Excessive sweating (or hyperhidrosis) affects around 950,000 Canadians. This condition can be difficult to live with, for many reasons. It may restrict your clothing choices, hold you back from socializing in public places, and prevent you from making physical contact (such as shaking hands) with others.

You may experience dampness in one or more areas on your body, including the armpits and groin, at any time. And you may feel the need to shower and change your clothes multiple times a day, which can be inconvenient and time consuming.

But treatments are available — including Botox injections at our medical spa. Read on to learn more about how this can help.

What Causes Excessive Sweating?

There are two types of hyperhidrosis: focal and generalized.

Focal Hyperhidrosis

The focal type affects one or more areas, such as the feet, face, underarms, or hands. It’s unclear what causes focal hyperhidrosis, but it’s believed that an overactive nervous system stimulates specific sweat glands excessively.

Generalized Hyperhidrosis

Generalized excessive sweating affects the whole body, which can make it much more difficult to handle. It’s usually related to such conditions as menopause, obesity, and endocrine problems.

What is Botox?

If you’re affected by excessive sweating, you may find relief with Botox treatments at a medical spa.

Botox (botulinum toxin) is a substance usually injected into the forehead and other areas of the face to create smoother skin. Why? Because it can block nerve signals that cause muscle contractions responsible for wrinkle formation, which makes existing wrinkles less visible and helps to prevent new ones.

How Can Botox Help Your Excessive Sweating?

Botox can create amazing results for people living with hyperhidrosis. It helps to ease hyperhidrosis by blocking the nerve signals sent to overactive sweat glands, which prevents them from releasing too much sweat.

The Botox is injected into one or more areas with fine needles, just as it would be when targeting wrinkles and fine lines. Our medical spa has treated many people affected by excessive sweating. Clinical study highlights include:

• Sweat became less visible through clothing in treated areas.
• Sweating in treated areas stopped within 48 hours.

Your treatment provider will discuss your excessive sweating, its affect on your life, and what you want to achieve before they begin injections. You can ask questions about the process, results, and more during this pre-treatment consultation.

What Should You Expect During Your First Botox Treatment?

You might feel nervous about visiting a medical spa for your first Botox injections. It can be especially worrying if you’re afraid of needles, or even if you’ve never discussed your excessive sweating with anyone else before.

But Botox treatments are usually much simpler than people expect. We’ll talk you through the process initially, and make sure that you have the information you need to feel at ease.

Next, we’ll make multiple injections into target areas to block nerve signals and stop your overactive sweat glands from producing too much sweat. Your injections should be over after around 15 minutes, and the process is generally comfortable. However, you may feel a slight pinch as with any other type of small injection.

How Long Do the Results of Botox Treatment for Excessive Sweating Last?

The results of your Botox treatment should start to appear within 48 hours of visiting our medical spa. Over the following weeks, you should feel drier and more comfortable. The results may last for between 6 and 12 months before the Botox wears off. However, this can vary from one person to another.

But no matter how long the results last, you should find that you don’t need to change your clothes so frequently during the day, and that you can relax more easily around people without feeling self-conscious about sweat patches.

Will You Need More Botox Treatments to Control Your Excessive Sweating?

If you’re happy with the positive effect the treatment has on your life, you can come back to our medical spa for another round of injections. You may need to visit us once or twice a year depending on how long the results last.

Fortunately, these follow-up sessions tend to be even quicker and easier than your first treatment. That means you can fit them into your schedule conveniently — you could even come to us during your lunch break.

Just get in touch with our team when you feel ready for your next Botox treatment for excessive sweating, and we’ll schedule it in.

Are There Any Risks with Botox?

Botox injections are not without risk, as with many other treatments. We’re transparent about these potential side effects at our medical spa, and our team is happy to give you all the details you need for your peace of mind.

Potential risks of Botox injections include:

• Swelling, bruising, or discomfort in treated sites.
• Allergic reactions.

Contact our team if you experience any of these side effects.

How Much Will You Pay for Botox Injections?

