Botox, considered.

Botulinum toxin type A — sold as Botox, Dysport, Xeomin, and Jeuveau — is a neuromodulator. Injected in small, considered doses into specific facial muscles, it temporarily limits their movement. The result, when done well, is not a face that looks treated. It is a face that looks rested.

The treatment is forty years old. It is the most-studied injectable in modern medicine. And it is, in our editorial view, the single most over-administered treatment in the category — by providers who treat it as a default rather than a decision.

The conservative case for Botox is narrow and specific. It works best on dynamic lines — the ones that appear when you move — before they become static. It is most often discussed in the context of the upper face: forehead, glabella (“the eleven”), and lateral canthal lines (crow's feet).

The injectors we trust most ask more questions than they answer. They will tell you when not to treat. They will recommend less than you came in for. They are not, in our experience, the loudest names in your city.