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It looks likely to become the must-have beauty product of the autumn - and the waiting list is already more than 2,000 long.
Slendertone Face is the latest attempt to fight the ageing process and goes on sale at Harrods today.
At £300, the headset device claims to produce a “natural facelift” that is cheaper and less intrusive than cosmetic surgery and more cost-effective than regular filler injections.
The product uses electronic muscle stimulation technology that has been used in hospitals for more than 40 years for muscle rehabilitation.
Clinical trials showed that use reversed the muscle wastage that comes with age, plumping and rejuvenating the face.
Slendertone makes abdominal and arm toning gadgets which have a following that includes former Spice Girl Melanie Brown and Gavin and Stacey actress Joanna Page.
TV presenters, pop stars and top businesswomen are said to be among those who have put their names on the waiting list.
Dr Trish Smith, chief executive of Slendertone and a cardiologist, said: “It's very gentle and doesn't hurt at all. As it's hands-free, you can wear it while you're cooking or ironing.”
Electronic panels sit directly over the cranial nerve, just in front of the ear from where all the facial nerves branch out, so the pulses gently stimulate every muscle in the face.
The trials, overseen by Dr Michael Hennessy, head of neurology at the University of Galway, suggested that using Slendertone Face for 20 minutes five times a week for 12 weeks increases the volume of facial muscles by up to 46 per cent, with the average improvement being 18.6 per cent.
Annalise Quest, Harrods head of beauty, said: “The clinical results are outstanding and after just one use the skin truly does glow.”
The frenzy echoes the launch of Boots No7 Protect and Perfect serum in 2007.
Customers queued from before dawn for the moisturiser after the BBC reported that scientists had proved it actually did reduce wrinkles.
Your muscles are pulsing, it's like a gym for the face'
I am the luckiest woman in London. Celebrities will crawl over my prone body to get hold of this baby.
According to the hype, Slendertone Face is the coolest way for the 35+ generation to retrain the muscles of the face and reduce the signs of ageing.
And if you're feeling slightly jowly you'll try most things.
The kit itself is pretty simple. After you have charged up the unit, you unpeel the gel pads, stick them to the “headphone” electronic panels and put them on. Connect them to the unit and press “on”.
At first you feel a bit foolish, nothing happens.
But increase the toning intensity to 20 and your face starts buzzing. It's an extraordinary sensation, you can literally feel the muscles pulsing.
As it is hands-free, you can do other things while you're wearing it. I can't imagine ever getting used to the electronic muscle stimulation, but after 10 minutes, I'm reading.
After 15, I'm brave enough to take it to meet my fascinated colleagues.
After the first session my face is aflame. My cheekbones feel more marginally more defined.
Common sense really: if you get the circulation going, this invigorates the skin. But yes I would persist. It is light and easy to use.
Better still for slackers like myself, it does all the work. It's like a gym for the face. Liz Hoggard
Reader views (1)
This doesn't sound that revolutionary as ORALIFT has been developing the 'natural facelift' for some time now themselves. Oralift is the pioneering anti-ageing device that reverses the ageing triangle and can even be used on the way to work! My Mum is using it at the moment and it has reduced her facial lines, made her cheekbones look more prominent and given her fuller lips. Oralift looks similar to a small mouth guard and my Mum just wears it for a few hours a day, every two or three days. Basically in youth, the base of the ageing triangle is in the area of the cheeks and the point is towards the chin. As jowls develop, the base of the triangle drops to the jaw line and the point is towards the nose. Up until now only facial surgery could reverse this but my Mum did want to endure the pain, but now the Oralift can achieve similar results, but naturally without pain. Oralift increases the space between the upper and lower teeth. When adapting to this new resting position muscles seem to become more toned and trigger the body’s natural healing process, counteracting the effects of facial ageing - my Mum would certainly recommend Oralift as every one keeps commenting that she looks so well.
- Hollie Thomson, London, 09/09/2009 09:38
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