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Professionals
How to Recognize Authentic Filler Products
Jun 8, 2023
The cosmetic industry is booming. New products are introduced nearly every day, offering people new and exciting ways to rejuvenate and enhance their looks, including lip filler. Concurrently, counterfeiters have emerged, seeking to exploit this flourishing market by illicitly distributing counterfeit and unverified products, deceptively presenting them as genuine and authentic.
Therefore, today we will explain how to recognize authentic filler products, the most prominent signs of fake products, and the dangers of not using genuine dermal fillers. Read on.
What Makes the Filler Authentic
All filler products are classified as class 1 medical devices. This means they must be approved and registered, following a rigorous process set up by the FDA.
The FDA requires the product to be fully tested and backed by enough scientific evidence to allow it into the market. This is done to ensure that the filler product is safe to use and effective in what itâs supposed to do.
This is important to remember before we can delve further into this topic. Dermal fillers cannot be simply put on the market. They also need to have certain important information on their packaging, which we will explain in the following section.
Get to Know the Brands
Spending some time learning all the filler brands and how they are packaged and sold is imperative if you want to avoid getting scammed. You can find all the detailed information, including the contents and photos of the packaging of the products, like those of Fillmed, right here at Maylips.
Manufacturers use specific colors, fonts, and styles when creating the packaging. Likewise, they pack their products in a specific way, be it in pre-filled syringes, vials, or sets of vacutainer bottles. Counterfeiters often miss this information and, for example, write the wrong ingredients on the box.
This is where creators of fake products easily make mistakes. For example, they put three syringes instead of two in a single box; they donât include a set of sterilized needles or the amount of product doesnât match what the manufacturer typically includes.
Even more egregious is when you come across a product that doesnât even exist but is sold as legitimate. That is, of course, the biggest red flag of them all.
Check Information on the Box
Misspelled words and typos are, obviously, immediate signs that youâre dealing with a counterfeit product. Likewise, not including certain information and imprints on the box is another sign to tell a fake from the real deal.
There are two essential pieces of information you need to look for – the manufactured date and the batch number. Medical products cannot be sold without this first piece of information, as knowing when the product expires is mandatory by local and international laws.
The batch number serves more as the manufacturerâs internal identifier of where it sent each batch of products. But, if not present, it should raise suspicion, as that could mean the packaging isnât legitimate. On top of that, products lacking these numbers have no traceability, as you cannot check who actually produced them.
Verify the Legitimacy of the Store
Since weâre already talking about checking the stores, verifying whether the store youâre trying to order from is legitimate should be your final, yet crucial step. Most stores that work as distributors and wholesalers of cosmetics and filler products have several contact venues – typically email addresses and international phone numbers.
Thatâs why we at Maylips offer global, toll-free customer service thatâs available Monday through Friday, as well as email support for quotes and other inquiries. You can also find our physical address and contact us to verify the legitimacy of all the products on sale.
Furthermore, you can look up customer reviews online. Our customers are happy to voice their opinions online and recommend the products and services to others. Illegitimate stores, on the other hand, wonât have many glowing reviews and youâre more likely to run into bad customer experiences when checking the review sites.
Dangers of Using Fake Fillers
Why would you care if youâre not getting a completely original product? After all, if it serves the purpose, then it shouldnât really matter to you or your patients, right? Well, the situation is more complicated than that. And dangerous!
All cosmetic products must be tested and approved by various authorities before they can be distributed for sale. For fake fillers, you have no guarantee that theyâre either safe or effective. Using such products puts your patients in harmâs way, as you cannot be fully sure what effect the injection will have on them. The best-case scenario is that the filler wonât be as effective as the real thing, but at the other end of the spectrum, your patients might end up with more severe consequences for their health.
Thereâs also a monetary issue. Buying fake products is almost like throwing money down the drain, especially if they prove ineffective. That can put a real dent in your finances, which is incredibly risky if youâre just starting out and trying to build your business.
Furthermore, if you do use such products, youâre actively putting your business at risk. Using unregulated or fake medical devices and products will cause you to lose your medical license, barring you from working in the medical industry ever again.
Supporting fake products is also damaging to the industry and market itself. By buying and using them, instead of reporting them to the authorities, medical professionals put their patients at risk, not to mention ruining their own reputation along the way. Thereâs really no upside to counterfeits, and if left unchecked, they could flood the market, making it even more challenging to differentiate from authentic brands.
Conclusion
As you can see, there really arenât any pros to buying or using fake dermal fillers or other aesthetic products. While they are, unfortunately, vastly present in the current market, we at Maylips are fighting against them and joining the legions of medical professionals and wholesalers who wish to help other people in the business. Hopefully, this guide will help you make the best purchasing decisions when you order dermal fillers online and get the best products for your clinic, as well as your patients.
FAQ
How can you tell if Juvederm is real?
Authentic Juvederm has a batch (lot) number, manufactured date, and expiration date imprinted on its box, along with the restricted medicine sticker. Inside the box, youâll also find the lot number and expiration date that matches the one on the outside of the box. The pre-filled syringe also has this number and will be safely sealed with a piece of plastic.
Are there fake dermal fillers?
Unfortunately, yes. These can vary from simple saline solutions that do nothing at all to experimental, untested substances that can cause severe reactions and even create medical emergencies.
How do you know if you got fake Botox?
Botox is frequently a target of counterfeiters due to its massive popularity. Authentic packaging has âOnabotulinumtoxinAâ listed as the main ingredient front and center, while the fakes typically have âbotulinum toxin type Aâ on the box. Additionally, the box will have a holographic Allergan logo, something thatâs very difficult to replicate.