You may be able to tighten loose skin after losing weight with various lifestyle and medical treatments. These may include changes in diet and physical activity, non-invasive procedures or body contouring surgery.
This article discusses the cause of loose skin after weight loss, its possible side effects, and treatment options.
Polywell / Jessica Olach
What Causes Loose Skin After Weight Loss?
Loose skin after weight loss is common, especially in those who lose 100 pounds or more. Skin can lose elasticity and sag as a side effect of such a dramatic change in size.
Skin is made up in part of proteins called collagen and elastin fibers. These proteins give the skin firmness and allow it to snap back into place after being stretched. When the skin is stretched over a long period of time, the collagen and elastin fibers are damaged.
After losing weight, your skin may lack the necessary proteins to return to its original shape. The skin loses its firmness and tends to just hang on the body.
In addition to the loss of elastin and collagen, the composition of the collagen that remains in the skin also changes. After losing weight, your skin contains less collagen and its structure changes. The makeup of your skin is also determined by other factors such as age, smoking history, general health and family history.
What are the side effects of loose skin?
After a significant weight loss, many people are not bothered by excess skin and never need treatment. However, it is also possible for this extra skin to become irritated and even infected. Side effects of loose skin can include:
- Chafing: When excess skin folds over, it rubs against them and chafing can occur. This can lead to a painful, itchy rash.
- Infections: When loose skin folds over itself, it can be difficult to thoroughly clean each fold. Bacteria can accumulate and overgrow, causing infection. If your skin wears and tears slightly, infection can enter the body.
- Discomfort during exercise: Excessive loose skin can cause pain and discomfort, especially during exercise. A 2013 study found that women who had loose skin after bariatric surgery reported their skin as a barrier to physical activity. It made the exercise uncomfortable and also led to emotional distress and embarrassment.
Even if your loose skin has not caused any health problems, its appearance may bother you. Studies have shown that excess skin can negatively affect quality of life, self-esteem and body image.
Treatments at home
There are some simple, healthy habits you can try at home to treat loose skin. While home remedies can help you make small improvements to the look and feel of your skin, they won’t fully address the cause of your sagging skin or fix it completely.
Losing a significant amount of weight usually results in more skin than lifestyle changes can handle. For this reason, many people turn to medical treatments for help.
Excercise
Physical activity and strength routines can help you maintain your weight loss and build healthy muscle. This will help with sagging skin because the new muscles can help plump it up. After losing weight, you don’t have as much body fat to fill out your skin. By building lean muscle through strength training, you’ll be able to add muscle while keeping the extra weight off.
Diet
Another way to improve loose skin is through your diet. Eating a diet rich in lean protein can help support muscle. Eating protein after strength training is especially helpful for building muscle.
Then wash all that healthy protein down with plenty of water. Well-hydrated skin is more elastic and flexible than dehydrated skin. Unless otherwise directed by your healthcare provider, aim for about 64 to 100 fluid ounces of water per day.
Compression garments
Wearing compression garments can help prevent some of the side effects of loose skin. Compression stockings and other garments that firmly hold loose skin together minimize friction from skin-to-skin contact. This can help reduce pain, irritation, itching and the risk of infection. Compression garments will not improve the loose skin itself, only the side effects.
Firming cream
Firming creams promise to tighten and tighten loose skin. Unfortunately, these claims have not been proven by research, and natural or herbal medicines do not need to be proven safe or effective to be sold. Always check with your healthcare provider before trying a new skin product.
Collagen
Preliminary studies on collagen supplements suggest that oral collagen supplements may help improve skin moisture and elasticity, and topical collagen applied directly to the skin may help reduce wrinkles and roughness. However, higher quality studies are needed and there is no research showing a benefit for loose skin after weight loss.
Additionally, supplements are not regulated in the same way as prescription drugs and are not tested for safety and effectiveness. Always check with your healthcare provider before trying supplements.
Medical treatments
As bariatric procedures and weight loss surgeries have become more common, so have procedures to address the excess skin that can result from them. If you’ve lost a lot of weight, talk to your healthcare provider about the right medical treatment for loose skin.
Body contouring surgery
Body contouring surgery is performed by a plastic surgeon and involves removing excess skin and fat from the body. The surgeon will also work to improve the shape of the remaining tissue, giving your body a smoother appearance.
There are different types of body contouring procedures depending on where you have the excess skin and how much you want to remove, including:
- Tummy tuck (abdominoplasty)
- Panniculectomy (skin removal surgery)
- Hand raise (brachioplasty)
- Breast lift
- Lower body lift
- Thigh lift
Body contouring surgery requires general anesthesia and usually an overnight stay in hospital. When you leave home, you may need surgical drainage of the excess fluid for a few weeks, as well as compression garments. Recovery can take several months, but most people start to feel better after about four weeks.
Body contouring surgery may be right for you if you have been able to maintain a stable weight and have no serious medical problems. Non-smokers have better results, as do people who have made healthy habits such as diet and exercise part of their lives.
Other medical procedures
If you want to avoid surgery to treat your loose skin, there are other options. Radiofrequency based energy devices are non-invasive and minimally invasive body contouring procedures that can help to tone the skin. These procedures may be a good fit if you have a minimal amount of excess skin to remove.
Examples are a device that uses radio frequency, infrared light and suction to massage the fat cells under the skin. This procedure is intended to stimulate the growth of new collagen and elastin, giving your skin more flexibility and definition.
Another device uses radio frequencies that are delivered to your cells through a catheter. The procedure heats the tissue under your skin to a safe temperature and causes it to contract and shrink. Results usually take about three to four months to appear.
It is important to wait to deal with excess skin until you reach a stable weight and maintain it for some time. Otherwise, if you continue to lose weight after body contouring, you will likely need to repeat the procedure due to extra loose skin.
Experts recommend waiting up to 18 months after bariatric surgery and six months of maintaining a stable weight before considering body contouring procedures.
Summary
Loose skin after significant weight loss is common and often does not require treatment. If you have a lot of friction and discomfort or are frustrated by it, there are several treatment options, with body contouring surgery being the most effective.
To determine which treatment is right for you, talk to your healthcare provider.
