At the age of 25, many people are already turning to botulinum toxin not to correct wrinkles, but to prevent their appearance. What, just a few years ago, would have been considered premature is now part of a broader logic of continuous concern for one’s appearance. Young celebrities speaking openly about fillers, lasers and preventive injections have helped normalize this behavior and make it part of everyday vocabulary. More than a specific trend, it is a structural change in the way a new generation approaches aging.
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This movement acquired a name and a force: prejuvenation. Preventive aesthetics is based on the principle that aging cannot only be combated when the signs appear, but can be managed over time. Among young adults and members of Generation Z, minimally invasive procedures have begun to be viewed as maintenance, not correction.
Recurring observations in the dermatology and aesthetic medicine sector, especially in markets such as the United States and Europe, show that this practice is no longer taboo and has become part of the personal care routine, alongside habits such as a balanced diet, physical exercise and attention to mental health.
Recent surveys by international medical associations and analyzes of the aesthetic market itself indicate that a growing proportion of patients treated with botulinum toxin and treated non-invasively are under the age of 35, with constant growth also among people aged 18 to 24.
For this audience, aesthetics does not necessarily carry the idea of excessive vanity, but of control, predictability and autonomy over one’s own image. Aging, in this context, ceases to be an unexpected event and becomes something managed over time.
This change also repositions aesthetic medicine itself. The emphasis is shifting from specific interventions to continuous monitoring, closer to the logic of prevention than correction. Still, experts emphasize that there is no universal age or rigid protocol for beginning procedures.
“The indication for treatments such as botulinum toxin or fillers depends on individual assessment. Ideally, care should start with basic habits, such as daily use of sunscreen and maintaining skin health,” explains plastic surgeon Ana Penha Scaramussa Ofranti, of Revion International Clinic and member of the Brazilian Society of Plastic Surgery (SBCP). In clinical practice, many young patients benefit more from preventive support than from the cosmetic procedures themselves.
At the same time, the popularization of preventive aesthetics reveals important cultural tensions. Generation Z grew up immersed in digital images, filters, and highly edited visual references. In this scenario, the line between self-care and aesthetic pressure becomes finer.
Frequent reports in dermatology clinics indicate an increase in patients arriving at the office with selfie-based expectations and unrealistic standards, a phenomenon associated with what experts term filter dysmorphia, when the digital image begins to be considered an aesthetic goal in the real world. “The decision to undergo a procedure should come from a genuine desire to feel good, not from an attempt to meet unrealistic standards,” the doctor warns.
Even with safer protocols and advanced technologies, excess remains a point of focus in the industry. Clinical practice shows that repeated applications of botulinum toxin without clear indications can lead to the body’s resistance to the substance, while excessive use of fillers can compromise natural expression and generate facial disharmony.
The contemporary debate is not about the demonization of the first procedures, but about understanding the limits between conscious prevention and interventions guided solely by a tendency or social pressure.
At the heart of this discussion is a broader mindset shift. For the new generation, taking care of your appearance from the start is not necessarily a sign of insecurity, but of planning. Aesthetics is now understood as part of managing one’s own identity and public image.
Yet industry experts emphasize that aesthetic medicine works best when it has a clear goal, technical criteria and realistic expectations. In many cases, the most effective pillars remain the simplest: sufficient sleep, a balanced diet, hydration and sun protection.
Ultimately, preemptive aesthetics says less about eternal youth than about how each generation chooses to move through time. Aging remains inevitable. The difference lies in transforming this process into a field of conscious, informed and individualized decisions, and not a simple delayed response to mirror signals.
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