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June 25, 2007 Beautiful Forever Press Release - Demographic Analysis
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June 21, 2007
Erasing Tattoos, Out of Regret or for a New Canvas
By NATASHA SINGER
Published: June 17, 2007
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- Kelly Brannigan was suffering from a case of tattoo remorse.
Just a year ago, Ms. Brannigan, 24, who holds up Case No. 24 as one of the models on the NBC game show "Deal or No Deal," had been full of hope when she and her fiancé had each other's names tattooed across their inner wrists.
But now, when she looks at the letters -- P-A-T-R-I-C-K -- she is reminded of the failed relationship.
For help, she turned to Dr. Tattoff, a chain of tattoo removal stores where nurses use lasers in a series of treatments to break down tattoo pigments. Dr. Tattoff is part of a growing industry catering to people who may not have thought about the implications of "forever" the first time around.
Removing tattoos is costly, uncomfortable and time-consuming, but the affinity for body art is so strong that some people say they do it to clear space to tattoo all over again.
Many dermatologists specialize in laser tattoo removal, and some laser hair-removal centers are adding services. In California, there are removal centers like Dr. Tattoff, Tat2BeGone and Tattoo MD.
Most of Dr. Tattoff's clients are women ages 25 to 35, said James Morel, the chief executive of the company, which has given more than 13,000 tattoo laser treatments since opening here in 2004. "Maybe women are getting more tattoos than they used to," Mr. Morel said, "or maybe they just have a higher level of tattoo regret than men."
On the horizon is a development that could change the very nature of tattooing: a type of ink encapsulated in beads and designed to break up after one treatment with a special laser.
The technology for the ink, called Freedom-2, was developed by scientists from Massachusetts General Hospital, and Brown and Duke Universities. It is to go on sale this fall.
For complete article go to:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/17/us/17tattoo.html
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Some Seek Surgical Solution for 'Outies,' Eyebrows
Cosmetic Procedures on the Rise to Perfect Unlikely Body Parts
From GMA, April 28, 2007
The great American obsession with vanity knows few bounds. No body part seems off-limits and yet it's still surprising what some people will do to "enhance" their appearance. Forget tummy tucks; it seems belly buttons and toes are the new rage.
Belly buttons? The operation is actually called umbilicoplasty.
"Women are thinking, I have an outie. I hate my outie. What can I do to fix it?" said Dr. Michael Rose, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon. "[The surgery] can be easily explained as transforming an outie belly button into an innie belly button."
But some women weren't necessarily born with an outie.
Alyssa Jaronko, a fitness instructor and mother of three, knew that an umbilicoplasty was right for her.
"After I had children, my belly button definitely did not look how it used to," Jaronko said. "All the exercise I could do in the world was not going to fix this skin."
Dr. Rose agrees.
"From having the children inside of her abdomen, they caused hernias to happen, one actually inside the belly button which pushed the belly button out and gave her an outie," he said.
And now, with her innie belly button restored, Jaronko feels more confident about her body.
"The fact that I can now wear a bikini again is exciting," Jaronko said. "It's back to a normal belly button as if somebody who never had kids."
"Springtime is always when we see a huge spike in cosmetic procedures that affect the body," Dr. Michael Rose said. "People are thinking about the beach and how they're going to look."
For women unhappy with their toes, there is also a surgical solution.
For podiatrist Dr. Oliver Zong, business is booming because so many women want a face-lift for their feet.
Zong performs 30 to 40 cosmetic toe surgeries a month -- everything from toe straightening and shortening to a pinky-toe tuck, a procedure in which fat is taken out of the toe to make it narrower.
After her foot surgery, Christine Fortis said she no longer has to suffer in style.
"I spent my entire life feeling very self-conscious about my feet, never feeling comfortable to wear open-toed shoes," she said. "This spring and summer, my feet will not see a pair of sneakers. They're going to be shown off in every type of flip-flop sandal I can get my hands on."
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Health/story?id=3095293&page=1
AOL Hot Searches
Top Searched Cosmetic Procedures
Ever since I was younger, my mom insisted that I should get a nose job. My reaction was, "No, thanks!" But until now, she still stares at my nose once in a while, at which point I just roll my eyes. So no, I have not had a nose job.
