Customers of the beauty industry today are smarter and more discerning: the result of new interventions either resolves itself over time, or it can easily be rolled back. The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery reports that plastic surgery is losing popularity, while interest in cosmetic surgery is growing rapidly and already accounts for 77% of all interventions. A significant portion of these interventions are fillers. Fillers can do everything today: adjust the cheekbones, increase lip size and correct a hooked nose. And the price tag of such procedures is more than affordable – everyone can afford new lips or even buy dermal fillers wholesale.
Why it is dangerous
Demand breeds questionable bargains. The cost of fillers is not high, but the desire to save money often wins. As a result, cosmetic services are provided by people without education, and on the market regularly appear products of dubious origin. There are authorized distributors who buy fillers from official companies. These products are tested for safety for use in injectable cosmetology, and if you have a negative reaction, you will know who to complain to.
A huge selection of counterfeit products can also be found at online retailers like AliExpress and Amazon. Some have their own names like S-pretty King and so on, others pretend to be well-known brands like Juvederm. The prices can be very low. Some fakes even have certificates (their copies are posted in the product card), but it is impossible to check their authenticity or just make out what is written on a small picture. Such preparations may contain silicone instead of hyaluronic acid (which means that the product will crumple and can only be removed by cutting it out), oils (expect allergies) and other ingredients not intended for injection under the skin.
How to protect yourself
The easiest way is to visit salons and clinics with a reputation. If you go to a place that has recently opened, be sure to demand documentation for the product and a diploma of the doctor himself. A suspiciously low price, even if there is a special offer, is a reason to think twice. Only a doctor with a diploma of a dermatologist and a certificate of a cosmetologist is allowed to give injections. This procedure can be performed only in institutions with a medical license for cosmetology (doctor’s), because the office where the doctor performs it must meet certain standards.
As a rule, self-respecting clinics and doctors do not work with counterfeit fillers, because in case of problems the seller of such a product will not bear any responsibility, while the official distributors record and thoroughly deal with each such case. Each product purchased from official suppliers is accompanied by a certificate of quality, a certificate of compliance and a registration certificate for the medical product. In addition, each licensed product has its own serial number, which the doctor sticks in the patient’s card. The doctor must show you the filler before the injection, open the package in front of you, tell you about the indications, contraindications, and sign with you an informed consent for the procedure.