| PERSPECTIVE |
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[November 13, 2002] -
Last year, more than 1.6 million people across the nation had Botox injections. That's expected to double this year. What is it? Some say it's the answer to the fountain of youth. Others say it's toying with a deadly substance. We do know it's been approved by the FDA. In a nutshell, it's injecting small amounts of poison in your face to appear younger. Sound crazy? Believe it or not, many people right here in Nebraska are going under the needle. “Statewide's” Andrea Gallagher looks into Botox and what drives people to put it in their face. |
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Watch the Perspective segment:| Click Here |
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Transcript of Botox
[Andrea Gallagher/Reporting]
You can learn a lot from faces in the crowd. Expressions reveal whether people are happy, sad, confused or stressed out. Frown lines and crow's feet offer clues to a person's age - but what if that changed? What if you could minimize these signs of aging with the prick of a needle and appear years younger?
[Ann Wolfe/Botox Patient]
It's so painless. It's unbelievable.
[Gallagher]
Ann Wolfe is a regular user of Botox, a toxin injected with a needle to paralyze the muscles and hopefully, minimize or even erase frown lines and crow's feet.
[Wolfe]
I'm in my mid 40s and I'm starting to see a few lines here and there and so I decided to smooth it out and I wouldn't have to go through any pain or anything because it's very painless, and I don't want the deer in the headlight look, I still want to make expressions. I only do various parts around the forehead and around the eyes.
[Gallagher]
Ann is one of many women and men around the country who get Botox injections every few months. But what some may find disturbing is that Botox is actually small amounts of the poison found in Botulism, and many people right here in Nebraska are taking advantage of it.
[Wolfe]
Because it's such a small amount and it's been approved that I don't really think it can harm me and plus I don't do it continuously. It lasts up to four months.
[Dr. Joel Schlessinger/Dermatologist]
It's actually, in many ways, humorous in that it is derived from botulism toxin which very, very definitely in massive doses, you wouldn't want to have. But just as penicillin is a mold, this is derived from naturally purified protein which is botulism toxin.
[Gallagher]
Dr. Joel Schlessinger injects more people with Botox than any other doctor in the state of Nebraska. His clinic is one of the top 50 Botox centers in the country. He also trains other physicians on how to inject Botox. His office looks more like a spa than a clinic. That's because he does many other cosmetic procedures as well. Botox is only about 5 percent of his business, but it continues to increase.
[Schlessinger]
I think it's great that it's absolutely just out there, but I think it's also important to be done responsibly, that people aren't making it a joke rather than a serious medical procedure.
[Gallagher]
After it was approved, the media couldn't get enough. Botox procedures skyrocketed throughout the country. But it also got some bad press. Some doctors are hosting Botox parties. A little wine, food and Botox, something many physicians are against.
[Schlessinger]
The idea of having alcohol and/or any other form of alcoholic beverage when somebody's signing an informed consent is just ludicrous. It's not the type of thing that would stand up if anything wrong happened from it.
[Wolfe]
I don't think it's good, you don't know who your doctor is that's doing it. I've also read that alcohol and Botox don't mix together well, so I don't think that would be a smart idea.
[Terri Lonowski/Botox Patient]
Because it's a medical procedure, you don't want to take risk with your health.
[Gallagher]
Terri Lonowski is also a regular Botox user. She says she does it for her own self-esteem, not to impress others, and it's less drastic than going under the knife.
[Lonowski]
It's a procedure that I thought would be beneficial and not very invasive and certainly not to the level of something like plastic surgery, so I just wanted maybe a subtle change.
[Gallagher]
But how safe is it putting a deadly poison in your face, even if it's only in small amounts?
[Kim Dahlgaard/Botox Consultant]
The word botulism is a catch phrase that makes people nervous.
[Gallagher]
Kim Dahlgaard works as a consultant in the clinic and you could say she's a model of sorts for potential clients. She's had numerous Botox injections, starting when she was only in her 20s. She says you're never too young to start.
[Dahlgaard]
I've had it done 6 times now. I'm a Botox junkie you could say.
[Gallagher]
But is Botox safe? And what are the potential side effects? UNMC doctor Steve Sims says Botox should not be taken lightly.
[Dr. Steve Sims/UNMC]
I think that a patient who wanted to have it for cosmetic reasons, I don't begrudge them that, but I do think they should investigate and at least understand that it's not a risk-free procedure.
[Gallagher]
Dr. Sims has used Botox for more than 10 years to treat voice disorders. He said it was also widely used during the Gulf War.
[Sims]
It was actually used during the Gulf war because it does produce antibodies and when we were concerned about chemical warfare and the use of neurotoxins, we were actually giving that to help induce antibody formation to protect our soldiers.
[Gallagher]
Dr. Sims says no one really knows what the long-term effects of repeated Botox injections are.
[Sims]
Certainly there is the risk of having the needle placed into a muscle repetitively over a period of time, we don't know if that causes some scar tissue in the muscle. What effect it has on the muscle itself over a long period of time has not been that well studied.
[Gallagher]
There's also the issue of losing your expression from Botox. CBS actress Susan Walters was acting out a scene where she was told to frown. She said it was difficult because of the repeated Botox injections. She has since stopped the procedures. Dr. Schlessinger says this should not happen if it's done by a qualified physician.
[Schlessinger]
If they're getting too much, yes I would guess you could have some difficulty with expression. But if it's done by a practitioner who knows what they're doing, you should have some expressivity.
[Wolfe]
I still always want to have expression on my face and everything, definitely. I'm not trying to wipe that out.
[Gallagher]
Botox injections cost anywhere from $300 and up, depending on how much you use. They only last a few months, so you need to come in frequently. Schlessinger says if you don't like it, you can stop anytime you want. He says all ages and classes of people have it done. He even injects his own relatives.
[Schlessinger]
I do it on my wife, I do it for my mother, my relatives, I think it's great.
[Gallagher]
In the dawning of a new millenium, anything is possible and everyone wants to find the fountain of youth, even if it involves shooting a once-feared poisonous substance in your face. Reporting for Statewide, I'm Andrea Gallagher.