Botox: Does it make you happier?

Botulinum Toxin A (or Botox) is best known for providing a non-surgical facelift -- and more recently, for treating conditions such as migraines, excessive sweating and muscle pain. (See Botox: More than skin deep?)

And now new research suggests that Botox - a potent toxin in the same class of bacteria that cause botulism - can also lift your spirits. The reason: by paralyzing the facial muscles used for frowning, Botox treatments prevent people from displaying expressions of negative emotion. In other words, literally wiping the frown off your face not only improves your appearance, but it also affects your mood.

So is it just another case of 'look good, feel good'? Not so, researchers say.

For the study, which was published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 25 cosmetic-surgery patients received cosmetic treatments for wrinkles: of these, 12 received injections of Botox, with the others receiving fillers, peels or other wrinkle-reducing treatments.

Several weeks after receiving the treatments, participants filled out a self-screening questionnaire for depression and anxiety. They also rated the success of their treatments.

The result? The Botox patients scored much lower on measures of depression, anxiety and irritability. "Both groups had had some form of cosmetic treatment, and there was no difference in how effective they thought their treatment had been, so this result is most likely due to the effects of Botox specifically," said study leader Dr Michael Lewis, from the University of Cardiff.

Facial feedback

Lewis' research backs up previous studies. In 2006, as reported in Time.com, cosmetic surgeon Dr. Eric Finzi injected Botox into the frown lines (around the mouth or in the forehead furrows) of 10 clinically depressed women.

The treatment eliminated symptoms of depression in nine of the women and was found to reduce the symptoms in the 10 th . Finzi explained the results by using a facial-feedback hypothesis - a feedback loop in which people frown back at a depressed person, further deepening that person's sense of isolation.

The suggestion is that if a depressed person can't frown because of Botox treatment, then others won't frown back at them, thereby breaking the cycle.

Another theory is that facial muscles may influence brain activity directly. Earlier research, for example, has suggested that physical act of smiling or laughing has a beneficial affect on mood, even if the laughter is not genuine. (See Laughter is the best medicine)

These studies correspond with a growing trend in counseling and therapy that focuses on behavioral change - an approach summed up by the "Fake it till you make it" slogan used by Alcoholics Anonymous - rather than the "talk therapy" of the Freudian era, according to the Time report.

But before you start thinking that Botox might be the next Prozac, keep in mind that because of the small sample groups, researchers say further studies are needed.

Sources: Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology; University of Cardiff news release; Time.com

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