Is Treating Cellulite a Lost Cause?

Many doctors claim that cellulite is a natural result of the aging process.  But not all older women have cellulite and many younger women do.  To explain this common discrepancy, doctors usually point to genetics.

According to dermatologist Amy Newburger, the author of Looking Good at Any Age, “cellulite is hereditary, so much so that the indications of who will get it, and to what degree, are present almost from birth.”  Dr. Newburger explains that skin biopsies taken from infants are highly predictive of whether cellulite will develop later in life, based on the number of septa bands found in the skin.

This is where many of us are inclined to throw up our hands in desperation.  If cellulite is a “genetic condition,” then there isn’t much we can do about it.  We can blame our mothers.  We can blame the hands of time.  But that’s about it.  If Dr. Newburger is right, and they can predict from birth who among us will develop cellulite, then surely it is useless to try and swim against the current.

Maybe cellulite is our destiny.

While Dr. Newburger’s evidence is notable, it does not imply that cellulite is a genetic condition.  Jumping to this conclusion would violate one of the central tenets of scientific research, namely, that correlation does not imply causation.  Just because two variables consistently coincide, it does not mean that one variable causes the other.  To illustrate, here is an example of flawed causal logic: “the more firemen fighting a fire, the bigger the fire is going to be.  Therefore, firemen cause big fires.”  Even though increased numbers of firemen are consistently associated with bigger fires, the conclusion that firemen cause big fires is obviously incorrect.

Even though infants with a certain number of septa bands consistently develop cellulite as adults, this does not mean that the additional septa bands cause cellulite.  Maybe cellulite causes women to give birth to infants with more septa bands.  Even if certain genetic factors make an individual more susceptible to cellulite, that still does not imply causation.  Causality is a complicated mechanism that the most skilled theorists often have difficulty untangling.

Interpreting cellulite as a lymphatic disorder rather than a genetic condition opens up a world of potential treatment options for cellulite victims.  Dry brushing is the simple process of sweeping a stiff body brush across the skin in order to clear dead skin cells and other surface debris from the pores.  Although it sounds like a simple technique, the results can be significant, as ANALYST’s initial dry brushing experience attests.  Of course, dry brushing isn’t the only way to stimulate lymphatic flow.  Diet, exercise, lymphatic massage, yoga, herbs, essential oils… each of these topics will need to be explored during a comprehensive investigation of cellulite.

But dry brushing does answer a critical question early in the investigation.  Is treating cellulite a lost cause?  The preliminary evidence indicates to the contrary.

Tagged as: dry brushing, lymphatics