But getting cosmetic procedures has probably been on everyone's mind. Come on, just admit it! Don't believe me? Check out what people are interested in getting for cosmetic procedures.
This week's top searched cosmetic procedures on AOL Search:
1) Breast augmentation
2) Tummy tuck
3) Liposuction
4) Botox
5) Breast reduction
6) Breast lift
7) Microdermabrasion
8) Nose job
9) Eyelid surgery
10) Face lift
http://hotsearches.aol.com/2007/06/12/top-searched-cosmetic-procedures?ncid=AOLSEA00020000000019
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Healthiest Massages
Allison Van Dusen
When Chicago-area massage therapist Marilyn Kier opened her own business about 11 years ago, it mostly consisted of on-site corporate chair massages. In recent few years, however, she's shifted to using massage to treat repetitive strain injuries and various types of chronic pain.
Today, Kier sees many people via referrals from orthopedists, cardiologists and other physicians, who view massage as a way to help their patients heal.
"More and more people hear from others that their pain was helped," says Kier, who says she has a six-week long appointment waiting list. "You can't argue with results."
Relaxation, of course, is still a major motivation for getting a rubdown.
But almost 30% of those who had a massage in the past five years said they did so for medical or health reasons other than stress relief, according to a 2006 survey by the American Massage Therapy Association. Their reasons included recovery from an injury, pain reduction, headache control and overall health and wellness.
Massage is also popping up more frequently in patients' discussions with doctors. About 9 million more people talked about massage therapy with a health-care provider in 2006 than they did five years ago. And the number of people who indicated their massage was paid for by insurance or a co-pay doubled from 5% in 2005 to 10% in 2006, according to the survey.
Kier expects more insurance companies to step up as medical research continues confirming the health benefits of massage. A study published in the Dec. 11 Archives of Internal Medicine, performed by the Yale Prevention Research Center and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, showed Swedish massage may be a safe and effective way to reduce pain and improve the functional ability of adults with osteoarthritis of the knee. Benefits persisted eight weeks after the four-month-long study.
"Given the knowledge of massage we have right now, I think we'll be reading much more about its variety of applications over the coming years," says Dr. David Katz, director of Yale's Prevention Research Center and the study's senior investigator.
Healing Touch
Hospitals are getting in on the game, too. A biannual 2006 survey of hospitals across the U.S. conducted by Health Forum, a subsidiary of the American Hospital Association, showed the number of hospitals offering massage therapy has increased by more than one-third in two years.
Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital in Texas, which opened its doors in December 2006, offers body, foot and hand massages for patients, as well as infant massage to soothe crying babies. Employees in need of a pick-me-up also can have chair massages. The program came about when officials began the design process for the replacement facility three years ago, says Chief Patient Care Officer Susan White.
"We determined we had an opportunity to change our model of care, recognizing that health care had been delivered the same way for over 50 years," White says.
Offering free 15-minute massages to hospital patients, who are typically under stress, makes a lot of sense since research has shown it can reduce anxiety, heart rates, blood pressure and even the amount of pain people feel, White says.
Well ahead of the trend, Stanford Hospital & Clinics has been offering Swedish massage to patients since 1993. The facility has eight massage therapists, who talk to nursing staff to make sure patients are ready for a massage once they've requested one. Therapists also discuss with patients the areas they'd like to have addressed.
Options include a pregnancy and postpartum massage to help relieve a woman's lower back pain and increase blood circulation and a stretching massage that pulls or extends muscles. Stretching is popular among active patients who want to keep limber despite being on bed rest, says Teresa Reyna, director of programs and operations for Stanford Hospital & Clinics.
While Stanford charges $30 for a 30-minute treatment, it hasn't hurt interest.
"We have so many requests for massage," Reyna says, "that we can't meet all the demand."
for complete article go to:
http://www.forbes.com/2007/06/07/health-massage-wellbeing-forbeslife-cx
_avd_0611health.html
|
More teens go under knife for new look
By LEEZEL TANGLAO and ROCKY SALMON
The Press-Enterprise
It hasn't exactly replaced part-time jobs or family vacations on the summertime to-do list, but plastic surgery has become more popular among teenagers this time of year, doctors say.
