Health: A facial for men in their prime helps soothe away the years

When gentlemen visit Edinburgh's New Town for a tonic, it is usually of the alcoholic variety.

The venue is often the Cumberland Bar, a traditional hostelry. However, just next door to this pub, is Aspen North, where Nadia Toland has set up her spa, in order to repair some of the skin damage caused by our 21st-century urban lifestyles.

As one in five of her clients are male, she offers a range of treatments from beauty brand Gentlemen's Tonic, who promise to replace the ghostly pallor of the oh-so-typical city dweller with a glowing, healthy look. On my visit, Nadia quickly diagnosed my skin as being too dry and in danger of premature ageing, so she chose the Gentleman's Tonic Signature Facial to try to get some much-needed moisture back into my epidermis.

The first step was a double cleanse, using a foaming product rich in alpine moss and quillaja: mild agents that enhance the cleansing process while maintaining natural pH balance. Other ingredients include babassu oil, which imparts a pleasant cooling effect.

Next came a gentle exfoliation using a combination of clays to remove dead skin cells and help prevent and combat spots and blackheads.

Face coming along nicely, Nadia began a soothing massage of my shoulders, neck, face and scalp with oils including frankincense to stimulate the mind, sandalwood for meditation and spike lavender to reduce tension and help the skin rid itself of toxins.

Then came the crowning moment of the facial, the application of a papaya mask, which contains a fruit enzyme designed to deepen the exfoliation and, according to them, stimulate cell production.

The orange-hued mask needs time to work, so Nadia turned her attention to a hand and arm massage, using the Gentleman's Tonic Moisturising Hand Balm. By this stage you will be probably be dozing, soothed by the dark room, relaxing music and Nadia's skills as a masseuse. I know I was.

Wake up time comes with the removal of the mask, and happily, no pain is involved, just a gentle suction as it is lifted off your skin. Your face is left tingling pleasantly and feeling somehow lighter, as if the detritus of years has been scraped away. An eye balm, aftershave cream and, finally, a layer of protective SPF Factor 30 cream, completes the process.

The result: my skin looked fresher and healthier than it had for a while, an effect that Nadia assured me would last for some time. The massage had also done its trick and I walked out feeling wholly refreshed. I even managed to pass the Cumberland Bar without going in.

Aspen North, 7 Dundonald Street, Edinburgh (0131-558 1855).

• This article was first published in The Scotsman on October 09, 2010