Botox is great – if it’s used correctly and responsibly. The treatments do not require any anaesthetic, the results are almost instant, they make you look younger, the treatment doesn’t take very long and there is no down time. Botox is now becoming a trend, rather than just for the reduction of a few lines and wrinkles as we get older. According to the BBC, ‘in the UK, around 100,000 Botox injections are carried out each year’. Since the rise in Social Media Influencers such as the Kardashians, young adults are actively seeking Botox treatments, lip fillers and butt lifts, all to meet the ‘new beauty standards’.
Botox is a medical treatment
Botox is a prescription only treatment, ideally administered by a registered practitioner. Botox treatments are not cheap – this is because of the risk that is involved with the treatment and, as you would expect, a good practitioner doesn’t come cheap. Not just anyone is allowed to administer Botox, but the scary thing is, it is commonly injected by people who are not registered practitioners or beauticians, who are not governed by any regulations.
This takes us down a scary path, as not many people are aware of this. So many young adults are searching the internet for Botox treatments and finding deals on voucher sites. This seems great on the outset, but this leads to many problems.
Jeremy Kyle discusses the risks of irresponsible injections
In a recent documentary, Jeremy Kyle has highlighted the issue within the facial aesthetics industry where beauty therapists can be trained in injectables over a course of a few days.
Jeremy Kyle admits he regularly gets Botox, but is concerned that other practitioners are not as responsible as his practitioner, especially with the rise in complaints. Jeremy Kyle reported that ‘non-medics caused 83% of reported complications’ and ‘some even lie about their credentials’.
So it seems, the problem is not only the lack of knowledge around the Botox regulations, but also the people making false statements, claiming to have the right qualifications.
The rise in demand for Botox
Jeremy Kyle believes the rise in demand for Botox treatments comes as a result of social media and reality TV, suggesting ‘Love Island contestants fuel increased demand’.
It appears that these treatments are becoming more than just a trend – an obsession and a necessity. Jeremy Kyle speaks to a mum and daughter, who aspired to look like Katie Price. In their conversation, they blamed social media and peer pressure to look a certain way, especially with influencers like Kim Kardashian.
The ITV documentary reveals that ‘62% of people found their Botox practitioner on social media’ and this is because young girls with less disposable income will use social media and voucher sites to find the cheapest deals, without really knowing the risks they are taking.
Jeremy speaks to a 19 year old girl who was seeking lip fillers and was reassured that her administer was a registered nurse. Straight after the treatment, lumps in her lips appeared and the only advice she was given was to massage it. Just a few days later it became clear there was a more serious problem, her lips were stuck to her pillow and it looked more like a burn wound. She eventually went to the emergency doctors who advised if she had left it any longer, she could have ended up with septicaemia because it was such a bad infection. The nurse then blocked her on Social Media and could not be contacted. She admits that she should have researched her practitioner beforehand and has learnt from her lesson, but at the same time it’s not fair that people are administering these treatments when they should not be.
Jeremy Kyle reported last year there were approximately 1,000 reported complications. Once the information was analysed, it was discovered that 48% were aged 18-25, two thirds of problems related to dermal fillers, and 72% of those were lip injections.
The future of Botox
Ashton Collins, the Director of Save Face, created a government approved register of practitioners to help people make safer choices. Unqualified and irresponsible practitioners are giving the industry a bad name and putting people’s lives at risk. Ashton explains just how much the industry has changed over the last 20-30 years, as it was predominantly qualified practitioners such as doctors, nurses and dentists, but unfortunately there is no legislation so anyone can get away with it. They have seen a rise in people ordering the treatments over the internet, not receiving any training and watching YouTube videos in order to learn how to administer. This can lead to unsafe, unclean services and some serious consequences. Save Face was created to help people find safe and qualified practitioners. Botox should be administered by a medical practitioner, just like here at Changes Clinic.
Ashton explains that beauticians are accountable to nobody, and as explained earlier, can easily disappear if anything goes wrong. Reports show that almost 25% of complaints are ignored by the injector, they tend to cut corners with no comeback and 30% of the products are imported from abroad. The problem with this is that it makes it difficult for people to know who to trust and products that are imported are not do not adhere to UK standards so you have no idea what they are putting in your body. Medical practitioners are qualified (years of medical school!), will achieve the right results, they have a duty of care to all clients and are accountable to a statutory register.
Jeremy goes out in the field to see for himself
Ashton and Jeremy look into these by conducting their own field research and find that it is not just social media and voucher sites, but beauticians along the high street are irresponsibly (and illegally) administering injectables and even some training academies are teaching beginners within just a couple of days how to inject these treatments.
If you want Botox, prior to the treatment you should be referred to a medical professional, the qualified and registered prescriber, who will conduct checks and ask you questions to ensure you are fit for treatment. It was scary to see that in some of these beauty salons, the checks were just a couple of questions from the receptionist. Now doesn’t that just ring alarm
bells!
Ashton says ‘You can see why young girls see these treatments as nothing more than just another beauty treatment. It can be misleading as you think, if there are in a salon, they must be qualified but without asking the questions and doing your due diligence, you don’t actually know!’
‘People just want to make quick money but cannot be held accountable by a governing body and that’s putting people at risk.’
Department of Health and Social Care speaks out
ITV contacted the Department of Health and Social Care who said ‘they are concerned about the “growth or risky cosmetic procedures” being delivered by poorly regulated practitioners and acknowledged that we are in danger of “cosmetic procedures becoming like going to the hairdressers” but the “risks associated with a procedure going wrong are so much worse” they said they are currently “exploring options to strengthen regulations” and improve safety through “better training, robust qualifications and better information” so people can make “informed decisions about their care.”
It’s such a shame that irresponsible people are giving the industry a bad name, as well as putting innocent people at risk.
This shouldn’t put you off getting treatments, you should be able to get these done in a safe environment at a professional clinic.
Here are a few top tips to minimise the risk of being caught out:
- Take the treatment as seriously as it is, Botox is a medical treatment
- Make sure you do your research and go to a professional and qualified practitioner
- Make sure your practitioner is registered and insured
- Don’t use their social media following/influence to gauge their competence
- Just because someone else has used them before, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do your own due diligence checks
- If something about the procedure doesn’t seem right, or they don’t conduct any checks, then make sure you stop them and ask any questions.
Thinking of getting Botox but not sure where to start? Contact us today for a free consultation with one of our respected and expert practitioners.