New Orleans-based Dr Lupo is one of the world’s leading skin doctors. As well as having her own successful dermatology and cosmetic surgery practice, she consults for many beauty companies, helping to shape the way our future faces will look. We caught up with her when she was in Sydney recently to help launch Juvéderm, a new hyaluronic acid injectable line filler.

What do you like about Juvéderm?

“I would have to say the one word would be its softness. It gives such a soft and natural correction … It’s the softest material I’ve worked with … Probably my usage preference is the lips … one of the pluses of this product is that you can use it for both plumping and for the lines around the lip line, it’s very versatile.”

One of your specialties is ‘retexturisation’ - what are your top treatments for this?

“My personal number-one preference is intense pulsed light (IPL). It improves the skin texture as well as red and brown spots. It’s the most versatile of all the modalities. I also do peels, but peels don’t typically help as much with redness. I use cosmeceuticals and retinoids, too, but again, they help with the texture and usually the brown spots better than redness.”

Another specialty of yours is ‘reshaping’ - what do you prefer to use here?

“I use a combination approach. I combine fillers with botox. And then also some of the skin tightening devices like Thermage.”

What’s coming up in beauty that you’re most excited about?

‘The product I’m on an advisory board for, and that we’re expecting good things for in the United States … in the next few months, is called CoffeeBerry. It’s from the very heart of the coffee plant … Another technology I’ve done some research on is … growth factor technology and there’s a company from Switzerland called Neocutis that has some particularly good products.”

Ed’s note: I don’t know of any plans yet for CoffeeBerry - aka Revalé Skin - or Neocutis to come to Australia, but as soon as I hear anything, you will be the next to know!

What is your best skincare advice?

“Number one, sunscreen every day. Number two, if a patient can tolerate it, a prescription retinoid, like retin-A, at night … you can start using retinoids in your teens.”

What’s your own skincare routine?

“I use sunscreen every day and I tend to use La Roche Posay Anthélios. I use topical vitamin C and then topical vitamin A at night. And the Neocutis.”

Ed’s note: La Roche Posay isn’t available in Australia, but Ambre Solaire SPF30+ Very High Protection Milk, $13.69, also contains the photostable UVA/UVB filter, Mexoryl SX, which is what has made the Anthélios suncare range such a huge success overseas.

What’s the biggest beauty mistake you see women making?

“I think the biggest mistake is when people think that because they’re not outside in the sun they shouldn’t use a sunscreen. The ultraviolet light you get walking from the office to a lunch break or out shopping adds up over a decade to significant UV exposure which will accelerate the ageing of the skin.”

What do you consider to be the biggest beauty myth?

“That the pores can open and close. You can only exfoliate the pores to make them appear smaller … If someone comes to me and complains that they have large pores, what I recommend is microdermabrasion combined with retinoids combined with sunscreen because the sun dilates the pores over time. Intense pulsed light and peels are also beneficial to pores. I use a combination approach for everything.”

What’s the beauty question you’re most asked?

“Probably the number one complaint along all ethnic lines is, how do I make my skintone even rather than blotchy? .. I use a combination approach for that too.”

Finally, what is your favourite …

Makeup? “L’Oréal Paris VisibleLift Line Minimizing Makeup” ($32.95, from pharmacies and variety department stores).

Haircare? “Frédéric Fekkai” (from Mecca Cosmetica).

Perfume? “Paloma Picasso” (price varies, available from selected perfume outlets).

Body product? “I’m less loyal to body products, but probably my favourite … is a moisturiser called CeraVe … it comes in a big old bucket. I like to use a lot of it because my skin tends to get dry.” Ed’s note: CeraVe isn’t available here but Cetaphil offers very similar moisturisers which are great for dry skin and come in generous-size containers at a very low price. Find them at pharmacies.

To find out more about Juvéderm, see a cosmetic surgeon. To find one near you, try this locator guide.