The cost of our Botox for excessive sweating treatment varies depending on the size of the target areas and the number of injections required. We’ll assess your condition and your needs during a consultation at our medical spa, then provide you with a price when we have all the information we need.

Book Your Consultation for a Botox Treatment

Botox injections are a simple, effective treatment for excessive sweating in one or more areas on your body. It can prevent overactive sweat glands from releasing an excessive amount of sweat for months.

This simple treatment may allow you to enjoy more freedom in your clothing and lifestyle, whether you want to wear brighter colors or be more active.

Astra Medicare is an award winning medical facility providing Botox injections for excessive sweating, as well as an extensive range of other treatments. For example, we offer Botox for treating migraines and signs of aging, too.

Get in touch with our friendly team now to book your consultation and learn more about our Botox treatment!

Looking for a facial treatment to rejuvenate your skin and give you a gorgeous glow?

Meet the HydraFacial.

The HydraFacial is a multi-step treatment designed to revitalize your skin, using innovative techniques and the latest technology.

What does it involve? And are there any risks?

We’ll cover everything you need to know about the powerful HydraFacial treatment below.

What is a HydraFacial Treatment?

HydraFacial treatments have become increasingly popular, with countless people booking a session at their local medical spa.

As with most facials, a HydraFacial treatment will help you relax and feel pampered, but it achieves incredible results at the same time. You get to lie back and unwind while a skilled beauty specialist takes you through the seven (yes, seven!) steps of the HydraFacial process.

The HydraFacial treatment uses patented technology to nourish your skin with a hydradermabrasion device. Your skin is cleansed, exfoliated with a chemical peel, and infused with amazing serums. 

What are the 7 Steps of HydraFacial Treatments?

Let’s take a close look at the seven steps involved in a HydraFacial treatment at a medical spa:

Detoxification

The HydraFacial starts with lymphatic drainage to boost your lymph system’s circulation and flush out toxins lurking under the skin. This step is particularly important if you’re prone to acne, as it helps to unclog pores and reduce the risk of further issues. Detoxification promotes clearer, healthier skin overall.

Cleansing

A thorough cleansing prepares the skin for the later steps and encourages the skin to take in nutrients, which contributes to real rejuvenation.

Chemical Peeling / Resurfacing

A chemical peel can seem daunting if you’ve never tried one before, but it’s much easier than you might imagine. The peel contains carefully chosen acids to gently exfoliate the skin and reveal a fresh new layer. If you’re worried about how dull your skin is looking, the chemical peel / resurfacing step can take care of that.

Extracting Debris

During the extraction step, a cutting-edge suction tool pulls debris from pores in a simple and painless way. This leaves your pores clear and is kinder on the skin than traditional extraction, which involves metal implements.

Hydrating

Powerful moisturizers applied gently to the face provide nourishment and hydration, which is crucial after the extraction step.

Infusing Serums

Serums introduce key antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals to the skin for protection and to cultivate a stunning glow. Your skin should have a more balanced tone and a healthy feel after this step.

Light Treatment

The final step in the HydraFacial treatment at a medical spa is LED light therapy. A state-of-the-art infrared device treats the skin to decrease any visible redness that may develop.

It also stimulates the production of collagen in the body, which is vital for strong, youthful skin. LED light therapy also encourages your body to produce vitamin D, essential for skin repair.

Is the HydraFacial Treatment Right for Me?

HydraFacials are designed to suit every skin type and create outstanding results for all.

This treatment could be ideal if you have hyperpigmentation, which causes discolored patches to appear across the skin. Hyperpigmentation is the result of excess melanin production, due to hormonal fluctuations, age, or prolonged sun exposure. Hyperpigmentation can develop anywhere on the body, including the face.

And visiting a medical spa for a HydraFacial treatment can tighten your skin and create a stronger, more youthful texture. Skin starts to sag with age as collagen production decreases, so skin becomes looser around the jawline, neck, and cheeks. But your skin will look tighter after a HydraFacial session.

