How to banish cellulite? No quicky, easy answers

By Stephanie Allmon, Cox News Service

Cellulite. For millions of women, it's an obvious condition without an obvious solution; a universal enigma with no universal explanation.

As many as 99 percent of women in the world may be plagued with the mysterious trenches that blemish pastures of otherwise smooth, firm skin.

Some women may not know exactly what it is, but they'll wrap it, rub it, peel it, baste it and vacuum it to try and make it disappear.

For some, cellulite is a painful problem; for others, an ugly annoyance.

"Cellulite is not a health issue. It's a beauty issue," said Dr. Charles Verheyden, president of the Texas Society of Plastic Surgeons and director of the plastic surgery division at Scott and White Hospital. "There's not a real good understanding of even why cellulite happens."

Cellulite is not fat. In fact, even the slimmest, most toned women can have "cottage cheese thighs" or "dimpled derrieres."

Cellulite forms when circulation slows down and body fluids that bathe fatty tissues and fibers are flooded with waste materials. The liquid pushes away fat cells and hardens to form immovable pockets between the skin and the deep layers of fat, said Mary Haymore, who has studied massage and alternative medicine in Europe and is president and CEO of The Spa at Canyon Oaks.

Water retention, lack of proper circulation, poor nutrition and hormones further aggravate the problem, Haymore said.

Because much of the problem has to do with retaining fluids, advanced cellulite can result in painful swelling for some women, she said.

If the explanation sounds complicated, choosing a solution among those in the $100 million cellulite industry can be even more confusing.

Verheyden said when women come into his office and want him to banish their cellulite, he can't offer a sure-fire way to do so. Not even liposuction, used to remove fat cells, can help in most cases.

"Sometimes liposuction will help, particularly if it's done close to the skin, but it can be overdone, and more dimples are created because of the liposuction itself," he said. "If they really had a good technique for dealing with it, you could fill up your office with women who want it."

Instead, women show up at spas to wrap themselves up with $85 seaweed concoctions and at cosmetic counters to rub themselves down with $75 skin creams.

Body wraps and creams work on the premise that applying minerals and oils topically will seep through pores and into the body to dissolve cellulite. A bottle of lotion or weekly seaweed wraps might make the skin look smoother, but Haymore warns that they are not overnight panaceas.

"Most women in the United States want a quick fix," she said. "But (cellulite) will come back if you don't change your lifestyle. Cellulite treatments can help as long as you're doing other things -- exercising and eating a healthy, natural diet."

That's the message that Van Smith-Davis tries to convey every day in her job as fitness coordinator at Baylor University. She said she is skeptical when she hears about cellulite treatments because of the high-priced miracles that many companies promise.

She recommends eating a balanced diet and exercising, especially lifting weights, for a firmer, more toned figure.

What about women who are in shape, exercise regularly, but still have cellulite?

Jennifer Cromwell thinks she has finally found an answer. The tall, slim owner of Formela Skin Care Center in Waco, said she underwent thousands of body wraps for her cellulite without getting the results she wanted.

In October, she invested $40,000 in a computerized "Endermologie" machine that looks like a robot but performs the same function as a household appliance -- a vacuum.

The machine uses vacuumlike pressure to smooth out cellulite-laden areas of the body. For most women, a minimum of 14 treatments of 35 minutes each are recommended, plus monthly maintenance treatments. The cost? Anywhere from $75 to $100 per treatment.

Although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Endermologie, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons released a statement saying, "there is very little scientific evidence to suggest that this mechanical method of massage is effective in permanently changing the appearance and the shape of the skin."

However, a study by researchers at Vanderbilt University conducted on Yucatan minipigs, whose skin structure is similar to humans', found that those who received a full course of Endermologie treatments actually formed new layers of smoother skin.

As with all new medical discoveries, more tests need to take place to reproduce positive results, Verheyden said.

"You can come out with some stuff, market it, tell women their fat will go away and make several million bucks, but it's hard to measure because the results are mixed," he said. "For something to be scientifically valid, it must be measurable and repeatable."

In the meantime, Cromwell said, even if Endermologie doesn't produce drastic results in a woman, it can at least make her feel better about herself.

"I know I feel better, I'm more productive and a better person if I feel like I look better," she said. "But any kind of massage is better for your health."

Smith-Davis said she feels it's unfortunate that so many women try so hard to get rid of cellulite for beauty's sake. But if cellulite makes them pay more attention to their bodies, they might start paying more attention to their health, she said.

"The concern should not be about cellulite, it should be about living a healthy lifestyle, and (reducing cellulite) could be another benefit of exercise and eating right," she said. "I would say definitely worry about leading a healthier lifestyle, but not to put cellulite at the forefront for a reason to work out.

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