Botox® Can Fix Your Gummy Smile or Downturned Mouth
A person's smile is a big part of what others perceive as their personality. A pleasant smile can automatically make someone more trusted, likable, and even more beautiful. On the other hand, imperfections like a downturned smile or overexposed gums can make someone look less pleasant. Are you unhappy with the way your smile looks? If so, you aren’t alone—millions of people have had similar concerns about their smiles. Your biggest concern might be that your smile seems to droop downward as if you’re constantly sad or disappointed. You might also be concerned that an excessive amount of gum shows when you smile, also known as a ‘gummy smile.’ Botox® can treat these issues, and it can help you achieve the beautiful smile you’ve always wanted!
What Causes wrinkles around the Mouth?
The different types of mouth wrinkles include:
Purse Lines - tiny vertical lines above the lips often caused by smoking, sun damage, or pursing your lips too often
Treatment recommended - Neurotoxin injections
Nasolabial folds or laugh lines - deep lines extending from your nostrils to the sides of your lips
Treatment recommended - Filler injections
Marionnette lines - deep lines extending from the corners of your lips to the bottom of your face
Treatment recommended - Filler injections + neurotoxin injection to the DAO muscles
These common wrinkles can be accelerated by stress, sun exposure, smoking, irregular exfoliation habits, and even dental issues. Botox® or Dysport® are a great way to address purse lines, a gummy smile, and a downturned mouth. We would usually recommend a combination of dermal fillers and Botox to smooth out laugh lines and marionette lines.
How Does DAO Toxin Fix a Downturned Mouth?
A little-known muscle called the Depressor Anguli Oris (DAO) may be responsible for your downturned smile. In short, DAO is a tiny muscle that sits at the corner of your mouth and pulls down on the skin when you frown or scowl. Essentially, the DAO muscle is doing the most, overworking itself. As we age, we lose elasticity in our skin and as the DAO muscle continues to force those facial expressions, we start developing frown lines around our mouth. The DAO Toxin treatment involves injecting the neurotoxin, botulinum toxin type A, into the DAO muscle. The injection relaxes the muscle and prevents it from pulling the skin down when those facial expressions are made. The result is smoother skin around the mouth and minimized frown lines!
What Causes a Gummy Smile?
A gummy smile is a common name given to smiles that show excessive gum tissue. So what causes a gummy smile? There are a couple of reasons why you may be showing too much of your gums when you say 😁📸 "cheese." It could be due to genetics, which usually means you simply have excess gum tissue or small teeth that leave more of the gums exposed. A gummy smile could also be caused by a hyperactive, or hypermobile, upper lip. In this instance, the muscles above the mouth cause the upper lip to retract the lip too far when you smile. This simply exposes a greater amount of gum tissue when you're smiling, resulting in a gummy smile.
How Does Botox Help Correct a Gummy Smile?
Neurotoxin injections work best to correct gummy smiles caused by a hypermobile upper lip, however, a disproportionate gum to teeth ratio is something that a Dentist will likely need to correct. The neurotoxin is injected into the muscle above your upper lip in order to relax it. This causes the lip to stay put over the gums and not retract as far when you smile. Those overexposed gums will be covered and your smile will still remain radiant!
How Long Do Botox Treatments For Gummy Smiles Last?
Depending on how often you get Botox treatments for a gummy smile, results can last anywhere from three to four months. While results vary person-to-person, one study found that patients had reduced gum visibility in their smiles for an average of three months after just one Botox treatment. As time goes on and more treatments are administered, the treatment will continue to prolong your original results. In fact, after five years of using botulinum toxin A injections every three months for their gummy smiles (an average of 20 times), patients saw no loss in their initial improvement.
How Long Does DAO Toxin Last for a Downturned Smile?
DAO Botox treatments can last anywhere from 3 to 4 months before repeated treatments are needed. Typically, the maximum effect of the neurotoxin is seen 2 -3 weeks after treatment. After this point, movement in the DAO muscle is slowly and gradually restored. If you smoke (or have a habit of smoking) cigarettes, then your DAO Botox treatments will most likely not last as long. Smoking is a known toxin and makes it harder for your body to heal itself, so it’s not recommended that you do so while getting treated with DAO Botox. Nicotine also damages skin cells and reduces collagen in your skin, so smoking not only accelerates wrinkle formation, but it prevents your DAO Botox treatments from lasting as long as they would without nicotine in your system.
Where to Get Dao Toxin Treatments in Fort Worth, TX
If you’re ready to get that stunning smile you’ve always dreamed of, Bougie Aesthetics in Fort Worth, Texas is ready to be your guide. Our Botox injection services are available for correcting gummy smiles, frown lines, or any other problem areas you’d like to address with neurotoxins. Give us a call or book an appointment to start your cosmetic enhancement journey today!
