Ah, the things we do in the name of youthful-looking skin. We slather peptide creams under our eyes, roll jade crystal over our cheekbones and freeze our foreheads with Botox. This week, though, we’re trying out a different kind of needle—one that makes us look and feel good. Enter: facial acupuncture.
We’re usually looking for the latest and greatest in skincare, but this time we’re going way back (like, 2,500 years back) to achieve glowing skin. We know acupuncture promotes self-healing and relaxation (among other heath benefits), but can the ancient Chinese modality make us look younger, too? In this week’s episode of “The Glow Up,” PureWow’s beauty director, Jenny Jin, heads to WTHN, an acupuncture studio in NYC, to find out.
But hang on, what is facial acupuncture, anyway? Similar to the traditional practice of placing ultra-fine needles onto specific points on the body, this method places them along the face to help smooth and repair skin.
“Facial acupuncture stimulates collagen and elastin production,” says Dr. Shari Auth, cofounder and chief healing officer at WTHN. Quick refresher: Collagen plumps our skin and reduces wrinkles, while elastin helps to firm and tone our complexion. WTHN delivers these skincare benefits (along with a major dose of zen) to clients through their buzzy “acufacial.”
Watch as Jin undergoes the full poking sesh, complete with guided sound meditation and soothing LED light therapy—then find out what she really thinks about its anti-aging benefits.