As one baby Boomer reaches age 50 every seven seconds, anti aging is becoming a big business. It is estimated that the anti aging industry will gross more than $300 billion by the end of 2025, with no signs of slowing down for decades to come.
As the business grows, so does the confusion over what is good, what is real, and what just makes money for the person doing the selling.
Anti Aging Available Treatments
In the world of anti aging, you can start in your local grocery store and go all the way to luxury weekend vacations, or even further to surgeries, and still not reach the end of the ways you can get an anti aging treatment. Since finding the right treatment for you starts with knowing what is available, this can be more than a little overwhelming.
Depending on your needs, you might find yourself considering hormone replacement, a change in diet and specialized exercise, or perhaps even minor surgery such as laser resurfacing. Each different treatment will require a provider with the proper skill set.
Where The Patient Should Start
The best place to start is a consultation with an anti aging specialist. There are numerous causes to the signs of aging, and pinpointing your specific issues is an absolute must. Be sure to inform the doctor of any and all symptoms, such as aches in specific joints or ongoing fatigue. Even the littlest thing could change your doctor's suggestions on how best to begin your anti-aging treatments.
You should be careful to avoid choosing a treatment before speaking to your doctor. Knowing what you need before you step into the office of a new provider can help keep you from falling for the lies of a charlatan that could damage your health just as fast as they empty your wallet.
What to Expect
What to expect depends on your specific treatment plan, but there are a few options that seem to be particularly popular.
- If your provider suggests hormone replacement, you will likely need lab tests in order to pinpoint your hormone and body chemistry levels. This will ensure that your treatment is designed, accurately for your body and will not cause more problems than it solves. From there you might be required to find an anti aging specialist to administer and maintain your hormone replacement therapy. Your levels might change and need adjustment over time.
- Should your provider thinks that diet and special exercises are your most effective treatment plan, you will likely need to find a nutritionist and a physical therapist or trainer. These are specialists in their fields and can ensure that you get the right kind of help for your specific issues, instead of the generic "maybe" that a diet or exercise book can offer.
- Perhaps your provider will suggest something more cosmetic such as laser resurfacing, which is often considered a minor surgery, but new technologies are making these procedures safer with less recovery time. There are several other popular options, including Botox, dermal fillers and Microneedling each of which is usually administered by a specialist in their field.
Where to Go
Finding the perfect doctor at a price you can afford has never been easy, and finding all those different types of specialists was a nightmare under the best of circumstances. Health Beyond Insurance (HBI) has made finding those doctors as easy as a Google search, but with much more useful results related to exact pricing for each service.
