inflammation

Lipedema symptom relief with ultrasound massage and phototherapy

Lipedema symptom relief with ultrasound massage and phototherapy

Lipedema is a genetic condition which mainly affects women and where the adipose tissue of the legs and arms gradually expands uncontrollably after puberty. Healthy diet and exercise do help slow down its progression but they are not sufficient to stop the development of lipedema completely or to reverse it. The only real solution to lipedema reduction is specialist liposuction. It seems that Austria and Germany are the best places to have lipedema surgery, as many surgeons specialise in it in those countries. Unfortunately treatments that do help with other fat reduction, especially cellulite fat reduction, do not sufficiently help with lipedema fat reduction. For this reason we do not use our deep-acting, high-power...

"If you do any other exercise than Pilates you will inflame your body". Seriously?

"If you do any other exercise than Pilates you will inflame your body". Seriously?

A client asked me a few days ago if this “advice”, given to her by a complementary health practitioner, is true: “You should not do any other exercise than Pilates, otherwise you will inflame your body”. This, of course, is an absolutely preposterous statement which goes against all common sense. You can only imagine the millions of inflamed athletes - or just billions of inflamed active common people - since the dawn of humanity all the way until the 1920s, when Joseph Pilates developed a method of exercise that would not inflame the human body…

Fibrosis, cellulite and fibrous cellulite: what is the connection?

Fibrosis, cellulite and fibrous cellulite: what is the connection?

Fibrosis is one of the most important aspects of cellulite, together with fat accumulation, water retention, inflammation and skin laxity. Fibrosis in cellulite refers to excess accumulation and contraction of collagen in the skin ligaments (retinaculae, also known as septae) that connect skin with the fascia underneath. Fibrosis occurs at the deepest skin layer called the hypodermis…

How to prevent cellulite? Fall in love with veggies, salads, seaweed, herbs and spices.

How to prevent cellulite? Fall in love with veggies, salads, seaweed, herbs and spices.

This is one of the most common questions we are asked: “What are the best foods to fights cellulite?”. To which the instant answer is: “Above all else, have as many low calorie, high fibre, high polyphenol/carotenoid foods as you can”. But why is that? Low in calories: no need to discuss this more, it’s pretty obvious. High in fibre: because they fill you up without calories and prevent you from consuming too much fat/carbs; and because they help balance your gut microbiota (i.e. boost the good bacteria in your gut), which has an anti-inflammatory effect and can indirectly prevent water retention. High in polyphenol/carotenoids (what some people would identify as “antioxidants”): because most carotenoids and polyphenols have a multi-prong anti-cellulite effect…

Escin may reduce water retention and cellulite due to an anti-inflammatory effect

Escin may reduce water retention and cellulite due to an anti-inflammatory effect

Escin may reduce inflammation and oedema by acting as a steroid - without the side effects of steroids. This paper states “the anti-inflammatory effects of escin were related to down-regulation of pro-inflammatory mediators (ie, PGE2, TNF-α, and IL-1β), through the increased expression of the glucocorticoid receptor”. In plain English this means that the horse chestnut extract escin (and most probably its chemical cousin esculin, which has similar activity) acts on the same receptor that corticosteroids act.

Cellulite is an inflammatory tissue, similar to visceral fat

Cellulite is an inflammatory tissue, similar to visceral fat

Of course cellulite does NOT protect from stroke and dementia (contrary to tabloid clickbait articles). Visceral fat is an inflammatory fat tissue that can cause conditions such as stroke and dementia, while subcutaneous fat is more innocuous. However, cellulite is NOT subcutaneous fat…

Collagenase injections for cellulite: the delusion is over

Collagenase injections for cellulite: the delusion is over

These medicalised beauty procedures have quite often led to an artificial or even deformed look on the face or the body; quite a lot of adverse reactions; and in the end little actual benefit. A good example of this trend for instant results via the unnecessary and irrational butchering of internal tissues, are collagenase injections to literally dissolve down the excess collagen found in cellulite. This is achieved with a collagen-dissolving enzyme found in an injectable called “collagenase clostridium histolyticum-aaes”…

How fried food causes cellulite, aging and skin looseness

How fried food causes cellulite, aging and skin looseness

When to comes to cellulite, skin looseness and even overall health, fried food is one of the worst type of foods you can possibly put in your mouth. Fried oils/fats are damaged fats which accumulate in cell membranes, causing chronic, low-grade, whole-body inflammation and damage to all organs and tissues in the whole body, including blood vessels and skin.

Inflammaging and cellulite

Inflammaging and cellulite

Inflammaging (ageing due to inflammation / inflammation due to ageing) is defined as an age-related increase in the levels of pro-inflammatory markers in blood and tissues. Inflammaging is a fancy recent name for an older term, "chronic, low grade inflammation", which has been used for more than two decades and it refers to both whole body ageing and skin ageing. Mild chronic inflammation is generally considered to be a biomarker of accelerated biological ageing, which can result in both health and aesthetic conditions, including skin ageing and cellulite…

Cellulite vs visceral fat vs subcutaneous fat: the differences

Cellulite vs visceral fat vs subcutaneous fat: the differences

Adipose (fat) tissue, i.e. what we call ‘body fat’, stores calories in the body in the form of ‘triglycerides’, which is the technical name for all fats and oils. In addition, adipose tissue also secretes hormones-like substances, called adipokines, such as resistin, adiponectin, leptin, tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) and even estrogen…

Hydrogenated fats and oils and cellulite

Hydrogenated fats and oils and cellulite

Hydrogenated fats/oils comprise one of the worst food groups you can put in your mouth. Also known as trans fatty acids or simply trans fats, hydrogenated oils are man-made fats that accumulate in cell and mitochondrial membranes in the entire body, displacing normal lipids…