The new beauty trend at the moment, ‘face yoga’, is taking the internet by storm. It’s commonly thought that facial exercises, which can be done in the convenience of your home, can help firm and tone your face, reduce wrinkles, and give a more youthful appearance. Sounds fantastic! But does it work? We looked to science as well as a few professionals to find out. Here’s what we know.

What are face exercises?

Ok so what exactly are they? Face exercises, also called face resistance training, are movements and stretches done to particular facial muscles. The purpose is to manipulate and sculpt muscles in order to achieve a more slimming, youthful appearance.

What do face exercises do? 

Let’s start with the basics. To make up the face, we have skin, fat, and muscle sitting on the skull. The epidermis is the exterior layer of skin we see and clean on a daily basis. Below that is the dermis and a layer of subcutaneous fat, as identified by Dr. Murad Alam, vice chair of dermatology at Northwestern University. According to Alam, underneath the subcutaneous fat lies a composition of fat pads, analogous to a jigsaw puzzle, which contribute to most of how the face is shaped. 

Fat pads are important; the thickness of the fat deposits in your face can have a direct effect on its overall appearance. The thicker they are, the more youthful your appearance. According to Alam, as we age, the fat pads tend to become thinner and less voluminous, causing them to droop due to the force of gravity. Well that doesn’t sound good. He goes on to say that face yoga or other similar exercises cannot make the fat pads more filled out. They can’t reduce sagging nor are they capable of altering the texture or appearance of the skin.

Alam stated that the goal of facial exercises is to strengthen the muscles underneath the fat pads and make them bigger. Through this, the muscles can take on the work the fat pads used to do, making the face look fuller.

Can face exercises really work?

In Dr. Adam Friedman’s opinion, a professor and chair of dermatology at George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences, the advantages of facial exercises are quite minimal. He asserted that toning those facial muscles has no considerable effect on the support structures of the skin which, over time, deteriorate and cause the appearance of aging.

Alam also stated that, while it is possible to build up facial muscles through specific exercises, there is a limit to how far such activities can take you in terms of the muscle gains and the level of enhancement witnessed.

Can face exercises cause wrinkles?

What about having an adverse effect? Is it possible to cause wrinkles by doing face yoga? Experts have expressed that it’s highly improbable to hurt oneself with these. Alam commented, “The riskiest thing that can happen in this case is that you just waste a bit of time and don’t observe the improvement you were hoping for.” 

The bottom line

Facial exercises likely won’t likely hurt your appearance, but they probably won’t help it either. There just isn’t enough reliable research to back up the claim of their effectiveness. To make a big difference, botox, filler and surgical procedures are the only way to alter the facial structure. But wouldn’t it be nice if they worked?!