Do facial exercises work? What the JAMA study found.

The study

Dermatologists at Northwestern University ran a 20-week program of facial exercises with middle-aged women. Participants were taught a set of exercises, did them daily for the first 8 weeks, then every other day. Independent dermatologists rated photographs from before and after. Upper and lower cheek fullness improved, and the participants looked younger on average at the end of the program (Alam et al., 2018).

Be clear about the limits. It was a small pilot study with 16 women who completed the program and no control group. It does not prove that exercises change bone structure or that results apply to everyone. It does show measurable change in soft tissue over about five months.

A routine to try

1. Warm up with 30 seconds of gentle jaw movement and a relaxed neck.
2. Cheeks: smile as wide as you can without showing teeth, hold 10 seconds, release. Repeat 10 times.
3. Jaw and neck: press your tongue to the roof of your mouth, lift your chin slightly, and hold 10 seconds. Repeat 10 times.
4. Eyes: look up with relaxed lids and hold the position for 10 seconds without squinting.
5. Train consistently: 10 to 15 minutes a day beats an hour once a week.
6. Scan every week in the same lighting to see what actually moves.

Where Hexum fits

The Hexum improvement protocol is built around daily, structured blocks (Foundation, Activation and Refinement), about 38 minutes a day. Because Hexum measures 34 metrics from 247 landmarks, you see which routines move your numbers. Hexum users average a +35% improvement in Overall Score from first scan to week 6.^*

* Average change in Hexum Overall Score, first scan to week 6. Based on Hexum’s own user data; not a published study.

References

1. Alam M, et al. (2018). Association of facial exercise with the appearance of aging. JAMA Dermatology, 154(3):365-367. doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2017.5142