Often it's not until you look at a recent photograph of yourself - or install better lighting in the bathroom - that you clearly see the signs of aging in your face. What can you do? Happily, correcting wrinkles doesn't have to involve surgery or lengthy, expensive procedures. There are effective "lunch hour" treatments, so called because they take under an hour and are non-invasive. There's no redness or swelling or aftercare, so you can immediately return to your daily routine. And these aren't just stopgap measures: The results may last for a significant amount of time - in some cases, many years.

Facial wrinkles form in two different ways. Fine wrinkles come from overexposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun. Even if you're scrupulous about wearing sunblock now, past exposure may already have "photoaged" your skin. Dynamic wrinkles result from repeated muscle activity. These are the deep furrows or pleats at the corners of the eyes and mouth, and what we call "smile lines" or "frown lines" between the brows. The effect of wrinkling, whether fine or dynamic, is a prematurely aged appearance.

An effective lunch hour program will involve treatments that address signs of premature aging and sun damage. Before each treatment, most people find it helpful to prepare the face with topical Retin-A: This encourages the skin to repair itself from below the surface by producing healthy, young collagen.

The first step is to "air brush" away fine lines and sun spots with a series of microdermabrasion treatments. Using a fine sandblaster-like tool and powdered table-salt crystals, microdermabrasion removes dead cells and irregularities in the top layer of skin. Six of these treatments, spaced about two weeks apart, will virtually eradicate sun damage.

The next step is a Profect Laser treatment to fill in deep-standing wrinkles with your own collagen. The laser light causes the skin to increase collagen production by as much as 160 percent, "plumping up" each wrinkle from below. Two treatment sessions, spaced a month apart, are sufficient to achieve results lasting years.

The third stage of treatment consists of Botox injections to reduce skin "pleating" and frown lines. Botox, or botulinum toxin type A, relaxes hyperactive muscles, eliminating the muscle contractions that are the leading cause of deep wrinkles between and around the eyes. A Botox injection lasts from four to five months, and can be repeated up to three times a year.