Bone structure
Cheek Sucking for 'Hollow Cheeks'
A pose, not a method. Held habitually it is a parafunctional habit that irritates the buccal mucosa — it does not reduce buccal fat.
Also called: cheek hollowing · sucking in cheeks · hollow cheeks trend
Verdict — cope
The mechanism does not hold. Your time is better spent elsewhere.
Evidence grade D
Nobody has demonstrated this works. Note that this grades the evidence, not the danger — read the verdict for that.
Mechanism
Buccal fat pad volume is anatomical and hormonally stable; drawing the cheeks inward displaces soft tissue momentarily and changes nothing about the pad itself.
Citations
- The buccal fat pad: anatomy and clinical significance in facial contouringAesthetic Plastic Surgery · 2019
The full read
Hollow cheeks come from three things: a low body-fat percentage, a small or high-set buccal fat pad, and prominent zygomatic bone throwing a shadow. None of them respond to suction. Held as a habit, cheek biting and sucking produce morsicatio buccarum — a whitish, thickened line of chronically irritated mucosa along the bite plane. The honest version of this goal is leanness first, and a surgical consultation about buccal fat only with clear eyes about the ageing cost (see `buccal-fat-removal-trend`).