elastin needed to maintain your skin’s elasticity, resulting in the darkening of the areas below your eyes.

As part of the aging process, the body gradually stops producing collagen and elastin, which are proteins essential for plump, healthy, and elastic skin. Without these proteins, the skin loses its elastic qualities and begins to sag. Muscle tone deteriorates, and fat diminishes. The natural aging process can affect virtually any area of the body — including the regions around the eyes.

As a result of this loss of collagen and elastin, the upper eyelids often start drooping. When severe enough, this can impede the line of vision, lead to sagging lower eyelids, and result in dark circles or “bags” under the eyes.

Regain That Wide Awake, Youthful Look

To make sure that the appearance of your eyes reflects the way you feel, contact Dr. Gale at the Ear, Nose & Throat Center of Utah in Salt Lake City, UT by calling (801) 506-6344 or scheduling a consultation today! Find out how we can help you restore a rested, vibrant look.

The post What Causes Dark Circles Under the Eyes and How Can You Treat It? | Dr. Gale appeared first on Gale Facial Plastics.