Before your treatment, though, your beauty specialist will provide a consultation to learn essential details about your medical history and anything else they should know. This is critical to ensure that this is the right treatment for you.

Do I Need to Plan for Any Downtime?

You need to think about recovery and downtime before you visit a medical spa for any treatment. Fortunately, the HydraFacial requires no downtime for your skin to recover. That’s great news if you plan to go back to work after your treatment.

You might experience a little redness on your face, but you should also notice that your skin looks fresher and more hydrated than before. However, avoid washing your face or doing any exercise likely to make you sweat for the rest of the day. Sweat could interfere with the serums applied to your face and reduce their effectiveness.

Are There Any Risks with HydraFacial?

HydraFacials are generally safe for most people, but it may not be right for you if you have certain skin conditions like rosacea, rashes, or even sunburn.

Redness is a natural result of the treatment and is temporary only. You will have a chance to discuss your skin health, and potential risks, during your pre-treatment consultation at a medical spa.

How Long Does HydraFacial Take?

An efficient medical spa team typically completes a HydraFacial treatment within one hour, though the duration may vary. You can fit your session into even the busiest schedule and rejuvenate your skin without disrupting your routine.

How Often Do I Need a HydraFacial Treatment?

If you’re in love with your skin after a HydraFacial and can’t wait for your next visit to a medical spa, you may need to wait two to four weeks for a follow-up session. We’ll recommend a sensible time to wait based on the condition of your skin.

Where Can I Get a HydraFacial Treatment Near Me?

Booking a HydraFacial session at a medical spa is a fantastic way to revitalize and rejuvenate your skin through a relaxing treatment. Your beauty specialist will guide you through the seven steps of the process with the utmost care and attention. Enjoy some ‘me time’ and leave with beautiful, glowing skin!

Astra Medicare is a popular, award winning medical spa in Brampton, with a dedicated team and an extensive range of treatments — including the HydraFacial.

Get in touch with Astra Medicare to book your consultation and learn more about how our HydraFacial treatment can rejuvenate your skin!

The older you get, the more likely you are to develop visible wrinkles, fine lines, and skin discoloration. Some of these changes can be hard to accept when you look in the mirror, especially if you struggle to mask them with cosmetics.

That’s why so many of us want to rejuvenate our skin and achieve a more youthful look. And mesotherapy is an outstanding cosmetic treatment with the power to improve your skin’s appearance and create a beautiful glow from the inside out.

But how does it work? What should you expect with your first mesotherapy treatment at a medical spa? And how much does it cost?

In this post, we’ll explore everything you need to know about mesotherapy, including how it works, what conditions it can treat, and much more.

What is Mesotherapy?

Mesotherapy is the secret to gorgeous, glowing skin you may not know about. While treatments like Botox and lip injections have received widespread media attention, mesotherapy tends to be less well-known than these popular medical spa treatments.

The mesotherapy treatment process uses a special handheld device containing multiple microneedles. Each needle injects a specially formulated substance into skin in target areas, usually the forehead, cheeks, and chin.

The substance injected into the skin during a mesotherapy treatment contains a personalized combination of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals.

Mesotherapy treatments tend to be fairly brief at our medical spa — from 20 to 30 minutes. As a result, they’re easy to fit into your schedule. Session length can vary depending on how many injection sites you have.

How Does Mesotherapy Help Your Skin?

Mesotherapy helps your skin in multiple ways. One of the most important is that it stimulates collagen production in target areas: collagen is an essential protein and a major building block in your skin, muscles, and bones. It helps to keep your skin looking youthful and plump, but the body produces less of it with age. That’s why your skin starts to sag and lose volume as you get older.

But as mesotherapy promotes collagen production, it can contribute to firmer, plumper skin after a full course of treatments. That’s fantastic if the skin around your jawline and cheeks has started to become looser over the years.

Mesotherapy can also encourage elastin production, which is crucial to maintain the skin’s elasticity and reduce sagging.

On top of this, mesotherapy can also leave your skin looking rejuvenated and with a more youthful glow.

What Issues and Conditions Does Mesotherapy Treat?

