This particular space of your physique is the final word giveaway signal you’ve got been on weight-loss jabs. Here are 5 easy, low-lift methods to banish these saggy, flappy folds for good… WITHOUT surgical procedure

Just when you thought you’d heard it all, this spring sees the rise of a new status symbol: ‘sleevage’.

Yes, forget the perfect cleavage. During this year’s awards season, toned, sculpted upper arms have been having a moment in the spotlight instead.

Just look to the Oscars red carpet where Nicole ­Kidman, Kate ­Hudson and Rose Byrne all opted for strapless gowns that ­would showcase their ­enviable biceps, not a bingo wing in sight.

Plastic surgery to remove saggy skin from the upper arms is on the rise. The British ­Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) has reported a 13 per cent increase in the number of ­brachioplasty surgical procedures – otherwise known as bingo wing removal – in the past year.

According to plastic surgeon and aesthetics specialist Dr Paul ­Banwell, demand for ‘sleevage’ ­surgery is often down to dramatic weight loss from GLP-1s which might lead to loose, crepey skin on the underside of the arms. Or it can simply be a side-effect of the ­ageing process.

Collagen and elastin levels ­naturally decline as we age, he says, so the bingo wing area is prone to reduced firmness and elasticity because the skin is ­thinner there, too.

‘Even for people with good ­muscle tone, once the skin has stretched beyond a certain point it simply won’t fully retract, so in this arm area, lax skin is notoriously tricky to tone up. Increased ­exercise often doesn’t solve the problem,’ he adds.

But sleevage surgery is not for the faint of heart: it involves removing excess skin from the underside of the arms and, where appropriate, some underlying fat to create a smoother, firmer contour.

There’s a considerable surgical incision, too, that usually runs along the inner arm from the armpit towards the elbow, leaving a scar. Not to mention brachioplasty will set you back between £7,000 to £12,000.

The good news for those who’d prefer to avoid going under the knife or spending thousands? There’s now a raft of non-surgical treatments, tweakments and targeted products designed to firm up and smooth your sleevage area. Here are the best to try…

Laser arm lift

If you’ve noticed your upper arms wobble, a laser treatment called Endolift helps to remodel wrinkled, lax tissue for a firmer shape. ‘It uses an ultra-fine, micro-optical laser fibre inserted just beneath the skin,’ explains Dr Priya Verma, founder of the ART clinic.

‘The treatment delivers ­targeted laser energy, which converts to controlled heat within the tissue.

‘This, in turn, causes existing collagen fibres to shrink for a tightening effect, whilst also ­triggering long-term ­collagen stimulation, improving skin ­elasticity, thickness and firmness.’

The treatment can also help to reduce small, stubborn pockets of arm fat, too. Only one session is required, with prices starting from £3,000. Full results can apparently be seen within three to six months post-treatment (endolift.co.uk).

A word of caution, though. While this technically isn’t ­surgery, it has to be done under local anaesthetic and there may be tenderness or swelling for several days afterwards. Results should last up to two years

Sleevage-tightening serum

The humble body lotion once simply hydrated, but now you can get skin-tightening body products designed to be applied to targeted areas, too. Like ­Alastin TransFORM Body Treatment, which comes with an eye-watering £150 price tag for a 170g bottle (ambraclinic.com). That’s a lot to pay for a cream, but it is renowned for firming up bingo wings where other topical application products fail. In clinical studies, those using it twice a day saw a 63 per cent improvement in arm crepiness after eight weeks, making it significantly cheaper than surgery.

Arm-sculpting jab

Sculptra Body is a new ­injectable that stimulates the body’s own collagen production. When injected into the arms, it can improve the density and quality of loose, saggy skin.

‘Sculptra Body is a plant-derived, regenerative collagen biostimulator made from poly-L-lactic acid which is injected superficially under the skin to improve skin firmness,’ explains Dr Ana Mansouri, medical director of Dr Ana The Skin Clinic. ‘It helps gradually tighten and smooth crepey or lax skin, giving an overall better contour, so arms often appear more toned and refined as skin quality improves.’

It’s not a quick fix – results develop gradually from around six weeks and continue for several months as new collagen forms. Treatment costs from £350 to £1,200 per session, depending on the volume of product injected each time, and most people require two to three rounds.

No-workout workout

For those who dedicate time to weight training but are yet to see results, a new, non-invasive treatment called Emsculpt Neo could be the one for you.

It combines high-intensity electromagnetic energy that stimulates the arm muscles along with radiofrequency energy to encourage skin tightening – all whilst you recline on a couch.

‘Electromagnetic pads are attached to targeted areas on the arms, triggering thousands of powerful muscle contractions in a short period of time,’ explains GP and aesthetics doctor Dr Ahmed El Muntasar.

‘This strengthens and tones the muscles without pain, helping improve definition in the bingo wing area.’ Studies show the treatment can increase muscle volume by up to 25 per cent and reduce fat by up to a third.

He says most ­people require around four 30-minute sessions, which cost from £400 each.

Aside from some mild muscle soreness the next day, there’s no downtime afterwards so you won’t need to miss your workout sessions. The full results can be seen around a month after the final session and it’s important to remember that consistent exercise will help to maintain them.

‘Strawberry arm’ smoother

Finally, alongside unwanted flab, around 40 per cent of us have keratosis pilaris – a common skin condition that causes red spots like goose pimples, which usually appear on the upper arms.

Treating it can be tricky but a new clinically-proven body serum, Kaleidoscope by Joonbyrd, from £18, claims to reduce these bumps and even out discolouration and rough skin on the arms in just six weeks. This is thanks to a cocktail of smoothing and brightening ­shikimic and azelaic acids.