What is 'baby Botox'?

Traditionally, injections of wrinkle-relaxants like Botox have been synonymous with expressionless foreheads, overarching eyebrows and pinched smiles. Now, many practitioners prefer to use micro-doses to treat wrinkles for a more natural look.

Commonly coined ‘baby Botox’, smaller amounts of the toxin—at the same strength—can deliver subtle results for a fresh-faced look, something that's become increasingly popular with both practitioners delivering it and patients demanding it.

As a plastic surgeon and expert in both non-surgical and surgical aesthetic procedures, Dr Ashwin Soni is a leader in the technique. Below he explains everything to know about ‘baby Botox’ for those seeking natural results from the procedure.

What does the term ‘baby Botox’ refer to?
‘Baby Botox’ is defined as smaller doses of Botox injected into each area, in comparison to traditional Botox where more units are injected into each point. ‘Baby Botox’ allows for a more natural-looking result and aims to eliminate the wrinkles of the forehead while still allowing some facial movement and expression, which traditional Botox blocks. With this technique, Botox is distributed in smaller amounts across the forehead and crow’s feet area, which prevents that infamous ‘frozen forehead’ look and allows animation of the muscles to still occur.

Why do you think you’ve seen an increase in ‘baby Botox’ treatments?
I think the trend within the aesthetics industry has shifted towards a more natural look. Patients come to me for natural-looking results, and so ‘baby Botox’ is the way I do Botox in most patients, depending on their aesthetic goals.

Who is ‘baby Botox’ suited to?
A lot of patients who come and see me have never had treatments done before; they simply want to look refreshed and rejuvenated, and not like they have had something obviously done. There is a set traditional way in which most training courses teach providers how to administer Botox, but this can leave patients with an unnatural look in my opinion.

What is the secret to achieving effective ‘baby Botox’?
The secret to effective ‘baby Botox’ is to inject smaller doses in each treatment area, and to distribute the doses more widely with additional injection points. Administering a larger dose in fewer areas can ‘freeze’ the forehead by blocking the muscle in a heavier way. I personally mark out the wrinkle pattern on every patient because everyone is unique. A lot of providers have standardised approaches, but there is a lot of finesse with administering Botox: patients are all individual, so treatments have to be tailored to their wrinkle distribution and anatomy.

As a plastic surgeon doing so much non-surgical and injectable work, it is the extensive experience with facial anatomy and the understanding of how facial muscles move and work that allows me to produce more natural results.

How do you advise people find a practitioner to guarantee natural results?
Firstly, I always stress the importance of researching your provider extensively. As many are aware, this industry is highly unregulated, and so the key is to really know who you are trusting with your face and what products they are using. Pick a provider who has extensive experience with facial anatomy, and research their before-and-afters to make sure that you would be happy to look like their patients do following treatments.

Providers have different practice styles and some stress natural results much more than others. In the initial consultation, make sure that your aesthetic goals align with what your provider is saying, and check that your provider is also using the highest quality Botox, as there are many cheaper versions on the market.

In general, how often do you recommend top-up appointments of ‘baby Botox’?
Every patient metabolises Botox at a different rate, so it depends on when it starts to wear off, which is when you notice some wrinkles starting to return. I have some patients who only see it lasting three months, and then I have other patients who experience longer results. On average it lasts around three-to-four months, which is very similar in my experience to traditional Botox treatments.

This piece originally appeared in Harper's Bazaar UK