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Wednesday, 06-06-2012 10:12

We Tried It: I Got a Radio Frequency Face & Body Treatment

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"Radio frequency facial" is a hi-tech-sounding buzzword that gets thrown around at medi-spas, usually with promises of toning, tightening, and fat-melting. I've always been curious, so last night I bit the bullet and tried the Trio-Lift treatment for face and body at Ildi Pekar Skin Care Home in New York.

Pekar started by massaging a cool gel onto the right side of my face, and then ran heated conductors on top. It was actually relaxing, and when she was finished with half of my face, I was surprised to see that (like magic!) the area right under the apple of my cheek became subtly, but noticeably, more taut. After finishing up my face, I wanted to try it on my body, too. I went for the stomach, and she pressed and massaged the area with two different conductors and a touch more heat than she had used above the neck. Again, not painful. Just a warm sensation. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but I swear my abs looked flatter the next day and I felt sore, like I had done about 500 sit ups. But two days later, my smile lines look less prominent, and Pekar said the results could last for a month. Not bad for an hour-and-a-half treatment that costs 0 and up.

And it turns out, the results weren't all in my head: "Radio frequency machines like Thermage can tone and tighten the skin, and results can last for up to two years. They won't do anything for fat, but some of them do heat deep enough to soften up the fibrous areas that make cellulite look prominent," says Heidi Waldorf, director of laser and cosmetic dermatology at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. But be careful about who does your treatment don't just run to whatever spa is doing a Groupon that day. Waldorf recommends going to a doctor's office: "I've seen people burned by radio frequency. A lot of these treatments shouldn't be done over scars or hernias, so you need to have an examination first," she says.