You may be able to help tighten skin after weight loss by consuming certain nutrients like collagen, performing resistance training, and undergoing medical procedures. Losing weight to manage overweight or obesity can significantly reduce disease risk. However, major weight loss can sometimes result in loose skin.
Although it's use for skintightening isn't practically proven, many studies suggest that it may have a protective impact on the skin's collagen. Moreover, you can also use collagen and elastin based lotions or creams in order to help skin tightening.
Collagen's role in the body
Collagen is a protein that serves as one of the main building blocks for your bones, skin, hair, muscles, tendons, and ligaments. "Collagen is what keeps our skin from sagging, giving us that plump, youthful look," says dermatologist Dr. Ohara Aivaz.
Bottom line: Most people have 1 treatment and feel some tightening right away. It takes time for your body to make collagen, so you'll see the best results in about 6 months. Some people benefit from having more than 1 treatment. Results can last 2 to 3 years with the right skin care.
“In general, it can take anywhere from weeks to months—even years,” says Dr. Chen. If after one to two years skin is still loose, it may not get any tighter, she says.
However, larger amounts of weight loss, such as 50 pounds and over, especially over a short period, can considerably increase your risk of loose skin. Your genetics and age will also play an important role in determining how much weight loss causes loose skin.
To increase skin's elasticity, firmness, and texture, and help prevent fine lines and wrinkles, studies show that taking up to 2.5 grams is effective. Here's a caveat: most users will find that they need less than 2.5 grams of hydrolyzed collagen to see skin-benefiting results.
Collagen does not help with body fat because you cannot reduce fat in specific areas of your body. You can lose weight using collagen rich foods like bone broth, but it will not specifically target your belly fat.
Loose skin can be tightened with collagen supplements, bariatric surgery, or radiofrequency treatments.
Where collagen is a protein that's responsible for the skin's firmness and suppleness, peptides work to stimulate collagen production. As such, collagen peptides are a no-brainer for jowl treatment.
Collagen Lift, also known as 'The Facelift Facial' is a non-surgical treatment for skin tightening and firming loose or sagging skin. This treatment tightens, tones and lifts achieving firm, youthful looking skin – without the telltale frozen stares and 'puffed up' look associated with injectables and fillers.
Collagen and elastin are two essential proteins associated with skin firmness. The production of these two proteins decreases as people age .
Retinol can help smooth skin and minimise the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Hyaluronic acid can help brighten skin; it holds up to 1000 times its weight in moisture. Collagen is essential for firm, youthful skin and strong hair, nails, and joints.
When you lose a lot of weight, such as 100 pounds or more, your skin may not be elastic enough to shrink back to its natural shape. This can cause the skin to sag and hang, especially around the upper face, arms, stomach, breasts, and buttocks. Some people don't like the way this skin looks.
Exercises like cardio, yoga, and crunches may tone your muscles and strengthen your lower abs, but they won't “erase” fat deposits. The only way to lose fat on your lower stomach is to lose fat overall. A calorie deficit helps with this.
If you have lost large amounts of body fat, it is likely you will have some extra skin. Stretch marks and sagging skin can often be left behind as reminders of large amounts of belly fat.
The loose skin is caused by losing a huge amount of weight – as in, 100 pounds or more – in a very short amount of time. It can happen when the weight is lost through diet and exercise, but it happens more often to weight-loss surgery patients.
So who can expect loose skin after weight loss? While it varies, mild weight loss (think: 20 pounds or less) typically doesn't lead to excess skin, Zuckerman says. Weight loss of 40 to 50 pounds can seem as massive as a weight loss of 100+ pounds.
Excess skin can appear when you lose between 40 and 50 pounds. A dramatic weight loss of 100 plus pounds will almost certainly result in loose skin. If you drop 20 pounds or less, your skin will not produce excess, much less get so loose as to hang off your torso and limbs.
Loose skin is usually a byproduct of losing a lot of weight quickly. Because skin is a living organ, it can tighten up some over time.