Before answering this question, it would be important to understand the history of the use of BOTOX® for cosmetic reasons. As “legend has it”, BOTOX® was first used for medicinal purposes. For many years prior to it being used for cosmetic purposes, it had been used by neurologists for the purpose of treating people with facial tics or spasms. These are conditions when muscles are firing involuntarily. BOTOX® would treat these patients by blocking neuromuscular activity in the area where there was an excessive amount of activity and which cause these debilitating, and sometimes, unsightly facial movements.
Over many years of use to treat these patients with these excessive and unwanted facial movements, it was noted that as those patients aged, they were not developing wrinkles in the areas where they were being treated with BOTOX®. This inadvertent discovery of the prophylactic treatment of wrinkles then lead to the use of BOTOX® on purely elective, cosmetic purposes.
So, to answer the question, what would be the appropriate age for someone to start using BOTOX®, I would say that generally, the earlier in life the better. Now, practically, it is unlikely that people in their 20s would start utilizing BOTOX® to treat future wrinkles, primarily because of cost and signs of physical aging not being on the typical 20-year-old’s mind. I do believe that over an extended period of time, a person can become more resistant to the function of BOTOX®. Therefore, the use at such an early age may be somewhat detrimental as they get older and treatments like BOTOX® becomes more desired. There really are no other known detrimental effects of using BOTOX® on a long-term basis. Our typical BOTOX® patients start usually in their late 30s and early 40s.
