Turkey Neck

What is Turkey Neck?

Turkey neck, medically known as “cervical sagging” or “platysmal bands,” refers to the loose, wrinkled skin that often develops on the neck as a result of aging. This condition gets its name due to the resemblance of the sagging skin to the wattle of a turkey. It is a common cosmetic concern, particularly among older adults, and can significantly affect an individual’s appearance and self-confidence.

It is most typically seen in individuals between the ages of 30 and 40. Since the neckline is so noticeable, many individuals who have sagging skin may feel self-conscious about it and look for ways to minimize the signs of aging, realign their jawline and profile, and seem younger.

What Causes Turkey Neck?

• Aging: Your skin naturally loses elasticity as you become older.  
• Weight: Putting on weight may cause a buildup of extra fat in the neck area.
• Lifestyle factors: Smoking, UV damage, pollution from the environment, and an unhealthy diet can all have an impact on how supple your skin is.
• Medication: Some drugs have the potential to increase body weight or cause fat to be more concentrated in particular parts of the body, such as the neck.

Turkey Neck may cause the jawline to lose definition, drooping skin around the neck, decolletagé, double chins, and wrinkles around the neck.

Sagging skin around the chin and neckline can have a variety of causes, and while aging is a normal process that happens as we age, there are several things that might speed up the process. Genetics and the normal aging process can also cause drooping skin to appear early. Lifestyle variables that affect this include food, sun exposure, weight increase or loss, and weight reduction.

In addition to drooping skin caused by elasticity loss, weakening of the neck muscles, particularly the platysmal muscles, can also result in vertical bands running from the collarbone to the chin as aging occurs.

A double chin, or loss of definition around the chin, is another sign of aging that is associated with the “Turkey Neck”.This occurs when the skin’s natural suppleness causes collagen formation to slow down and fat cells to gather in the neck. Both weight loss and weight gain can hasten the development of a double chin since weight loss can cause sagging skin over the face and weight gain.

Sometimes a person’s hyoid bone, a U-shaped bone in the neck, is positioned more forward, which can shorten the chin and make the skin seem more drooping and aged. Additionally, this may accentuate the look of Turkey’s Neck and neck skin drooping.

Treatment of Turkey Neck?

Although neck muscles can get firmer through exercise, this will not improve the skin’s quality. To enhance the look of your neck and get rid of turkey neck, there are a few procedures that can assist.

Certain therapies are non-invasive, meaning they don’t require surgery; others are performed by conventional surgery or minimally invasive surgical methods that call for tiny incisions.

Physical Therapy Treatment:

Exercises that treat turkey neck

Turkey’s neck is said to be relieved by a variety of face and neck exercises. However, no credible research has examined the efficacy of these workouts so far.

While it can tone your muscles and improve your health, exercise can not get rid of extra skin. Therefore, even while workouts may assist in tightening the muscles in your neck, the skin that covers them may not alter.

Four turkey neck exercises for the face

Typical suggested face exercises include the following:

• Forehead push

Put a single hand on your brow.
Avoid letting your head slide forward and instead press it up against your hand.
For ten seconds, maintain this posture.
After that, thrust back with your neck while holding both of your hands behind your head for ten seconds.

• Chewing:

Sit upright in your chair.
Raise your head so that your chin is pointing upwards.
Maintain a closed-lip position while using your mouth to chew. 20 times, repeat.

• Kissing:

Sit upright in your chair.
Keep your mouth shut and tilt your head up so that your chin is toward the ceiling.
Slobber on your lips like you’re kissing. 20 times, repeat.

• Neck lift:

Assume a reclined position on your bed, gazing upward with your face hung over the side.
Using the muscles in your neck, carefully and gently raise your head as high as possible.
Five times over, repeat. If this exercise is giving you neck pain, discontinue right away.

Surgical Treatment Of Turkey Neck:

The simplest and most effective method to treat turkey neck is through surgery. Certain of the most recent therapies are less intrusive than traditional operations, which usually involve cutting and leaving scars. The following is a list of frequent operations and medical treatments that may be used to treat turkey neck:

Botulinum toxin type A, or Botox
By definition, botox is not surgery, yet it is a laborious procedure carried out by experts. About three to four months are all that the results persist, and to keep the skin firm, further injections are required.

Hyo raised her neck
This is a more modern surgical method for lifting the neck that helps tighten and smooth the skin around the neck. The operation appears to be a potential method of lessening or getting rid of the look of drooping neck skin, according to recent research.

MST operation
Using minimally invasive surgery, mainly barbed threads are used to tighten the skin on the neck, to rejuvenate the area. Very few scars remain following the surgery.

