Never mind the Botox

Botox injections are now available in the high street. The ground floor of Boots in High Street Kensington, West London, is frantic with shoppers searching for toiletries and office workers grabbing sandwiches and drinks.

Upstairs in the "Health and Beauty Experience" section, the lighting is subtler and the atmosphere much more tranquil.

Here customers can chat about the store's beauty products with smartly-dressed assistants or find out about a range of treatments on offer from chiropody to aromotherapy.

From now this will also be a first port of call for anybody interested in investing in the company's latest treatment - "wrinkle reduction" achieved with injections of the poison Botox. Botox is the most powerful nerve toxin known to man, and is a purified protein toxin produced by the clostridium botulinum bacteria (otherwise known as botulism).

The Boots' operation involves a team of doctors and nurses visiting clinics at four stores, including High Street Kensington. If it proves very popular the scheme will be extended.

Before customers are actually treated they will see a doctor or nurse for a 30-40 minute consultation. They will be asked about their medical history and a would-be customer may be denied treatment if he or she has a heart condition or certain muscle problems. The doctor or nurse will also try to establish what the patient expects or hopes from the treatment. If their expectations are unreasonable, they will be let down gently.

Botox works by relaxing muscles, making lines less visible. Best results are on lines on the forehead and around the eyes. It is more difficult to treat the areas around the mouth and the upper neck.

Not surprisingly, one of the first questions asked is whether the treatment is painful. One practioner - who himself has had the treatment - said it "stung a little". However the needles used are very fine, similar to those used by acupuncturists.

The doctor or nurse may also be asked how many injections will be needed. It is not unknown for as many as 30 to be carried out.

In the High Street Kensington store the treatment takes place in a room in the basement, which is also occupied by the branch's dental practice. The basement is accessed only by a lift, ensuring that casual shoppers do not wander in.

The customer waits on bright blue plastic chairs before being ushered into a rather sparse room which at the moment is marked "Laser care hair removal". He or she lies on a white leather treatment couch. The procedure only takes five or ten minutes.

Patients are generally advised not to do anything too active immediately afterwards - and should definitely not stand on their head or the Botox can move around. Afterwards there tends to be some swelling, blotchiness or bruising, which settles within a few days.

The effect comes on gradually over a week to ten days and lasts up to three months. Subsequent injections last progressively longer.

by Steven Morris

Source

So the chair that is used for Laser care hair removal is also being used for botox injections.

This new service might make Boots more popular.