If you are unfamiliar with skin devices, please refrain from applying heat to your face!

I know these treatments are tempting. They’re marketed as “non-invasive facelifts,” “skin tightening miracles,” or “collagen boosters.” But here’s the truth... heat-based devices like radiofrequency (RF) and plasma pens can do permanent damage to your skin and fat. And once that damage is done, there is no going back.

What happens when you apply heat to your skin?

1. Heat Can Melt Facial Fat Pads

Your face has something called facial fat pads, which sit under your skin and give you natural volume and support. These pads are what keep your face youthful! Think lifted cheeks, smooth under eyes, and a healthy glow.

A study in Lasers in Surgery and Medicine (2014) found that thermal damage from RF devices led to visible facial fat atrophy in patients who underwent multiple treatments. Dermatologists have since warned that these devices can permanently alter facial structure.

This confirms that when you use heat-based treatments, those fat pads shrink or even melt. Once they’re gone, you can’t rebuild them. What’s left is hollowness, sagging skin, and an older-looking face.

2. Collagen Damage Instead of Collagen Production

These machines promise collagen stimulation, but here’s the catch! Collagen can only be boosted if the injury is controlled and safe (like with microneedling). With heat, instead of controlled stimulation, you risk denaturing collagen fibers, basically breaking them down.

Over time, instead of tighter skin, you could be left with thinner, weaker skin that is more prone to sagging and wrinkles.

3. Burns, Gashes, and Scars

When heat is combined with microneedling (a trend called RF microneedling), the risks multiply. Microneedling already creates controlled micro-injuries in the skin, which trigger your body’s natural wound-healing response. Add heat to those channels, and the damage becomes unpredictable.

This can cause:

• Cause burns that take weeks or months to heal

• Lead to skin gashes where the tissue doesn’t regenerate properly

• Create scar tissue instead of healthy collagen, leaving permanent marks
  

Microneedling on its own is already an extremely effective treatment. This process stimulates fresh collagen and elastin production, improves skin texture, and promotes overall skin rejuvenation, all without the risks that come with adding heat.

By itself, microneedling can:

• Smooth fine lines and wrinkles by boosting collagen

• Improve acne scars and texture through new skin cell turnover

• Enhance product absorption since the microchannels allow serums and active ingredients to penetrate deeper

• Even out skin tone and pigmentation as the skin renews

• Firm and plump the skin by naturally rebuilding support from within

That’s already an impressive list of benefits. Heat isn’t enhancing the results; it’s introducing risks that can undo all the benefits.

4. Lack of Long-Term Safety Studies

Most of these devices are not backed by long-term safety studies. The clinical data that does exist is often funded by the very companies that make these machines.

Independent dermatologists have raised concerns about:

• Delayed fat loss (sometimes showing up months after treatments)

• Skin thinning

• Unpredictable healing patterns

Without unbiased, long-term research, patients are essentially being used as test subjects.

So even if I were offered this type of treatment for free. Free! I will refuse immediately. Why? Because I would rather take wrinkles over permanent scars or hollowed cheeks. Wrinkles are natural. Scars and melted fat are permanent. Period.

Why Aren’t These Companies Being Sued?

That’s what shocks me most. These machines are marketed as safe, when dermatologists have seen the damage first-hand. Patients are trusting these treatments to make them look younger, but end up looking worse. Just look up all of the bad reviews with video proof on social media. Even if it was conducted by professionals, it can be unsafe!

The beauty industry has a dark side, prioritizing profits over people. As long as these devices keep selling, the risks are downplayed, and the victims are left with permanent consequences. The good news? You don’t need heat to look younger. There are safe, proven options that actually work:

Don’t gamble your skin on unproven machines with dangerous side effects. Stick to what’s safe, what’s proven, and what keeps your skin healthy for the long run. Thank you for reading, till next time, my Amber Babies! Please don't forget to subscribe and follow me on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok 🥳