Christmas is just 9 days from today and I thought we could all use some reminder tips on how to avoid overeating, under exercising and staying out of trouble. As with Thanksgiving, we tend to overeat, skip our workout sessions and end up with a few unwelcome pounds, a muddy complexion, often with breakouts, sluggishness and regrets that we lacked the self discipline to avoid these problems.  

Start applying these tips today and enjoy Christmas, all the parties, events and galas and coast through New Years festivities unscathed! See https://www.davinciplastic.com. To overview procedures offered at DAVinci.

1.  Understand your metabolism.  Each person is different and will burn calories at a different rate.

2.  Avoid repeated high calorie meals…for example enjoy Christmas dinner and avoid ongoing eating of the heavy foods.

3.  Eat more living foods (raw fruits & vegetables) like salads.

4.  Eat a filling low calorie meal before heading into the kitchen to cook for the crowd.

5.  Diet before the big day and after it….never diet on party or family reunion days.

6.  Eat smaller portions and still satisfy hunger by chewing your food until it is “liquid.”

7. Immediately freeze leftovers so you’re not tempted to keep eating these rich, calorie dense goodies too handy.

8.  Get back on track with a lighter, healthy diet the next day.

9.  Exercise to suppress hunger pangs.  Often, we’re not really hungry but may be thirsty instead. Drink plenty of pure water and walk 45 minutes each day on a treadmill.  This is scientifically proven to suppress false hunger and rev up your metabolism.

The average American adult gains 2+ pounds per year. This starts early in life. Healthy lifestyle, healthy, living foods and pure water help the body maintain strength, vitality and health.

LAST MINUTE BEAUTY FIXES

There is still time to get Botox or Brotox for an instant forehead/eye lift or an Injectable FaceLift to rejuvenate all three zones of the face, or just do target areas to take years off an aging face.  Microdermabrasion and chemical peels are great for resurfacing the face to allow a brighter, clearer more youthful you to shine through.

 POPULAR QUICK FIXES:  Lip Augmentation using injectable fillers for gorgeous lips now!  Chemical Peels and Dermabrasion resurfacing to rejuvenate dull, tired looking faces and refresh your own youthfulness.  Fat Transfer and Liquid Lift for instant facelifts without surgery and other age defying options to help you put your best self forward during the Holidays.

MORE TIPS for GORGEOUS SKIN … 1) clean your smart phone daily!  It attracts and carries as much bacteria as a toilet bowl according to new data from Stanford University scientists.  2) Clean your face daily – Morning and evening.  3) Be sure to get enough sleep.  It is true lack of sleep affects your entire body’s ability to repair and renew.  This process only occurs during sleep cycles.  4) Eliminate or minimize dairy products (bovine) since cow hormones stimulate our oil glands and pores.  Learn to love Soy, Almond milk and or Rice milk products.

 BABY BOOMERS REACH A NEW PLATEAU!  There were more babies born in 1946 than any other time, totaling 3.4 million and rising steadily every year.  As of 2008 there were 77.3 million American Baby Boomers. This was 40% of the population. It’s understandable why the Boomers have impacted our way of life so strongly.  They claim they are changing the way we live and are just getting started!  This is clearly evident in every developmental field…science, engineering, healthcare,  anti aging research and the list goes on. Boomers believe that aging is “breakdown”, but broken things can be fixed!  Needless to say, this generation firmly believes in “being ageless” and they choose cosmetic procedures to achieve that.  In fact, they are budgeted for every year as part of their routine healthcare regimen.  Boomers believe that if people stay youthful longer, our social systems are stressed less.  Boomers have it right.

More Next Time.

Best to You and Yours,

Steven Davison M.D.

