What Is Cellulite?

Cellulite is an overgrowth and bulging of fat cells that cause the fibers underneath the skin to contract. The fibers under the skin pull down, while the fat cells push upward—giving the skin a cottage cheese look. Cellulite appears in common areas of fat deposits like the thighs, buttocks, hips and abdomen. Although cellulite is not a serious medical condition, it can be unsightly and could leave you feeling self-conscious. Mild cases occur only when the skin is pinched, but in some cases, the cellulite is severely apparent on its own.

What Causes Cellulite?

Having cellulite doesn’t mean you’re overweight. People of all sizes can have cellulite, and various factors influence the visibility of cellulite on your body.

Factors that affect how much cellulite you have and how visible it is include:

• Poor eating habits and dieting trends like fad diets
• Metabolism rate
• Inactivity
• Changes in hormone levels
• If you are dehydrated
• Your total amount of body fat
• Coloring of your skin. Cellulite is less noticeable on darker skin tones.

Women are more likely to have cellulite than men. If the women in your family have cellulite, chances are you will, too.

Treating Unwanted Cellulite

Treatments for cellulite include: topical treatments or creams such as retinol, surgical solutions such as liposuction, laser treatments, and mesotherapy.

Mesotheraphy is a way of treating stubborn pockets of fat that cannot be removed with traditional methods like diet and exercise. Mesotherapy involves small doses of different medications being administered to specific areas of the body subcutaneously.

• Cellulite therapy. This is a non-invasive procedure that injects different ingredients directly into the areas being treated to break down the different components of cellulite. Some of the ingredients used in the solution with target the contracting fibers under your skin while others will work to optimize the fat cells to break up and eventually dissipate into your bloodstream. This treatment will be customized to you and your needs.
• Body contouring. This is another cellulite treatment option that in non-invasive and ideal for someone who has just undergone a medical weight loss program. Body contouring targets specific areas where your body holds stubborn pockets of fat. Like the ingredients in cellulite therapy, body contouring injections work to break down the fact and dissolve it into your bloodstream so that it may be secreted naturally.

Cellulite is a common issue, and with the right treatment plan, you can work to reduce it. In many cases, lifestyle changes to incorporate weight loss, exercise and healthy nutrition along with medical treatments can make a significant difference to the appearance of cellulite.