Want to Know How Fillers Work - Check Out This Tomato

The decision to get fillers is quite a common one for those who want to gain additional volume to their face, reduce the appearance of lines, and improve the contour of the face. Besides turning back the clock on the appearance of the face, the patient also gains an improved aesthetic appearance that looks younger than before the treatment. Fillers are so popular that, as recently as 2020, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons reported around 3.4-million Americans received injections of soft tissue fillers in that survey period.

Curious how fillers work in the body? A recent social media clip went viral for using a cherry tomato to show how fillers work.

How Fillers Work in the Body – Let’s Ask a Tomato

Earlier this year, an aesthetics doctor took to social media to share a clip where he used a cherry tomato to show how a filler works. The clip was watched by so many people that some viewers claimed that the cherry tomato started to look younger right away.

Doctor Andre, who goes by the name @extensaclinic on TikTok, shared the post on TikTok and, as of the publication of this article, the video has been viewed nine million times. In the TikTok video, dermal filler is injected into a cherry tomato with wrinkles. After receiving the filler, the cherry tomato instantly begins to inflate until it looks just like a new and fresh cherry tomato.

Fillers – What the FDA Says About Them

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), dermal fillers are “gel-like substances injected under the skin, meant to create a smoother or fuller appearance, or both.” In addition, the FDA states that the effects of most of the dermal fillers that are approved by the federal agency only provide temporary results due to the fact that they are made from materials that the body of the patient will eventually absorb. In order to maintain the results provided by fillers, a patient will need to have follow-up treatments at some point in the future.

The FDA also notes there are multiple filler options and one of the most popular is fillers made of hyaluronic acid with is a substance that is naturally found in the body. There are also Poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) fillers which are made of a synthetic material that is both biocompatible and biodegradable. One other type of dermal filler is made of calcium hydroxyapatite which is a mineral as well as a major component of bone.

When it comes to an FDA-approved dermal filler that is not able to be absorbed by the body, the website of the FDA states, “There’s only one FDA-approved dermal filler that is not absorbed by the body. It is made with polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) beads suspended in a solution that contains bovine (cow) collagen. PMMA beads are tiny, round, smooth, plastic beads.”

Fillers in a Cherry Tomato – The Public Reacts

Once the video was posted to TikTok, viewers of the video started to leave comments about the changes in the cherry tomato. Some of the comments included:

• “They put in tomato for free but charge me 600.”
• “They did surgery on a grape tomato.”
• “I feel like water would do the same thing.”
• “It’s funny no one is mentioning that dermal filler’s hyaluronic acid, of which the molecules draw in water, plumping the area. so it is water kind of.”
• “The cherry tomato is still dying inside and needs therapy.”
• “Unattainable tomato beauty standards.”
• “Cherry tomato is glowing up post-divorce y’all.”

Fillers – Procedure and Results Revealed

An actual fillers treatment does not take long, and it can be performed in as little as ten minutes. The procedure begins with the medical team disinfecting the skin at the injection site. Then, a numbing cream can be applied to the skin if desired by the patient.

The filler is injected under the skin. The injections can be in multiple locations and the doctor will massage each injection site to make sure the filler is able to distribute evenly in the body. Finally, an ice pack might be given to the patient to help reduce any swelling.

The results will start to be seen almost immediately after an injection. However, there will likely be some amount of swelling that is visible after the injections.

There is not really any downtime after the treatment which means the patient can instantly return to work or resume their normal activities after the procedure.

The final results are not permanent so additional treatments will be needed in order to maintain the results. It can take a few weeks for the fillers to settle into place so the final results can be seen. The length and extent of the final results depends on the amount of filler that is injected by the doctor and the type of fillers used during the procedure. In general, the results of fillers can last anywhere from six to twelve months (or more). There is no word yet on whether or not these results are the same for a cherry tomato.

- MA