Losing weight is one of the most rewarding decisions a person can make for their health. But for many people, the face tells a different story than the scale. Significant weight loss can cause the face to age faster than expected, leaving behind hollow cheeks, deeper folds, and sagging skin that no longer reflects how young and vibrant you feel on the inside.
Dr. Amir Karam, a double board-certified facial plastic surgeon in San Diego, has spent more than two decades helping patients navigate exactly this concern. With over 7,000 natural outcomes and recognition as a Castle Connolly Top Doctor for 11 consecutive years, Dr. Karam is widely regarded as one of the leading facelift surgeons in the world.
In this blog, we will discuss how weight loss affects the face, why it can make you look older, what Tami's real-life experience featured in PEOPLE reveals about the journey, and how the Vertical Restore can help you look as young as you feel.
Why Does Weight Loss Make Your Face Look Older?
The connection between weight loss and facial aging comes down to fat, skin, and structure. As Cleveland Clinic explains, subcutaneous fat, the layer just beneath the skin, plays a critical role in keeping the face looking full and youthful.
When that fat diminishes rapidly, the face can appear gaunt, hollow, and significantly older.
Tami's Story: A Real Patient's Journey to Looking as Young as She Feels
Tami, a 55-year-old Las Vegas resident, experienced this firsthand. After losing a significant amount of weight, she noticed her face had aged faster than she expected.
As she shared in her PEOPLE feature, the weight loss accelerated the visible signs of aging in a way she hadn't anticipated, and she decided it was time to take action.
- Her concern: Tami's weight loss left her face looking older and less like herself, despite feeling healthier overall.
- Her choice: After following Dr. Karam on social media for years, Tami traveled from Las Vegas to San Diego for a consultation and felt an immediate connection with his approach and philosophy.
- Her procedures: Tami underwent a full facial rejuvenation, including Dr. Karam's Vertical Restore, facial fat transfer, upper and lower blepharoplasty, and a lip lift.
- Her results: The outcome was so natural that people in Tami's life couldn't pinpoint what had changed, some even asked if she had done something different with her hair.
How the Vertical Restore Addresses Post-Weight-Loss Facial Aging
Traditional facelifts typically focus solely on the jawline, pulling the skin horizontally toward the ears. That approach often leaves behind the telltale signs of a "done" look, tightness, flatness, and an altered appearance.
Dr. Karam's Vertical Restore takes a fundamentally different approach. Here are the ways it is different:
- Vertical, not horizontal: The Vertical Restore lifts tissues vertically, counteracting gravity's downward pull to restore the face to its natural, youthful position rather than pulling it sideways.
- Comprehensive correction: Unlike a traditional facelift, the procedure addresses the outer brow, midface, jawline, and neck simultaneously — creating balanced, harmonious results across the entire face.
- Volume restoration: Facial fat transfer is often performed alongside the Vertical Restore, replenishing the volume lost to weight loss and restoring fullness to the cheeks and under-eye area.
- Deep-plane technique: By releasing the facial ligaments that hold tissues in their aged positions, the Vertical Restore achieves dramatic repositioning without tension, which is why the results appear so natural.
- Long-lasting results: Research published in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery confirms that volume replacement combined with surgical repositioning is essential for recreating the facial fat distribution of youth. The Vertical Restore delivers results that last 10 to 15 years, roughly three times longer than a traditional facelift.
Schedule a Consultation With Dr. Karam in San Diego
Contact Carmel Valley Facial Plastic Surgery today to schedule your consultation with Dr. Karam and take the first step toward looking as young as you feel.
