TACF Articles

Cellulite describes a condition that occurs in both men and women - although much more common in women - where the skin appears texturized, especially on the upper legs and hips.

You can check to see if you have cellulite by pinching the skin around your upper thigh. If it looks a bit lumpy, you probably have it. And if you do have cellulite, you’re definitely not alone. It is estimated that cellulite affects 90% of all women. While not life threatening, it’s considered unattractive, to the point that wearing a bathing suit or shorts becomes a real nightmare for some women.

Interestingly, the term “cellulite” isn’t even a medical term. It was first introduced by a fashion magazine in the 1920s and was picked up by English language publications in the late 1960s. From the medical perspective, cellulite is just plain fat.

It’s a random physical condition that affects women (and some men) of all ages and body sizes. It is a myth that you won’t get cellulite if you stay slim. Even if you have just 15% body fat, you can still have cellulite, even if you must squeeze the skin to see it. There are a number of reasons thin women can still get cellulite, including poor blood circulation, unhealthy diet, lack of exercise, poor lymph system drainage, and yo-yo dieting.

How to Get Rid of Cellulite?

There are hundreds of resources claiming to reduce or eliminate the embarrassing orange-peel condition.

The most popular are various creams, balms, and bath gels. They are said to aid in smoothing, detoxifying, and rehydrating the “affected area”. While the efficacy of these products is often disputed, some women say they do see improvement. Whether you believe that or not, keep in mind that many people have hidden allergies that only surface when the individual comes in contact with a “new” trigger. Some of these creams and other topical products contain ingredients that can be potentially harmful.

Many spas and salons offer a treatment called body wrapping. This procedure claims to remove inches from the waist, thighs, hips or other parts of the body, as well as eliminate, or at the very least reduce, cellulite. Whether that last claim is true or not, I’ll leave up to you to determine. What I can say is that visiting a spa or salon for body wrapping may be a wonderfully rejuvenating experience, leaving you rested and refreshed. Who wouldn’t like to have a few hours being pampered and fussed over in a relaxing environment regardless if it helps the cellulite problem.

Some people claim that the only answer to cellulite is liposuction. Liposuction is an invasive procedure that involves surgery with a tool with a v-shaped blade that is inserted through small excisions in the skin to cut the fibrous bands of tissue that form the structure where the cellulite is formed.

It is important to remember that liposuction is a surgical procedure and that there may be serious complications. The cosmetic effect after liposuction may be good and many patients report being satisfied, however, it is possible that it will be less dramatic than what you expected and may not be permanent. In summary, it’s a costly and traumatic procedure that could impair your circulatory and lymphatic system, and has left many women with fewer inches but more lumps and bumps than before.

There are many other methods such as body brushing and massage, hydrotherapy, electric muscle stimulation, and Endermologie. However, the bottom line is that no cream, oil, electronic device, or surgery can completely eliminate cellulite. Some may in fact slow down the accumulation and lessen appearance of cellulite temporarily, but none have been proven to actually eliminate it.

So, is there any hope?

With all this said, I am sure you are wondering if there is hope. Well, actually there is.

Study after study has shown that the key to reducing cellulite significantly is by a combination of both proper diet and exercise. If you get rid of excess weight and exercise regularly to tone up muscles, you will most definitely see an improvement.

We all wish there was a “magic genie bottle” to help us get rid of orange-peel, but in the end there really is no substitute for good, old-fashioned, healthy nutrition and exercise.