Cellulite –Is it the unavoidable curse of being a woman?
Between 80 and 90% of women have got it in some shape or form whereas the stonger sex seemingly is for the most part untroubled by the dreaded lumps and bumps. Cellulite, orange peel skin, cottag cheese skin or whatever you want to call those pesky dimples are particularly bothersome during the summer months when those body parts that have spent the winter months wrapped up in thick layers get unveiled to soak up the sun at the beach or pool to get started on that summer tan. Traditionally, it was believed that cellulite was a collateral plight of obesity and it is indeed more pronounced in overweight people. In fact however, the condition affects both skinny minnies as well as more voluptous ladies of all body shapes alike, so let’s take a closer look at its causes:
The connective tissue is a fibrous tissue found in several body parts that plays a decisive role in skin firmness. Since women’s skin has to be a lot more flexible and able to adapt to significant weight changes quickly, such as those brought about by pregnancy, their connective tissue is structured differently compared to men. Think of it as a netted structure, rather than an imbricated one. This means that the skin can stretch more easily. If the connective tissue is weak, large fat cells (adipocytes or lipocytes) can protrude which leads to the skin appearing nodulous or bumpy instead of smooth. While slim women are usually not affected by cellulite as badly, everyone can and will most likely get it at some point after puberty. It is however important to bear in mind that the condition is likely to worsen if you do put on weight, so hopefully this will also give you an incentive to slim down if you have a few extra pounds to shed and to keep your weight within the healthy range.
Hormones and genetics also play an important role. The female sex hormone estrogen is believed to favour and aggravate cellulite however research into this matter is still in the very early stages so there is no conclusive evidence proving this theory at present.
The impact of diet and lifestyle should not be underestimated either. 63% of the UK’s working population are in a sedentary job and many of us do not counteract the detrimental effects of sitting at a desk every day adequately, i.e. by exercising at least 30min each day. Cars further favour a sluggish lifestyle. A high-fat and high-sugar diet combined with lack of exercise lead to poor circulation, lymph buildup and will eventually weaken the connective tissue leading to cellulite, regardless of whether you’re overweight or not, even though the onset is usually quicker and more drastic in obese people. Besides – many overweight men develop cellulite as a result of their obesity since too much body fat decreases testosterone levels while increasing estrogen levels which can lead to a change in skin structure. Furthermore, if you are severely overweight, your skin simply cannot cope with the extra amount of baggage and will lose its elasticity, allowing the fat cells to protrude. The same is true for people putting on a lot of weight before losing it again quickly – the skin cannot adapt quickly enough and tears (unsightly stretch marks) or again becomes less elastic resulting in a weak connective tissue.
Despite the countless products, gadgets , treatments and other miracle cures luring with the promise of silky smooth thighs and buttocks the sad truth is that cellulite cannot be ‘cured’ – the quality of your connective tissue is genetically programmed and cannot be altered no matter what. But not all hope is lost and the good news is that lots of things can be done to dramatically reduce the appearance and severity of cellulite, so stay tuned until next week when we’ll take a closer look at different methods to see what really can be done and what simply is a waste of your time and money.
