Cellulite the dreaded opponent of bikini season. Cellulite is persistent subcutaneous (below the skin) fat that shows up as dimples on the skin. They are especially persistent in women, and usually show up on the thighs or buttocks. This is due to the fact that women tend to store fat around their thighs and buttock, in contrast to men. It is best describe as having orange an orange peel texture beneath your skin. Cellulite affects some 90% of women at some point during their lives, even those that are slim. The problem is more persistent as you get older and lose elasticity in your skin.

Cellulite actually comes in 3 different forms. There is Oedematous which is soft cellulite that appears on lose skin, adipose cellulite that appears on firm skin, and fibrotic which is hard compact cellulite. The condition also comes in 3 grades, and unlike school you don’t want to graduate to the next level on this one. Grade 1 means your cellulite is not visible to regular vision, and even pinching the skin doesn’t result in visible cellulite. Close examination through a microscope can reveal changes to the skin however. Grade 2 appears when the skin is pinched revealing a lumpy surface. Grade 3 appears when you are standing up, but disappear when lying down. Grade 4 is constantly visible, even when lying down.

Because cellulite is caused by fat that means diet and exercise can play a huge role in eliminating it. It’s not only the weight loss activity of exercise that causes it to kill cellulite, but also the blood circulation improvements physical activities bring to your body. Though be careful not to partake in a crash fad diet, as they can actually increase incidents of cellulite. Dehydration and changes in hormones can also have an effect. Cellulite also appears more visible on fairer skin, getting a tan on can help to lessen visibility of the dimples. As with a lot of health related issues there is a genetic component to it, although your lifestyle plays a much bigger role. Hormones also play a large part, with oestrogen, thyroid hormones, and insulin all playing a role. Smoking also correlates to higher incidences of cellulite. Some more off key things such as wearing tight clothing that restrict blood flow also correlate with an increase in cellulite.

There is nothing inherently bad about cellulite; it is just normal fat that pushes up against connective tissue causing it to pucker. Even so their appearances can be undesirable, and your lifestyle choices can have an effect on its appearance. However having a lot of it could be an indication of higher than healthy body weight. A common sense approached can be used to figure out whether you need to worry about the problem beyond superficial appearance. This might not be enough for those unhappy with their appearances, which is why we will closer examine some methods that have been employed by people in the battle against cellulite on our next article.

 

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