A gaunt face defines a face that looks thin and bony. The term is usually used to describe the face of someone who looks sick, malnourished, or unhealthy, and it typically is not used to define a naturally thin but healthy-looking face. People often ask, “Does smoking make your face skinny?”. The answer is yes, but it has a lot to do with other factors as well.
As you age, your face loses fat, which can cause sunken cheeks and a more angular appearance. Some lifestyle habits, such as not wearing sunscreen, not eating a balanced diet, and smoking, can fasten aging. Moreover, illnesses that force weight loss can also cause your face to look gaunt if your overall body fat percentage drops.
Gaunt Face and Aging
Subcutaneous fat, which is beneath your skin, gives your face volume and plumpness. As you age, you tend to lose some fat, making your face appear thinner and bonier. Moreover, your skin loses elasticity as you get older due to reducing the proteins collagen and elastin, and losing these proteins causes more sagging skin and wrinkles.
Gaunt Face and Smoking
Smoking has adverse effects on your health internally and externally, and it can badly affect your lungs and other vital organs. Smoking can also destroy your skin’s health, making you age faster. Excessive and prolonged smoking can make you lose fat on your face and other parts of the body, and you can get malnutrition and have a skinny face that looks sick.
Gaunt Face and Illness
A gaunt face can be caused by any condition that causes weight loss, such as:
1- Cancer
Most people with cancer will lose weight, and unexplained weight loss of 10 pounds or more is often an early warning sign of undiagnosed cancer. Cancer treatments like radiation or chemotherapy can also lead to decreased appetite and weight loss, making your face appear gaunt.
2- Eating Disorders
Eating disorders like anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa can cause excessive weight loss, resulting in a thinner-looking face.
People with eating disorders do not consume enough protein. About 75% of your skin is made up of a protein called collagen, and eating too little protein can hinder your body’s capability to build new skin cells.
3- Digestive Conditions
Several conditions that impact your digestion can cause forced weight loss, leading to a gaunt face. Some of these conditions include:
Cirrhosis
Celiac disease
Crohn’s disease
Pancreatitis
Colitis
Parasitic infections
Viral gastroenteritis or stomach flu
4- Depression
Everyone encounters depression differently. Some people may have a decreased appetite leading to weight loss, making their faces thinner. However, some people with depression may experience food cravings and weight gain.
Dietary Habits
If you eat fewer calories than you are burning, you will undergo fat loss in all parts of your body, including your face.
Your face may appear more gaunt or skinny on days when you are more dehydrated.
Research has also connected high sugar diets to premature facial aging due to their adverse effects on collagen and elastin.
Having nutrient insufficiencies can negatively impact your skin and face health.
Weight Loss
If you started a new exercise program and have lost weight, you may observe that your face looks thinner. When you burn calories through exercise, fat is burnt from all parts of your body, including your face.
For many people, it may be seen as a positive. However, people who exercise excessively may develop a gaunt appearance, often called gym face.
Moreover, some lifestyle factors can contribute to premature facial aging:
Smoking
Stress
Poor-quality sleep
Medical Treatment
There are several medical treatment options, such as:
1- Facial Fillers
Facial fillers are gels injected under your skin to restore lost facial volume and smooth out the wrinkles. Dermal fillers are made of several different materials but commonly consist of hyaluronic acid, calcium hydroxyapatite, or poly-L-lactic acid. They are best for filling the hollowness in the face.
2- Fat Transfer
Fat transfer or fat grafting takes fat from one part of your body and injects it into your face to make it appear fuller. The donor fat is taken from your abdomen or inner thighs through liposuction.
Home Remedies
You can do things at home to avoid developing a gaunt face. The two most basic remedies: eating a balanced diet with enough calories to maintain a healthy body weight and wearing sunscreen when outside.
Taking care of your overall health will have a more significant effect than any serum you can apply to your face, as most products target your skin but not the fat underneath. Keeping your face moisturized and hydrated is another great way to ensure fullness.
The natural aging process may cause a gaunt face or a sign of an underlying medical condition. Your face naturally loses volume as you age, but smoking can fasten the process. Regular sun exposure and poor dietary habits can speed up skin aging without sunscreen. You should consult a professional to treat such fat loss. You can book an appointment with the best Skin Specialist in Islamabad through Marham.
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