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Heather Hanks
Written by Heather Hanks

Reviewed by Physician Vong U Chan and Dr Eki Wari on January 10, 2023

Can Natural Remedies Help You Achieve The Ideal Face Shape?

Many women turn to surgery and injections to help them get the face shape they want. However, these natural remedies may work just as well without the potentially dangerous side effects.

Face shape feature min scaled

Your face shape might seem like something you can’t fix. After all, you can’t change your bone structure without surgery. And while dieting may reduce facial fat, it doesn’t guarantee you’ll get rid of an oval-shaped face.

A v-shape face looks slimmer and is considered more attractive by most beauty standards. Many women try to achieve this look by using injections, which can pose serious health risks.

However, you can achieve a v-shape face naturally without the use of injections or cosmetic surgery. Here’s how.

What’s The Ideal Face Shape?

A smiling woman with healthy skin and a v shape face
A v-shaped face is considered attractive by most beauty standards.

Although beauty ideals can change, looking youthful and feminine is high on the list when it comes to perceptions of attractiveness.

Evolutionary scientists have found that an appealing female appearance is motivated by the primal need to successfully pass on genes. Signs of youth, fertility, and health in a woman are visually attractive. 

The V-shaped face is very close to the heart-shaped and oval-shaped faces. Both of these face shapes are characterized by a wider forehead and a narrower chin. The V-shape, on the other hand, has an emphasis on a v-line at the jaws and chin. So, what makes this shape so attractive? 

The V-shape face looks youthful and pleasing with a slimmer, smaller face shape, making it a desirable feminine trait. Studies have shown that while women may find stronger, larger jawbones and more prominent cheekbones with thinner cheeks attractive in men, the opposite is true of what men find attractive in women.

But not everyone is born with a V-shape face. Short of resorting to cosmetic surgery to reshape the planes of your face, how else can you achieve this coveted look? 

Natural Ways To Achieve The Ideal Face Shape

Though it’s almost impossible to attain the exact V-shape face without surgery, there are other ways to help slim the face, define the jaws, and firm and lift skin for that youthful look.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) offers several natural ways that can help slim the face and prevent puffiness and sagging skin. TCM Physician Vong U Chan suggests facial acupuncture, gua sha, and bojin treatments to help you achieve a slender face. 

“All three methods work by using the acupoints along the meridian channels, promoting qi (vital energy) and blood circulation. This helps smooth clogged pathways, remove toxins, and enhance skin rejuvenation.”

TCM Physician Vong U Chan

These methods can also help you achieve a better complexion by increasing the luminosity and softness of the skin. “They help remove excess bloating and firm the skin, resulting in a visibly slimmer jawline and sharper chin.”

Below is Physician Vong’s advice to help you achieve a slim, V-shape face, refresh your skin and minimize wrinkles

1. Acupuncture can help slim down your face shape

In TCM, acupuncture is a common therapy used to slim down the face. It is done only by licensed TCM practitioners, says Physician Vong.

“Facial acupuncture makes use of fine, thin needles to stimulate acupoints. The common acupoints used for facial acupuncture include Yin Tang (EX-HN 3), Yang Bai (GB14), Tai Yang (EX-HN5), Ying Xiang (LI20), Di Cang (ST4), and Jia Che (ST6).” 

Acupuncture for cosmetic purposes is often performed on the head, face, and neck. Though there are different types of facial cosmetic acupuncture used, the goals are similar: to increase qi, balance internal organs, promote blood flow, and increase muscle tone. Restoring the resting facial muscle tone can help enhance elasticity. This can promote firmer skin for a more sculpted and slimmer-looking face shape. 

2. Gua sha helps revitalize skin

An attractive young woman getting a gua sha facial massage
Use gua sha facial massages to reduce skin aging and sagging, which can improve your face shape.

Gua sha is a form of skin-scraping therapy that makes use of tools such as jade or stone scrapper or ox horn to massage the skin. No needles are involved in this facial massage.

“If you are doing gua sha on your own at home, you can either use a facial gua sha tool or your knuckles,” advises Physician Vong. “Use a lubricant, such as an essential oil or lotion. Apply gentle pressure to reduce tugging on your skin, which can otherwise cause more wrinkles. Massage in one direction.”  

Since the skin on the face is thinner than the rest of the body, she advises using gentle pressure to prevent bruising. This method has also been shown to help with facial expression lines as well as improve skin texture.

3. Bojin helps relax skin and reduces wrinkles

Bojin and gua sha are often related and used in tandem. After all, both techniques share similar TCM theories. However, bojin goes deeper into the muscle tissue and does not cause as much redness as gua sha,” clarifies Physician Vong. 

Like gua shabojin is like a massage and uses similar tools. “A bojin facial focuses on massaging the acupoints on the face to clear blockages in the meridian channel,” she explains.

Physician Vong advises using the pointed ends of a massage tool to accurately locate acupressure points, stimulating deep into the muscle tissue to release tension. For example, the arc point of a tool can be used to massage around the eye area. The concave ends of your tool can help contour the face and jawline, promoting a more defined and slimmer face shape.

“These techniques release tension from the tense tendons and ligaments and clear blockages in the meridian channels on the face, which can otherwise cause wrinkles, muscle tension, and headaches.” 

Does Weight Loss Improve Your Face Shape?

A bowl of hawthorn berries on a wooden table
Adding TCM herbs to your diet, such as hawthorn berries, can help with weight loss.

“Whether weight loss affects face shape is also dependent on how much weight is lost,” answers Physician Vong. Extra fat in the face would naturally reflect excess body fat. Unfortunately, you can’t lose weight in one part of your body. If you want to shed fat from the face, there needs to be overall body fat loss. 

Chinese medicinal herbs can be used to aid with weight loss and help improve your organ’s functions. “Herbs such as Chinese hawthorn (Shan Zha) and barley sprout (Mai Ya) can improve digestion and reduce body fat,” suggests Physician Vong. “Poria (Fu Ling), Atractylodes (Bai Zhu), lotus leaf (He Ye), and Astragalus (Huang Qi) help strengthen the Spleen and remove excess Dampness.” 

Adding a slimming essence drink to your diet that contains Garcinia and other TCM herbs may help you slim down by activating your metabolism, enhancing fat loss, and suppressing the absorption of fat, sugar, and carbohydrates. Switching your morning cup of coffee for slender coffee can also help.

Though commonly used in weight loss, these herbs aren’t always suitable for everyone. You should see a professional TCM physician for your unique body constitution and syndrome.

Use TCM To Improve Your Face Shape

According to TCM philosophy, you can help your body’s ability to repair and rejuvenate itself by supporting the healthy functions of your internal organs, and helping your body maintain a state of balance.

This holistic approach can not only help you slim down your face for a more V-shape silhouette, but it also improves your overall health and sense of well-being.

Bookmark this article any time you feel like pampering yourself with a relaxing, youth-enhancing facial massage.

References

  1. Clinics in Dermatology. 2019. The Malleability of Beauty: Perceptual Adaptation. [Online] Available at: <https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0738081X19300835?via%3Dihub
  2. Int J Cosmet Sci. 2021. Differences between perceived age and chronological age in women: A multi-ethnic and multi-centre study. [Online] Available at: <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9291153/
  3. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2011. Facial attractiveness: evolutionary based research. [Online] Available at: <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3130383/
  4. PLoS One. 2021. Cross-cultural perception of female facial appearance: A multi-ethnic and multi-centre study. [Online] Available at: <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7822532/
  5. PLoS One. 2021. Facial shape affects self-perceived facial attractiveness. [Online] Available at: <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7857636/
  6. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013. Effect of facial cosmetic acupuncture on facial elasticity: an open-label, single-arm pilot study. [Online] Available at <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3745857/
  7. The Journal of Chinese Medicine. 2020. The Use of Gua Sha to Improve Facial Expression Lines and Wrinkles: A Case Study. [Online] Available at: <https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A629150186/HRCA?u=anon~ad3fb806&sid=googleScholar&xid=f5576c9c.>
  8. ScienceDaily. 2019. What constitutes beauty and how is it perceived? Role of social media may create unrealistic expectations for cosmetic procedures. [Online] Available at: <https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190605133549.htm>

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