The Barbie movie is fuelling a TikTok craze of women getting Botox injected into their necks in a bid to appear more like the iconic plastic doll.
Women in their droves have flooded the social media platform with videos showing dramatic images of their trapezius muscle – which runs across the back of the neck and shoulders – before and after getting the anti-ageing jab.
Advocates say the ‘Barbie Botox’ trend not only made their neck appear longer and slender, but that it also ‘relieves tension’ and ‘improves posture’.
However, experts warn the trend can damage muscles and may not trigger the same neck-slimming effects for everyone.
The procedure, which lasts less than an hour and costs around £800, involves Botox going into the trapezius muscles to make it relax and shrink.
In a video posted by @upkeepbeauty, a woman praises the procedure and shows her progress one month after getting it done and claims to feel more relaxed
Botox is the most recognised brand of the substance botulinum toxin, used to paralyse facial muscles with the aim of reducing wrinkles.
It works by blocking the signal between the nerve and muscle. When injected into the trapezius muscle, the muscle shrinks from decreased stimulation, giving the neck a thinner, more contoured appearance.
Videos of young women showing off their new ‘relaxed’ and elongated shoulders with the hashtag ‘#barbiebotox’ have amassed thousands of views on TikTok.
One clip, posted by @upkeepbeauty and viewed 95,000 times, sees a woman praising the procedure and comparing her neckline before and one month after getting the jabs.
In the video, titled ‘Barbie Botox update’, she claims her ‘shoulders feel more relaxed’.
Another TikTok user @isabell.lux, who has more than 500,000 followers, says she looks ‘tiny’ and ‘like a little baby bird’ after Botox to her neck muscles.
TikTok user @isabelle.lux, who has more than 500,000 followers, showed her one month post Barbie Botox progress. She claimed she used to have wide shoulders and now they are ‘tiny’
The trend is also being promoted by plastic surgeons.
Botox to the trapezius muscles gives people a ‘swan like neck’ and can even ease migraines, says Dr David Rosenberg, a plastic surgeon based in Los Angeles, in a video viewed more than 37,000 times.
Plastic surgeon Jonathan Kaplan, who is based in San Francisco and posts videos to TikTok as @realdrbae, says people who carry a lot of ‘tension in their neck’ get a lot of ‘relief’ from ‘traptox’.
In a TikTok video with more than 43,000 views, he said: ‘You can inject the trapezius muscle and it can just reduce the bulk of the muscle along your neck.
‘It can give you the silhouette of a narrower frame.’
The treatment gives people a ‘swan like neck’, says Dr David Rosenberg, pictured. In a TikTok video with more than 37,000 views, the plastic surgeon also claims the injections can help treat patients with migraines
Dr Richard Westreich, a New York plastic surgeon who goes by @newfaceny on TikTok, has also explained the Barbie craze in a video and says it can take 60 to 80 units of Botox or similar injections to shrink the muscle.
Dr Thuha Jabbar, an aesthetic doctor and founder of Almas Dentistry & Aesthetics in London, says the treatment can also be beneficial for people who have office jobs.
She said: ‘These muscles often accumulate tension, especially in individuals who spend prolonged hours at desks or carry heavy bags, leading to discomfort.’
Amanda Azzopardi, aesthetic nurse and founder of Amanda Azzopardi Aesthetics in Liverpool, also claims it can ‘enhance posture’ and ‘offer relief from tension headaches’.
Plastic surgeon Jonathan Kaplan, based in San Francisco says people who carry a lot of ‘tension in their neck’ get a lot of ‘relief’ from ‘traptox’. He says that in addition to relaxing muscles it can also be used for cosmetic reasons
Clinics in the UK have also noticed a rise in people wanting ‘try out’ the emerging trend.
Ms Azzopardi said ‘more and more people are now trying out Traptox’.
Aesthetic doctor Hanson Yu, who offers the procedure at his private clinic on Harley Street, said that the procedure has ‘witnessed a notable increase’.
The Harley Street Skin Clinic in London has also had a lot more enquiries into the treatment.
Dr Aamer Khan, who offers the procedure at the Skin Clinic, says he has offered Botox in the traps for many years, and usually only one or two people would enquire every week. But 15 have expressed interest in the procedure in recent weeks.
But he warns that not everybody is suitable for treatment – warning that people with ‘normal sized traps’ are enquiring.
Dr Westreich, pictured, a New York plastic surgeon who goes by @newfaceny on TikTok has also explained the Barbie craze in a video and says it can take 60 to 80 units of Botox to shrink the muscle. He says it can take a couple of weeks to see the effects
Dr Khan said: ‘What they are hoping for is a reduction to a point where you are getting a longer slender neck it may not actually give them that. Their expectations may be unrealistic.’
He also urges people to get the procedure done by experienced practitioners.
He said: ‘If it is done in the right way you shouldn’t have any long-term problems because as soon as you stop doing it the muscle will come back.
‘If the Botox is injected into blood vessels it can make people feel a bit feverish, people can get a bit unwell with it, it can cause weakness in the muscle as well.’
Experts also warn that the injections can weaken the trap muscles, which are vital for basic movevments, such as turning the head, moving the shoulders up and down and rotating the arms.
As a result, they urge people not get too much Botox to the muscle, as they may be left struggling with simple daily tasks.
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