Everyone wants to look their best, but not everyone will go to the same lengths to achieve it. Some will stop at nothing, not even an expensive surgery to improve their looks, while others balk at surgery and instead stick to creams and noninvasive treatments. In recent years a third option that sits in the middle of these two extremes has become available. It's called Botox. This article will give you the basic facts about Botox so you can decide if it's something you want to do.

While surgeries can cost thousands of dollars and involve significant recovery times, with a Botox injection you can have your frown lines treated for about $250 and be recovered in five to ten days. Treatments are usually done by doctors and nurses in the field of plastic surgery but in some cases some staff at certain spas might have undergone the certification procedure for administering it, which means you can get Botox more easily and in more places than plastic surgery. It also has definite results, unlike the store bought creams.

When you have a Botox treatment, a doctor or nurse will inject several small syringes of the Botox compound into your face. The Botox then bonds with your muscles and prevents it from receiving signals to contract. When the muscles in your face contract, they cause wrinkles in the overlying skin, therefore by preventing the muscles from contracting you look much younger. The effects of Botox last for three to eight months.

There are, however, good reasons for being careful about Botox. Botox is derived from the Botulism bacteria and is considered one of the most powerful neurotoxins in the world and a potential bioterror weapon. As a medical product it is relatively safe, but can still have harmful side effects due to the fact that it can spread outward from the site of the injection. Therefore make sure you read all the warnings and instructions.

The symptoms indicating that the toxin has spread from the injection site include muscle weakness in parts of the body that were not treated with Botox, speech problems, difficulty swallowing, pneumonia, and difficulty breathing. If you have an egg allergy, it can cause you to have a reaction. Even a normal application of Botox will cause a to have a bruised face, double vision, and the inability to control your facial expressions for one to six weeks. If you have your jaw injected, you won't be able to chew during this time either.

What are considered to be the pros and cons of Botox?