DEAR DR. GOTT: I am 45 and in good health and physical shape. I have great muscle tone but I’m very unhappy with how my leg skin is starting to sag. What causes this and can anything be done to help slow it down?

DEAR READER: As we age, our skins often become dry and wrinkled due to a loss of elasticity and collagen.

I recommend that you apply moisturizing lotion that contains collagen enhancers every day. This may help to slow the dehydration of the skin and return some suppleness.

To my knowledge there is no permanent, safe option to fix sagging skin. Some individuals choose to have excess skin removed, but I don’t recommend this due to the risk of tearing (if the skin is pulled too much during the healing process), scarring and infection. It is a major surgery and shouldn’t be considered for cosmetic purposes only.