Baby boomers worry about more than their weight. They love to look younger with gel-like facial fillers that are injected into the skin to smooth away wrinkles.

But now a panel of independent advisors has warned the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to change the product labels on these fillers to more adequately reflect the risks.

Those risks include lingering reactions such as scars, blotches, and bumps under the skin.

Some of the biggest concerns are the use of facial fillers for unapproved uses, inadequately trained technicians who inject the fillers, and little data on long-term safety.

The lure of fillers include the promise of a return to your youth and good looks without the high price and problems of a face lift. Facial fillers are considered to be like spackling, a paste that’s used to fill holes, small cracks, and other small surface defects in plaster. Only these injectable fillers fix your face.

One problem is they’re sometimes used for reasons they weren’t approved for by the FDA. Some examples are filling out the breasts, cheeks or lips.

Another problem occurs when patients with darker skin try these products. They can develop ugly blotches and other complications.

When the FDA looked at the data from 2003 until September 2008, they found over 800 patients who had serious reactions to facial fillers. Almost every one was a woman. They were usually between 50 to 60 years old.

Most reactions were redness and swelling. But there were also some unusually serious reactions like facial paralysis, vision problems, disfigurement, and severe, possibly life-threatening, allergic reactions.

So question your doctor carefully before undergoing treatment with a facial filler. The risks may not be worth the benefit of looking younger.

[tags]FDA, facial fillers, wrinkles[/tags]