If you think that only the very vain go for aesthetic treatments, Dr Low Chai Ling, medical director and founder of SW1 Clinic, would like you to know that it’s not true.

Dr Low, who has been practising as an aesthetic doctor for more than 15 years – she started The Sloane Clinic in 2003, which she has since sold off – said that some of her patients are ordinary, down-to-earth people.

“They would rather have good skin and wear less makeup than hide their flaws under layers of cosmetics,” she said.

Some of the most popular treatments at SW1 Clinic include the Baby Skin Program that helps with skin renewal and the Youth Savant treatment that seeks to optimise skin’s DNA repair. Founded in 2017, SW1 Clinic has two outlets – one at Paragon and the other at OUE Downtown Gallery. It recently opened a clinic in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. In addition to aesthetic treatments, Dr Low’s team of plastic surgeons at its Paragon outlet performs procedures like post-mastectomy breast reconstruction and ear reconstructive surgery. 

Here, Dr Low clears the air about some common myths on aesthetic treatments.

Myth 1: We cannot do anything about how we age as this is predetermined by our genes.

While a big part of how we age is indeed determined by genetic factors, Dr Low said that environmental and lifestyle factors like the amount of sun exposure and whether you smoke or exercise matter, too.

Identical twins may look similar in their early years but if they go on to lead vastly different lives, they may end up looking totally different at the end of their life’s journey. “This means that all of us have the power to influence the course of our ageing, and what we do today will determine how we are going to look in the future,” said Dr Low. 

Myth 2: I will only need anti-ageing treatments when I see the first signs of ageing.

Just like disease prevention has to occur before one falls ill, anti-aging care needs to start before you show signs of age. By the time your skin has succumbed to damage from years of neglect, it is often too late to start thinking about anti-ageing, warned Dr Low.

“There are treatments that you can still do to repair some of this damage but the results will never be as good as they can be if active steps were taken when your skin was healthy in the first place,” she explained.

Myth 3: Aesthetic treatments make me look unnatural.

According to Dr Low, more patients these days are after a natural look, not the “cookie cutter” look that was popular during the K-pop-inspired plastic surgery boom a decade ago.  

Patients want what she calls “natural Botox” to maintain their normal facial expressions as well as “natural fillers” to look fresh and youthful, not “over-filled and pillow-faced”. Said Dr Low: “The trend is towards subtle and natural outcomes that preserve the uniqueness of each individual’s face.”

Myth 4: If I stop doing Botox, my face will look worse than before.

According to Dr Low, if you undergo a session of Botox to treat your frown lines, you will simply return to your pre-treatment state when the anti-wrinkle effects wear out in about four months. In fact, the doctor added that some studies show that if Botox is done regularly for treating facial lines, there could be long-lasting anti-ageing effects.

Myth 5: Quickie treatments are less effective than longer procedures.

Quickie treatments that take 45 minutes to one hour are very popular now as they typically come with no downtime and can be scheduled during one’s lunch break.

Said Dr Low: “For patients with more severe skin issues, a few sessions of quickie treatments done regularly can have cumulative benefits that outweigh one single long treatment. As with exercise, it is important to be regular and consistent in care.”

Myth 6: I should not combine a few treatments in one session.

Some treatments are synergistic when combined in one session; others are best done in separate sessions. An example of a synergistic combination that Dr Low gave is Botox for forehead lines and crow’s feet, and Revitalift Eye, a microfiller treatment that lightens dark eye circles.

“This combination results in a holistic enhancement of the upper face that is more aesthetically pleasing when done together than when done separately,” said Dr Low.

Myth 7: I have a low pain threshold so aesthetic treatments are out for me.

Thanks to modern advances, many aesthetic treatments are now less uncomfortable while numbing creams applied topically pre-treatment are formulated to dull pain more effectively now, said Dr Low.

Nevertheless, Dr Low advises communicating well with your doctor if you are concerned about pain so that he or she can use a stronger numbing cream, give you a local anaesthetic injection or use a lower machine setting.

Sometimes, it is also about choosing the right treatment for your pain threshold. At SW1 Clinic, Baby Drop Fillers, a micro-filler treatment that plumps lines, defines cheeks and brightens up skin, was designed for “pain-phobes”. Finer needles are used so there is minimal discomfort, said Dr Low.

Check out SW1 Clinic's video below.

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SW1 Clinic is located at Paragon, 290 Orchard Road, #13-03, and at OUE Downtown Gallery Tower 2, 6A Shenton Way, #02-19/20. Email help [at] sw1clinic.com, call 6817 8888 or visit sw1clinic.com for more information.