COSMETICS containing Mercury are poisonous.  A new FDA update begs your attention. Many face creams manufactured out of country and sold in the US, illegally contain mercury. Mercury causes serious health problems such as kidney and nervous system damage, poor brain development in the unborn and very young children, breathing/respiratory issues and much more.  Children are exposed simply by touching their mommies and putting fingers into their mouths or by breathing in vapors.  ONE EXAMPLE:  A 39 year old woman from California presented with 100 times more than the average amount of mercury in her urine and symptoms of mercury poisoning.  For three years, she and her husband had been using an unlabeled face cream brought in from Mexico.  Other immediate family members (one 4 year old), who did not use the cream, also had elevated levels of mercury.  Virginia, Maryland and New York have reported similar cases.  Mercury containing products have been found in 7 states so far.  Recent FDA investigations  revealed 35 products with unacceptable levels of mercury.

Products most likely to contain mercury:  skin lighteners, anti aging treatments, acne products, lotions and potions to remove age spots, freckles, blemishes and wrinkles. These are frequently sold online and in Latino, Asian, African or Middle Eastern communities.   Other names for mercury:  mercurous chloride, calomel, mercuric, mercurio or mercury.  Avoid them!  Stop using them if you are using them!

Talk with Nora at DAVinci…she can help you find the right products and skin care regimen for your specific needs.

MEDICAL TOURISM UPDATE:  We enjoy many, many international patients here at DAVinci.  They travel to us for the “Premium” procedures offered and because they know we are educated, trained, skilled, qualified and board certified.  They come because they  can place their confidence and trust in us.  They know we perform only within our realm of expertise, using the safest, yet most advanced techniques and world class technology.  They come because they have experienced the outstanding results and…they bring friends and family members from all over the world.  DAVinci has earned that trust and the privilege of serving so many wonderful people!  My patients have good outcomes and amazing experiences. This is not always the case with medical travel…read on.

SAD TALE of TWO WOMEN!  Two women took a trip to Mexico in hopes of saving $$$$ on plastic surgery costs in the US.  They were excited about getting Tummy Tucks and Breast Augmentations until it was too late.  Both were excited about the discounts for plastic surgery in Tijuana.  They both knew it was too good to turn down.  The YouTube presentation filmed at Jerusalem Hospital in Tijuana was exciting. They went, they saw and they had surgeries.  The excitement turned to horror when the bandages came off and one of the women saw skin hanging out of her incisions.  Within two weeks both women required medical treatment and hospitalization…one was near death.  They have survived and want other women to take heed!  They ignored certain signs and trusted medical people who clearly were not qualified. Enough said.

BOARD CERTIFICATION…in the United States does not guarantee specific outcomes.  It does ensure that the surgeons’ training is beyond the norm, with honed skills, a vast knowledge base, and years of experience.  Please choose carefully…here at home.  The American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery has a find a surgeon option on their website.  If travel to DAVinci is not an option…find a qualified surgeon in your area using this website.

Fall is here!  Are you ready for the Holidays?  Need Brotox, Mommy Makeover, Daddy DoOver, anti aging facial treatments…and so much more.  Come and see me.

Best to You and Yours,

Steven Davison M.D.

“DAVinci…where I combine the supreme elements of art and surgical science.”

Thanksgiving Day…with all the great, rich foods can easily cause us to get off track from our normal healthy routine.  Even though many of the foods we traditionally serve up during the Holidays are very healthy… Americans typically have a problem with eating too much at Thanksgiving…soon followed by Office/work parties, school events, and then Christmas…not to forget New Years!