And for the families that can afford it, a nose job or new breasts are showing up on graduation-gift lists that have traditionally included a car, computer or a trip to Hawaii.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons reported that nearly 94,000 teenagers, ages 19 and under, underwent some kind of cosmetic surgical procedure in 2006, not including minimally invasive treatments like Botox or chemical peels. In 1996, about 11,500 cosmetic surgeries were performed on patients 18 and under. In 2002, the number had grown to nearly 81,000.
The most common plastic surgeries among young people are nose reshaping, male breast reductions, breast implants and lifts, and liposuction.
And those operations can run anywhere from $3,000 to $12,000.
Dr. Kelly Gallego, a plastic surgeon with offices in Irvine and Corona, said each summer he sees a spike in young patients. They have more time available for surgery and recovery, he said, and while he doesn't ask his patients specifically, he says he thinks some of them are being rewarded for graduation.
"It's not a huge spike," said Gallego, who has operated his Corona office for four years. "But it is noticeable."
Child psychologists, women's rights activists and plastic surgeons all agree that surgery among teenagers is on the rise, especially at graduation time.
"In many families, the kids get whatever they want," said Diane Zuckerman, president of the National Research Center for Women and Families, a nonprofit group that studies trends among American families. "They got the clothes, the car, the vacation ... what's left? How about new breasts?"
Some plastic surgeons warn that parents and plastic-surgery bound teens have to weigh medical risks, future costs and the emotional impact.
'Not Reversible Options'
"Your teen is still growing and these are not reversible options, or gifts you can easily return to Tiffany's," said Dr. James Wells, past president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons and the California Society of Plastic Surgeons.
Supporters say plastic surgery builds self-esteem at a perfect time in the patient's lives -- just as they're going off to college or starting something new.
for complete article go to:
http://www.pe.com/localnews/sbcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_D_
gradgift13.3ea84e1.html#
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June 25, 2007 Beautiful Forever Press Release - Demographic Analysis
|
June 21, 2007
Erasing Tattoos, Out of Regret or for a New Canvas
By NATASHA SINGER
Published: June 17, 2007
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- Kelly Brannigan was suffering from a case of tattoo remorse.
Just a year ago, Ms. Brannigan, 24, who holds up Case No. 24 as one of the models on the NBC game show "Deal or No Deal," had been full of hope when she and her fiancé had each other's names tattooed across their inner wrists.
But now, when she looks at the letters -- P-A-T-R-I-C-K -- she is reminded of the failed relationship.
For help, she turned to Dr. Tattoff, a chain of tattoo removal stores where nurses use lasers in a series of treatments to break down tattoo pigments. Dr. Tattoff is part of a growing industry catering to people who may not have thought about the implications of "forever" the first time around.
Removing tattoos is costly, uncomfortable and time-consuming, but the affinity for body art is so strong that some people say they do it to clear space to tattoo all over again.
Many dermatologists specialize in laser tattoo removal, and some laser hair-removal centers are adding services. In California, there are removal centers like Dr. Tattoff, Tat2BeGone and Tattoo MD.
Most of Dr. Tattoff's clients are women ages 25 to 35, said James Morel, the chief executive of the company, which has given more than 13,000 tattoo laser treatments since opening here in 2004. "Maybe women are getting more tattoos than they used to," Mr. Morel said, "or maybe they just have a higher level of tattoo regret than men."
On the horizon is a development that could change the very nature of tattooing: a type of ink encapsulated in beads and designed to break up after one treatment with a special laser.
The technology for the ink, called Freedom-2, was developed by scientists from Massachusetts General Hospital, and Brown and Duke Universities. It is to go on sale this fall.
For complete article go to:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/17/us/17tattoo.html
|
Some Seek Surgical Solution for 'Outies,' Eyebrows
Cosmetic Procedures on the Rise to Perfect Unlikely Body Parts
From GMA, April 28, 2007
The great American obsession with vanity knows few bounds. No body part seems off-limits and yet it's still surprising what some people will do to "enhance" their appearance. Forget tummy tucks; it seems belly buttons and toes are the new rage.
