Skin Boosters Explained
Our aesthetics clinician explains how boosters, polynucleotides and peels differ, which concern suits each one, how a course is structured and what you will pay.
What Are Skin Boosters and Polynucleotides, and How Much Do They Cost in Broughty Ferry?
Polynucleotides and skin boosters are injected in very small quantities to improve the quality of the skin itself (its hydration, texture and fine crepey lines) rather than to add volume or alter your features. Most courses run to two or three appointments, each a few weeks after the last, with the improvement building over time. Here at Ferry Smile Studios, one polynucleotide skin session comes to £200. A single BabyGlow session is £300, with three sessions at £600, while the under-eye treatment costs £145 per session, with three at £300.
Better Skin, Same Face
The majority of facial aesthetic treatments alter either shape or movement. Filler builds volume in the lips or cheeks, and anti-wrinkle injections soften the muscles that furrow the forehead. Skin treatments work on a different level. Their purpose is to make the skin itself healthier: more hydrated, smoother to the touch, less crepey and more even in tone.
Afterwards, no one should see a changed face. What people tend to hear instead is that they look well rested. That makes these treatments well suited to people who want healthier skin without any change to their features, and poorly suited to anyone looking for lift or added volume.
Polynucleotides
Polynucleotides are highly purified strands of DNA, usually derived from salmon or trout, placed in tiny amounts just beneath the surface of the skin. The aim is to support the skin's own repair mechanisms, so that over time it appears thicker, smoother and better hydrated. They are a popular choice where the skin is thin and crepey, typically around the eyes and across the neck, places where a standard filler tends to look heavy or puffy.
Compared with fillers and anti-wrinkle injections they are a newer treatment, and the research behind them is still maturing. Our aesthetics clinician will be candid about that and will not promise a specific outcome. As the material comes from fish, let us know about any fish allergy beforehand. A polynucleotide skin session is £200. 1
Unsure Which Treatment Suits Your Skin?
Book a skin consultation with our aesthetics clinician in Broughty Ferry.
BabyGlow
BabyGlow belongs to the skin booster family: a light gel that hydrates, delivered as a scatter of tiny droplets across a whole area instead of one concentrated spot. Spread that thinly, it leaves the contours of your face alone. What it does is raise moisture and radiance across the skin, which helps when skin looks dull, dry or tired, when you want a boost before a wedding or a holiday, or simply as regular upkeep.
It is generally planned as a course. A single session is £300 and three sessions cost £600. 1 If volume is what you are after, in hollow cheeks for instance, that is a separate treatment which can be planned alongside it.
Treating the Under-Eye Area
Nowhere on the face is the skin thinner than beneath the eyes, which is why tiredness shows there first. Using skin-quality injectables, our under eye and dark circles treatment targets crepey texture and the shadowy look that thin skin creates. One session costs £145, and a three-session course is £300. 1
Be clear about its limits. A genuine hollow, where the groove under the eye has deepened, is a volume issue and may be better addressed with tear trough filler (£300). Where dark circles are down to genetics, allergies or poor sleep, the improvement may be only partial. Our aesthetics clinician will assess what is causing yours and tell you frankly which option, if any, is likely to make a difference.
Chemical Peels: No Needles Involved
A peel is painted onto the skin rather than injected. It lifts away dull surface cells, brightening the complexion and helping with rough texture and patchy tone. The Radiance chemical peel we offer costs £130. 1 It is ideal for anyone wanting a fresher surface with no injections, and it fits comfortably alongside boosters in a longer-term skin plan.
A lighter peel leaves the skin pink and lightly flaking for a few days. Your skin will also be more sun-sensitive afterwards, so daily SPF is essential, and we would normally steer clear of a peel right before a summer holiday. A peel acts only on the surface: it will not soften lines caused by muscle movement, nor can it put back volume that has been lost.
Matching the Treatment to the Concern
| Your concern | Usually considered | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Dehydrated, lacklustre skin | BabyGlow | £300 per session; three for £600 |
| Thin, crepey skin and fine lines | Polynucleotides | £200 |
| Crepey skin and shadows around the lower eyelids | Under eye and dark circles treatment | £145 per session; three for £300 |
| Rough texture, uneven tone | Radiance chemical peel | £130 |
| Under-eye hollows | Tear trough filler | £300 |
| Frown lines and crow's feet | Anti-wrinkle injections | Two areas from £200 |
Read this as a rough guide only. 1 Several concerns frequently sit together, and the plan that suits you, possibly combining treatments, is settled once our aesthetics clinician has examined your skin in person. That consultation is free; a £50 deposit holds the slot and is returned to you within seven days of attending. If you need to cancel or rearrange, let us know at least 48 hours ahead. The deposit is only kept if you miss the appointment without telling us. The full list of aesthetics fees is on our facial aesthetics page.
How a Course Unfolds
Two or three sessions, several weeks apart, is the norm. Unlike filler, nothing visibly changes shape on the day itself. Instead, hydration and texture improve gradually in the weeks following each session, and the gains accumulate across the full course. That is the thinking behind selling BabyGlow and the under-eye treatment as three-session courses, priced below three separately booked visits.
Assess the outcome at the end of the course rather than after the first appointment. At your review, our aesthetics clinician will go through before-and-after photographs with you and advise whether the occasional top-up session would help maintain the result. Everyone's skin responds differently, so results vary. 2
Recovery and Risks
Small raised bumps and some redness where the needle went in are to be expected and generally fade inside a day or two. You may bruise, particularly beneath the eyes, so leave a few days' gap before any special occasion. Numbing cream goes on before we start. Over the next 24 hours, steer clear of strenuous exercise, saunas and alcohol, and leave the treated area unrubbed unless we have asked you to.
Rarer complications include infection, allergic reaction (including to the fish-derived polynucleotides), and swelling or bruising that lingers longer than usual. Before you go ahead, our aesthetics clinician will set out the risks that apply to your particular treatment. Should anything worry you afterwards, phone the practice on 01382 477350.
Who Is Suitable
Adults of 18 or over who are generally healthy. Treatment is put off during pregnancy and breastfeeding, where there is an active skin infection or a cold sore, and whenever a health condition or a medicine you take rules it out. We go through your medical history in person before any plan is drawn up. Several of these products need a prescription, which can only be written after that in-person assessment.
Where your main concern is expression lines or lost volume, our aesthetics clinician will discuss anti-wrinkle injections or filler with you instead, and the lips are covered in our lip filler guide. You will find us in Broughty Ferry at 196 Brook Street, and booking is online or by phone on 01382 477350.
Questions
This guide is general information, not a diagnosis. A dentist needs to examine you to say what is right for your teeth.