I OFFER YOU A FEW TIPS YOU CAN START TODAY…

1. Get back to normal portions…as soon as possible.
2. Divide leftovers into single servings and freeze…this works especially well for pies, cakes, cookies, etc that are freezer friendly.  Pulling out one piece of cake helps resist the temptation of ongoing over indulgence.
3. This tip is too late for Thanksgiving…but valuable for the rest of this year’s events:  Eat and savor the foods you really enjoy…skip those that are just “ok.”
4. Get back to eating lots of raw fruits, vegies, whole grains and beans.  To produce and maintain new cell growth…and inhibit cancer growth.
5. Replenish Folate for a few days after partying and ingesting alcohol.  (per the ADA)
6. Rev up or restore your metabolism with Cardio workouts and add weight bearing exercise to increase metabolism throughout the entire day.  Increasing your cardio activity burns calories and ft all day long.
7. SLEEP…many of us go into a family reunion setting during the Holidays…sleep deprived.  So, to function optimally, stay healthy and be mentally and emotionally alert and happy…try to get enough sleep…add an extra hour during time of work.
8. Take your own pillow with you when you are traveling.  Sleeping in different environments can be difficult.  Sleeping on your own pillow assures at least that comfort and take a mask and ear plugs if you will be in a familiar….energized environment.
9. Never arrive at your host destination ravenous!  Eat a healthy snack to curb your appetite.
10. At parties socialize more and eat less. This helps keep your focus on others…not your appetite.
11. If you plan to indulge in a big meal…then swap calories by eating a salad for lunch.
12. Drink lots of pure water!  The body does not recognize any substitutes for water.  You should drink at least half your body weight in ounces of water.  If you weigh 120 lbs….your body requires 60 ounces of water everyday.  Iced teas, coffee, herb teas, juice, soda etc.do not count towards your water intake.
13. Remember…from my last blog…an attitude of gratitude and sharing that gratitude with others generates many benefits in our lives!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving…a time of expressing gratitude, celebrating our American Way of Life and spending time with those we love and cherish.

Best to All,

Steven Davison M.D.

“DAVinci…where we combine the supreme elements of art and surgical science.”

Well, I’ve been writing about facial procedures and cheek augmentation is one of the most popular anti aging options we do to instantly take years off the face.

Cheeks are critical to overall facial balance because they are a woman’s most feminine (dynamic for men) facial feature.  Aging causes the malar fat pad to deflate as facial fat is lost and the cheeks become flat, depressed and hollow looking. The malar fat pads are a small area of fat that sits on the cheekbone just under the lower eyelid.

Cheek Augmentation using Fat Grafting is one of my favorite ways to conquer this part of facial aging.  Using your own natural fat involves harvesting small amounts from areas of plenty, treating it and then injecting it in precise amounts into pre targeted areas. This micro fat grafting process (also called autologous fat transfer) is great because it is safe, effective and without allergic reactions.

Fat Grafting augmentation restores youthful, healthy volume and shape without surgery…and achieves long lasting results.

Other Fat Grafting Benefits…Surgeons around the world are also discovering that the higher the quality of fat being used, the better the results…including active stem cells that rejuvenate the skin.  Often, patients who have had fat grafting see their skin quality improve dramatically improve.   We also now know that at least 50% of fat grafting procedures offer permanent results, and those patients who continue to maintain using autologous fat grafting require fewer treatments with those treatments gradually spacing farther apart.  Patients also report fewer lines, wrinkles and hollows.  

Implants and Injectable fillers are the other options to correct aging cheeks and recreate youth.  We’ll get more into that again later.  See previous blogs written on both subjects and visit my website for comprehensive info on all procedures: https://www.davinciplastic.com.

IDEAL CHEEKS ARE:  oval shaped and plump, sit high on the face and taper inward.

HOW IDEAL CHEEKS BALANCE THE FACE: cheeks provide definition between the eyes, cheeks and lower face preventing overall flat looking features.

HOW OTHER FACIAL FEATURES ARE AFFECTED: beautiful cheeks draw attention away from the nose and can crete a lifting effect that gives fullness to the lower part of the face.

FLAT CHEEKS = LOSS OF FACIAL BALANCE.

AGE DEFYING CONTOURED CHEEKS: provide better facial symmetry by adding some fullness and width for a natural look.  Improving overall facial balance can make the face look more youthful.

Often, just a few minor tweaks can make enhance the whole dynamic of your face.

Holidays will be upon us soon…I have decades of experience with combining the right procedures at the right time…for the optimal outcome.  At DAVinci we defy aging everyday.  I’m here to help you put your best face forward!

Steven Davison  M.D.

“DAVinci…where we combine the supreme elements of art and surgical science.