NECK TECH

When it comes to cosmetic treatments, the face may get all the attention, but the neck deserves love too. Novel technologies that go beyond creams deliver lifted, sculpted necks-without surgery.

- KATIE INTNER

You could spend days doing trials on various devices, professional treatments, and high-tech formulas designed to lift and firm the skin on your face, but necks get far less attention. Not only is the area below your jawline often neglected when it comes to skin solutions, but it’s far trickier to treat. “When people come in for a facelift, they always point to the neck and under-chin area first as their biggest issue,” says plastic surgeon Erez Dayan from Reno, Nevada.

Take it from Nora Ephron and her 2006 book, I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman: There's long been a desire to have a smooth, youthful neck, as the fragile skin in that area shows the first signs of ageing. It's why dermatologists always preach about bringing your skincare as far down as your bra. "The neck area presents a unique challenge because the collagen there is thinner and deteriorates more quickly, causing signs of ageing to appear sooner than on the face," says New York dermatologist Shereene Idriss. Less collagen is why the skin on the neck loses its firmness and elasticity, resulting in crepiness. Treating the neck isn't as simple as treating the face: Hyaluronic-acid-based fillers, which add volume to a sagging face, cannot improve lax skin on the neck, and high-heat lasers can actually deplete the delicate collagen in your neck.