Does face yoga work or not? That’s what the science says

To get straight to the point: not much. Despite the growing popularity of face yoga, the number of studies on this method is still very limited. There is one study that is often mentioned in this context, but it seems to have a lot of snags.

In the scientific journal Gamma Dermatology American researchers have concluded that facial yoga can make you look three years younger. It seems too good to be true, right? Maybe it is.

Not very independent

De Volkskrant journalists I decided to investigate and soon discovered something remarkable. One of the researchers turned out to be Gary Serkorski: a “facial training instructor” who sells training through his company. Happy face yoga. The journalists also had a few things to say about the progress of the investigation. Of the 33 participating women, only half were able to perform the facial exercises for a full 20 weeks. The final research group of 16 was therefore too small to draw firm conclusions.

No difference

And then, according to de Volkskrant journalists, it was also questionable whether the improvements in the faces of the 16 women were actually due to facial yoga. Their cheeks looked a bit plump, but that could also be because the participants simply felt more relaxed now that they had spent more time on themselves. Additionally, the researchers were unable to detect any significant differences in wrinkles, crow’s feet, and frown lines.

Moreover: who spends thirty minutes a day in front of a mirror making funny faces on themselves? No, that time is better spent at the gym or doing real yoga.

Pron: Volkskrant. Photo: iStock