Dec 15, 2007 5:53 am US/Eastern
Gilded Skin: Introducing NYC's $400 Golden Facial
With 24-Karat Bliss Comes Potential Health Benefits
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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Turns out gold revitalizes a lot more than your wallet.
CBS
Pure and exotic, it could be a treatment straight out of Cleopatra's powder room. It's a new facial, and it's setting the "gold" standard for looking young.
Just call it the 24-karat gold facial. It's a treatment that lifts and firms the skin, and it runs about $400 per session.
Spa owner Veronica Barton Schwartz is out to reveal the beauty secrets of pure gold.
"I've never seen a facial work like this one as far as being non-invasive and firming and tightening the skin and helping with pigmentation," Schwartz tells CBS 2.
The golden facial uses cool water droplets seven times smaller than a normal steamer. This helps the gold penetrate the skin.
"It really works. The technology is out there now and I'm sure you're going to see a lot more medicinal [uses] how people are using 24 karat gold," Schwartz says.
Gold has been used for years to treat conditions ranging from rheumatoid arthritis to Alzheimer's disease, so it's not surprising it may have some benefit for the skin.
And it's not the only precious metal on the beauty counter.
"Copper is an element that's in a number of cosmetic, as well as medical skin care products. Its history goes back to its efficacy in wound healing," says Dr. Dina Strachan, a New York City dermatologist.
Strachan isn't surprised by the popularity of these costly creams. And the trend includes gems as well.
"There is a product out now that has diamond powder, and the diamond powder acts as an exfolient," Strachan says.
Strachan warns allergic reactions are always possible side effects. Still, these beautifying elements aren't going anywhere soon. "It gives people a nice feeling of being pampered and that they're getting something very luxurious," she says.
Historically, jewelry made from the precious metals has been admired not just for its beauty, but also for its health benefits. Some elements are thought to have cancer-fighting, antioxidant effects, reminding us that beauty is more than skin deep.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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