Mesotherapy treatments at our medical spa can help with the following skin issues and conditions:

Acne

More than 5.6 million Canadians have acne, including 20 to 30% of adults aged 20 to 40. The severity of the condition can vary from person to person, and may lead to scarring.

Acne is often caused by blocked pores, usually the result of dead skin cells and excessive production of sebum (a natural oily substance that prevents the skin from drying out). Blocked pores can create whiteheads and blackheads.

Mesotherapy can improve the appearance of both acne and acne scarring by helping to make skin stronger. 

Double Chin

Developing a double chin is a common sign of aging. It occurs when a layer of fat grows beneath the chin and the skin becomes looser.

Mesotherapy treatment may help reduce the size of a double chin by injecting substances that target fat and create smoother, more defined skin.

Eye Bags and Dark Circles

The formation of eye bags and/or dark circles below the eyes is a natural part of the aging process. It occurs when the tissues surrounding your eyes become weaker and sag. As eye bags and dark circles are often very noticeable, many people visit our medical spa to take care of them.

Mesotherapy can make the affected skin firmer and stronger, which may reduce the visibility of eye bags and dark circles.

Hyperpigmentation

Hyperpigmentation refers to dark patches of skin on the face and/or body. This is typically caused by excessive production of melanin, the naturally occurring substance that gives skin its color.

When your body produces more melanin than usual, your skin can appear discolored. It may appear as patches or spots, commonly known as age or liver spots. Mesotherapy can cultivate a more balanced complexion and improve the appearance of hyperpigmentation.

Localized, Stubborn Body Fat

If you have stubborn body fat that refuses to disappear even with a healthy diet and exercise, you may visit our medical spa for mesotherapy treatment. Certain substances used in mesotherapy injections can help to break down stubborn, localized fat.

Is Mesotherapy Suitable for Everyone?

Mesotherapy treatments are generally safe for anyone over the age of 18 provided they are in good health, though there will be exceptions. This is why you need to undergo a detailed consultation at our medical spa before your first session.

Your treatment provider will examine your skin, discuss your aesthetic goals, and determine if you are a good candidate for the treatment.

Fortunately, adults with all skin types can try mesotherapy. Whether your skin is saggy, dull, dry, or oily, you may achieve incredible results after the recommended number of sessions at our medical spa.

How Many Mesotherapy Sessions Will I Need?

Most people undergo between three and six mesotherapy sessions at our medical spa. These are spaced one to four weeks apart depending on how your skin responds to the process.

Your treatment provider will discuss how many sessions you’re likely to need, and how often, during your consultation.

How Much Do Mesotherapy Treatments Cost?

The cost of your mesotherapy treatment will depend on:

• The number of injection sites and their size
• The ingredients in the substance injected into your skin
• How many sessions you need to undergo to achieve your aim

Once our medical spa team has the information they need on your treatment, we’ll provide you with the cost.

Want to learn more about our mesotherapy treatment? Our expert team is ready to speak to you now, so get in touch today!

Planning to spend hours sunbathing when summer arrives? Love the feel of sunlight warming your skin while you relax?

While countless people enjoy summer and catching some sun, it’s vital to protect yourself against potential problems caused by too much exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation.

UV rays from the sun are essential for supporting life on Earth, including helping us to produce vitamin D (important for strong bones and reducing inflammation).

There are three types of UV rays:

• UVA (long range) — around 95% of UVA radiation passes through the Earth’s atmosphere.

• UVB (short range) — just 5% passes through the Earth’s atmosphere.

• UVC (varying ranges) — no UVC radiation reaches Earth, as the ozone layer filters it out.

However, UV rays can be incredibly harmful, especially to humans. It’s crucial that you protect your skin while outside, even on cloudy days, to reduce your risk of experiencing negative effects.

How can you do that?

In this post, we’ll offer tips on how to defend your skin from sun damage and explore why it’s so important.

Why is it So Important to Protect Your Skin Against UV Rays?

Too much exposure to UV rays can have a lasting impact on your appearance and your health. Here are a few examples of how that could happen:

• UV rays can make the skin look older than it is by creating wrinkles and fine lines sooner than they may develop otherwise. This occurs when UV rays stimulate the production of free radicals in the skin. Free radicals can harm elastin, which keeps the skin supple and elastic, leading to wrinkle formation.

• Sunburn can cause white blood cells to form new cells, which may weaken the immune system.

• Too much sun exposure and a lack of skin protection can increase a person’s risk of developing skin cancer.

With all this in mind, the Government of Canada recommends taking steps to protect yourself from UV rays on sunny and cloudy days. That’s because as much as 80% of the sun’s rays are strong enough to pass through light clouds, mist, and even fog.

How Can You Protect Your Skin Against Sun Damage?

You can take several steps to protect yourself against sun damage. Here are four ideas to help you get started.

• Apply Sunscreen Liberally
• Wearing sunscreen and products with a high SPF rating is crucial to protect yourself against sun damage. You can choose from a huge range of sunscreens to suit your preferences, including aerosols and creams.
• Check labels carefully before you buy, though. Pay attention to the level of protection they offer against UV rays and how much you should apply for maximum effectiveness.
• Make sure you apply a lotion or cream to uncovered areas of your skin liberally around 15 minutes before you go outside, and top up every couple of hours while you’re in direct sunlight.

Explore other products designed to protect your skin as well as traditional sunscreen. For example, the Dermastir Sun Powder SPF 50+ uses advanced technology to fill fine lines and wrinkles on the face. Not only does it help to reduce the visibility of wrinkles and make skin look smoother, but it also protects skin from UVA and UVB rays.

It also contains vitamin C, a crucial antioxidant which defends against UV-triggered damage from free radicals. Another ingredient is collagen, a powerful protein that contributes to stronger, firmer skin.

Cover Up

One of the simplest, most effective ways to protect your skin against sun damage is to cover up as much as possible. That can be difficult when temperatures are high and you want to stay cool. But any uncovered areas could burn with enough exposure to sunlight.

But what types of clothing are best?

• Wear tops with long sleeves to protect your arms, ideally in a lightweight material to stay covered up and comfortable.

• Avoid loosely woven materials, or even those with an open weave, which will allow more sunlight through to your skin.

• Go for dark colors: these absorb more UV rays than lighter colors, so you’re less likely to have radiation making contact with your skin.

• Always wear sunglasses, but make sure they offer quality UV protection. Check labels for information before you buy, and consider wraparound sunglasses or pairs with big frames. These offer better protection than smaller sunglasses, so even if your pair doesn’t look quite as cool as other types, they should still do a great job.

• Wear a wide-brimmed hat to keep sunlight away from your face and neck. It should cover your ears, too.

Try to put together a few go-to UV-resistant outfits for sunny days, so you always have something that’s comfortable and reliable to wear.

Time Your Sun Exposure Carefully

It’s not always easy or even possible to plan when you’ll be outside. Sometimes, you may find yourself needing to go out without being able to apply sunscreen first, especially when something comes up unexpectedly.

But if possible, try to be prepared for sun exposure when you go outside. In Canada, the UV Index may be 3 or above between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. That’s because rays from the sun have less distance to travel through the atmosphere than they do at other times.

If you can’t avoid sun exposure during those hours, apply sunscreen, top up every couple of hours, and seek shade whenever you can.

Don’t Forget Your Lips

It’s easy to overlook your lips before you head out on a sunny day. But your lips are vulnerable to UV rays, too, so apply a high-SPF lip balm — no lower than 30.

Conclusion

UV radiation can be harmful after prolonged exposure, increasing the risk of premature signs of aging, skin cancer, and other issues. It’s essential that you cover up, avoid direct sunlight, and use high-SPF products to look after yourself.

Astra Medicare offers multiple specially formulated products designed to help protect skin from UV damage, including Dermastir and Thoya creams. You can drop in to our medical spa to learn more about these from our team, or get in touch to speak to one of our experts today.