Belly buttons? The operation is actually called umbilicoplasty.
"Women are thinking, I have an outie. I hate my outie. What can I do to fix it?" said Dr. Michael Rose, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon. "[The surgery] can be easily explained as transforming an outie belly button into an innie belly button."
But some women weren't necessarily born with an outie.
Alyssa Jaronko, a fitness instructor and mother of three, knew that an umbilicoplasty was right for her.
"After I had children, my belly button definitely did not look how it used to," Jaronko said. "All the exercise I could do in the world was not going to fix this skin."
Dr. Rose agrees.
"From having the children inside of her abdomen, they caused hernias to happen, one actually inside the belly button which pushed the belly button out and gave her an outie," he said.
And now, with her innie belly button restored, Jaronko feels more confident about her body.
"The fact that I can now wear a bikini again is exciting," Jaronko said. "It's back to a normal belly button as if somebody who never had kids."
"Springtime is always when we see a huge spike in cosmetic procedures that affect the body," Dr. Michael Rose said. "People are thinking about the beach and how they're going to look."
For women unhappy with their toes, there is also a surgical solution.
For podiatrist Dr. Oliver Zong, business is booming because so many women want a face-lift for their feet.
Zong performs 30 to 40 cosmetic toe surgeries a month -- everything from toe straightening and shortening to a pinky-toe tuck, a procedure in which fat is taken out of the toe to make it narrower.
After her foot surgery, Christine Fortis said she no longer has to suffer in style.
"I spent my entire life feeling very self-conscious about my feet, never feeling comfortable to wear open-toed shoes," she said. "This spring and summer, my feet will not see a pair of sneakers. They're going to be shown off in every type of flip-flop sandal I can get my hands on."
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Health/story?id=3095293&page=1
AOL Hot Searches
Top Searched Cosmetic Procedures
Ever since I was younger, my mom insisted that I should get a nose job. My reaction was, "No, thanks!" But until now, she still stares at my nose once in a while, at which point I just roll my eyes. So no, I have not had a nose job.
But getting cosmetic procedures has probably been on everyone's mind. Come on, just admit it! Don't believe me? Check out what people are interested in getting for cosmetic procedures.
This week's top searched cosmetic procedures on AOL Search:
1) Breast augmentation
2) Tummy tuck
3) Liposuction
4) Botox
5) Breast reduction
6) Breast lift
7) Microdermabrasion
8) Nose job
9) Eyelid surgery
10) Face lift
http://hotsearches.aol.com/2007/06/12/top-searched-cosmetic-procedures?ncid=AOLSEA00020000000019
|
Healthiest Massages
Allison Van Dusen
When Chicago-area massage therapist Marilyn Kier opened her own business about 11 years ago, it mostly consisted of on-site corporate chair massages. In recent few years, however, she's shifted to using massage to treat repetitive strain injuries and various types of chronic pain.
Today, Kier sees many people via referrals from orthopedists, cardiologists and other physicians, who view massage as a way to help their patients heal.
"More and more people hear from others that their pain was helped," says Kier, who says she has a six-week long appointment waiting list. "You can't argue with results."
Relaxation, of course, is still a major motivation for getting a rubdown.
But almost 30% of those who had a massage in the past five years said they did so for medical or health reasons other than stress relief, according to a 2006 survey by the American Massage Therapy Association. Their reasons included recovery from an injury, pain reduction, headache control and overall health and wellness.
Massage is also popping up more frequently in patients' discussions with doctors. About 9 million more people talked about massage therapy with a health-care provider in 2006 than they did five years ago. And the number of people who indicated their massage was paid for by insurance or a co-pay doubled from 5% in 2005 to 10% in 2006, according to the survey.
Kier expects more insurance companies to step up as medical research continues confirming the health benefits of massage. A study published in the Dec. 11 Archives of Internal Medicine, performed by the Yale Prevention Research Center and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, showed Swedish massage may be a safe and effective way to reduce pain and improve the functional ability of adults with osteoarthritis of the knee. Benefits persisted eight weeks after the four-month-long study.
"Given the knowledge of massage we have right now, I think we'll be reading much more about its variety of applications over the coming years," says Dr. David Katz, director of Yale's Prevention Research Center and the study's senior investigator.
Healing Touch
Hospitals are getting in on the game, too. A biannual 2006 survey of hospitals across the U.S. conducted by Health Forum, a subsidiary of the American Hospital Association, showed the number of hospitals offering massage therapy has increased by more than one-third in two years.
Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital in Texas, which opened its doors in December 2006, offers body, foot and hand massages for patients, as well as infant massage to soothe crying babies. Employees in need of a pick-me-up also can have chair massages. The program came about when officials began the design process for the replacement facility three years ago, says Chief Patient Care Officer Susan White.
"We determined we had an opportunity to change our model of care, recognizing that health care had been delivered the same way for over 50 years," White says.
Offering free 15-minute massages to hospital patients, who are typically under stress, makes a lot of sense since research has shown it can reduce anxiety, heart rates, blood pressure and even the amount of pain people feel, White says.
Well ahead of the trend, Stanford Hospital & Clinics has been offering Swedish massage to patients since 1993. The facility has eight massage therapists, who talk to nursing staff to make sure patients are ready for a massage once they've requested one. Therapists also discuss with patients the areas they'd like to have addressed.
Options include a pregnancy and postpartum massage to help relieve a woman's lower back pain and increase blood circulation and a stretching massage that pulls or extends muscles. Stretching is popular among active patients who want to keep limber despite being on bed rest, says Teresa Reyna, director of programs and operations for Stanford Hospital & Clinics.
While Stanford charges $30 for a 30-minute treatment, it hasn't hurt interest.
"We have so many requests for massage," Reyna says, "that we can't meet all the demand."
for complete article go to:
http://www.forbes.com/2007/06/07/health-massage-wellbeing-forbeslife-cx
_avd_0611health.html
|
More teens go under knife for new look
By LEEZEL TANGLAO and ROCKY SALMON
The Press-Enterprise
It hasn't exactly replaced part-time jobs or family vacations on the summertime to-do list, but plastic surgery has become more popular among teenagers this time of year, doctors say.
And for the families that can afford it, a nose job or new breasts are showing up on graduation-gift lists that have traditionally included a car, computer or a trip to Hawaii.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons reported that nearly 94,000 teenagers, ages 19 and under, underwent some kind of cosmetic surgical procedure in 2006, not including minimally invasive treatments like Botox or chemical peels. In 1996, about 11,500 cosmetic surgeries were performed on patients 18 and under. In 2002, the number had grown to nearly 81,000.
The most common plastic surgeries among young people are nose reshaping, male breast reductions, breast implants and lifts, and liposuction.
And those operations can run anywhere from $3,000 to $12,000.
Dr. Kelly Gallego, a plastic surgeon with offices in Irvine and Corona, said each summer he sees a spike in young patients. They have more time available for surgery and recovery, he said, and while he doesn't ask his patients specifically, he says he thinks some of them are being rewarded for graduation.
"It's not a huge spike," said Gallego, who has operated his Corona office for four years. "But it is noticeable."
Child psychologists, women's rights activists and plastic surgeons all agree that surgery among teenagers is on the rise, especially at graduation time.
"In many families, the kids get whatever they want," said Diane Zuckerman, president of the National Research Center for Women and Families, a nonprofit group that studies trends among American families. "They got the clothes, the car, the vacation ... what's left? How about new breasts?"
Some plastic surgeons warn that parents and plastic-surgery bound teens have to weigh medical risks, future costs and the emotional impact.
'Not Reversible Options'
"Your teen is still growing and these are not reversible options, or gifts you can easily return to Tiffany's," said Dr. James Wells, past president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons and the California Society of Plastic Surgeons.
Supporters say plastic surgery builds self-esteem at a perfect time in the patient's lives -- just as they're going off to college or starting something new.
for complete article go to:
http://www.pe.com/localnews/sbcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_D_
gradgift13.3ea84e1.html#
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