I’ve always hated my gummy smile!

Q

I’M IN my mid-50s and when I smile my top lip disappears and I look very ‘gummy’. Someone told me you can easily correct this with Botox. Is that true and how dangerous is it?

A

It’s surprisingly effective, as I found out when I wanted to soften a line in my top lip with Botox before my wedding several years ago. In the pictures, two weeks later, I suddenly had a full-lipped smile I’d never seen before!

‘Botox can relax over-strong muscles around the mouth in several ways,’ says Dr Wassim taktouk (drwassimtaktouk.com). ‘Injected either side of the nostrils, it stops the “elevator” muscles there pulling the top lip up too far, effectively dropping it a few millimetres so your gums aren’t exposed when you smile. Alternatively, a few tiny drops in the lip line stop your top lip “rolling in” and disappearing.’

the result is a lip that for two to four months looks slightly fuller. so even people without gummy smiles have embraced it as an alternative to fillers.

Do please stick to serious medical practitioners with a thorough grasp of facial anatomy, as you could end up with a wonky or paralysed top lip if they inject in the wrong places. (In the event, your lips will be slightly weaker for as long as the Botox lasts, making whistling a challenge.)

Expect to pay between £200 and £300 for this tenminute treatment: Dr Wassim taktouk and Dr. sophie shotter (illuminateskinclinic.co.uk) are two specialists whom I would recommend.

■ Email your questions to Ingeborg van Lotringen, author of Great Skin, at inge@dailymail.co.uk.