Facial yoga has been around for years, but the science behind its benefits have always been a bit soft—until now, that is. According to a new research letter published in JAMA Dermatology, women who followed a 30-minute facial yoga exercise a few times a week looked almost three years younger after just 20 weeks. Amazing, right?
The study was conducted by dermatologists and researchers from Northwestern University, as well as the creator of Happy Face Yoga, Gary Sikorski. A small group of women, ages 40 to 65 with mild to moderate facial atrophy (aka sagging skin), participated in the study. Each participant was required to attend two training sessions with Sikorski to learn one-minute facial exercises that were meant to be performed at home each day for eight weeks straight. After eight weeks, they were told to repeat the exercises every other day.
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Once the trial period was over, photographs taken at the beginning of the study, at the eight-week point, and at the 20-week point were compared by dermatologists who had not been told what order the photos had been originally taken.
When asked to estimate the woman’s age in each photo, the dermatologists agreed that the women appeared younger at the end of the 20-week period. Before the exercise routine had been introduced, the women’s average age was perceived to be 50.8, after eight weeks they were thought to look an average of 49.6 years old, and after 20 weeks, 48.1 years old.
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So, the claims that facial yoga can “rejuvenate the aging face, presumably by inducing underlying muscle growth,” as this study had suggested, are actually true. While a larger focus group is needed to solidify these results, this does offer proof that facial yoga is more beneficial for anti-aging than many had thought previously. Not only does it offer people a reprieve from possibly toxic beauty products, it’s also free, making it a good option for people looking to anti-age on a budget.
If you’re looking to give it a try for yourself, check out this older demonstration from Sikorski, below:
