Following Weight Loss
Diet and exercise are the best ways to achieve a trimmer figure and healthier body. Unfortunately, burning fat has no impact on the skin. If your skin was stretched out during your heavier phase, it may not retract to match your new contours once you eliminate that excess weight. That means loose skin can hang from your midsection.
The only real recourse in this scenario is to have surgery. Abdominoplasty excises the extra skin and tightens the remaining skin for flatter contours.
After Having a Baby
As a pregnant belly expands, so does the skin. However, after the baby has been born and the stomach returns to its normal size, the skin does not often follow. Instead, the skin can remain stretched out. Tummy tuck helps to make the skin look more like it did before the pregnancy.
Keep in mind that if you are considering having more children in the future, you should postpone plans for abdominoplasty. Although it is safe to have children following a tummy tuck, a subsequent pregnancy is likely to undo the results achieved with the surgery.
If Genetics Have Blessed You with a Muffin Top
Putting on a little weight wouldn’t be so bad if you had a say insofar as where it was dispersed. Unfortunately, fat doesn’t work that way. People carry their weight in different areas, and for some that means fat is stored around the abdomen. If you notice that diet and exercise help you to slim other parts of the body but not the stomach, plastic surgery may be your best remedy.
Around Middle Age
The body’s production of collagen and elastin gradually slows as we age. People in their late 30s start to notice skin laxity, since collagen and elastin are responsible for keeping the skin tight. Consequently, some people who previously maintained a healthy, steady weight might notice skin sagging due to no fault of their own.
The good news is that tummy tuck can address the effects of gravity and aging. Once excess skin is removed and the remaining skin is pulled tighter, the results can be long-lasting.
Speak to Our Surgeons
Ultimately, the timing of your tummy tuck is a personal decision. If it feels right for you and our plastic surgeons confirm that you are a good candidate, you do not need to wait until a certain age or milestone. To arrange a consultation at Atlanta Plastic & Reconstructive Specialists, please call our Northside Office at (404) 255-2975 or Piedmont West office at (404) 343-0897.