Skin tightening laser
Many medical gadgets have the ability to tighten and heat the skin. A noninvasive procedure with modest to moderate effects is a laser. One advantage of this process is that it doesn’t require any recuperation time.

Z-plasty
Known by another name, anterior cervicoplasty, this procedure was first performed in the 1970s. It involves taking off superfluous skin from the neck directly. It’s simple and fast, although there’s a noticeable scar on the back of the neck.

Skin tightening with lasers
Without requiring surgery, the neck skin can be heated and tightened using a variety of laser kinds. The outcomes can range from mild to moderate, depending on the kind of laser used; numerous sessions are typically needed to get the desired result. The benefits can continue for several years, and there is often little recovery time.

methods for facial enhancement
A facelift is a surgical technique used to create a smoother, more toned neck and jaw area by tightening and raising weak facial and neck muscles and removing superfluous skin.

To conceal the scars, the surgeon will make an incision behind each ear; if necessary, a second incision may be performed behind the chin. Patients wrap their heads and neck in an elastic compression bandage to minimize edema following surgery.

Under general anesthesia, a common outpatient procedure that takes one to two hours to perform is combining a facelift and neck lift. Most patients resume work and other activities after two weeks, though most bruise and swell within the first week or two. To produce a highly realistic effect, there are versions of the procedure that pull the neck and face in different directions.

Nonsurgical Treatments For a Turkey Neck

While loose, wrinkled, or drooping neck skin may not look bad on a turkey, many people find that it is an undesirable side effect of age.

The skin is loose and can become wrinkled and floppy, making it look like the neck of a turkey.

The two main factors contributing to drooping skin are sun exposure and age. Although there is no way to stop aging, there are certain things you can do to slow down the process, including avoiding smoking and protecting your skin from the sun. Due to the hereditary component of turkey neck, you are more likely to have it if a parent already has it.

Are Turkey Neck Treatment Safe?

While many of the treatments recommended by physicians for the indications of aging on the jawline and neck are generally safe, there is a chance that they may have unintended repercussions, including temporary reactions or minor bruises.

You may soon resume your regular activities because many of the recommended treatments for the neck region need little recovery time.

Botox and microneedling are two examples of treatments that employ needles and injections to promote collagen and reverse aging; both treatments can cause temporary redness on the skin, but they can also leave tiny markings or mild bruises.

Even though surgery can have greater long-lasting effects by halting the indications of aging, it also has a higher risk profile and requires a longer recovery period.

Home Remedies and Exercises For Turkey Neck

In addition to being able to give a more young and taut appearance, home remedies may be utilized in conjunction with clinical procedures to assist in achieving better and faster results.

Even if they can’t totally stop sagging skin, exercises to maintain neck muscular strength can help create a stronger jawline, which can lessen the look of drooping and fat cells.

Prevention: How Can You Avoid Turkey Neck?

Even while aging cannot be totally avoided, there are strategies to minimize the appearance of turkey neck and slow down its symptoms. Generally speaking, many of the actions to slow down the aging process are advised as best practices.

Delaying the aging process requires taking good care of your skin. Many anti-aging lotions and treatments contain retinoids and N-acetyl glucosamine to combat sagging, wrinkles, and elasticity loss. Even while there is some evidence to support the claim that topical skincare products help hydrate and revitalize the skin, they cannot completely reverse the effects of aging on their own.

Another crucial component in altering the look and delaying the aging process is leading a healthy lifestyle. Since fat cells tend to collect at the jawline and neck, losing weight can help lessen the appearance of a double chin.

Neck exercises, which serve to tighten the muscles in the face and neck, can also help maintain a more defined jawline and appearance. Although it can tighten the muscles beneath the skin, it cannot remove or change the skin above.

Conclusion:

The prognosis for an individual suffering from a turkey neck varies according to the kind of treatment or therapies they get. Cosmetic creams are in the center when it comes to effectiveness, with surgeries and medical treatments being the most successful forms of therapy and neck exercises
appearing to be the least beneficial.

Speak with your physician if you’re worried about your turkey neck; they can advise you on the best course of action.

FAQs

References

• Cirino, E. (2023, February 3). Can You Treat Turkey Neck? Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/beauty-skin-care/turkey-neck#outlook
• How To Fix Turkey Neck with Plastic Surgery. (2023, November 7). Scripps Health. https://www.scripps.org/news_items/7103-how-to-fix-turkey-neck-with-plastic-surgery
• Clinic, C. (2024, April 30). How To Get Rid of ‘Turkey Neck.’ Cleveland Clinic. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/turkey-neck
• What Causes Turkey Neck and How Can it Be Treated? (2023, December 13). Doctor Nyla Medispa. https://doctornyla.com/blog/what-causes-turkey-neck-and-how-can-it-be-treated/