By Margaret Tomaszewicz
What Causes Aging Skin?
A surprising number of factors may influence how old your skin appears. While it may seem impossible to protect your skin from all of these potential threats, you really do have a great deal of power over how much all of these factors affect your skin. Many of the lifestyle choices that you make several times per day can either cause or prevent the signs of premature aging.
1. Sun
This is the single most influential factor when it comes to premature skin aging. The real culprit here is the ultraviolet, or UV, rays that are emitted by the sun. UV rays fundamentally undermine elastin fibers within the skin. As the fibers break down, the skin stretches and sags while also losing its elasticity. This means that the skin can no longer “snap back” to its usual form after stretching like it used to. Sun damage also may result in an increased tendency of the skin to bruise or tear as age increases.
How do you know if your skin has sun damage? Skin that is darkened or reddened by the sun is the most obvious sign, but you also may begin to see wrinkles and blotches. Some people may develop rough and scaly patches on the skin or unusual moles. Skin cancer is the most dangerous sign of sun damage. If you have a suspicious mole, then it’s wise to have it looked at by a doctor.
2. Smoking
Loose skin under the eyes, excessive wrinkles and poor skin tone all are signs of aging that are caused by smoking. When you smoke, you deprive your skin of adequate blood flow as well as oxygen and vital nutrients. This causes sagging, wrinkles and uneven coloring. Additionally, cigarettes contain thousands of chemicals, and many of these destroy collagen and elastin. Damage like this makes smokers appear far older than they truly are.
3. Inflammation
Certain foods are known to cause inflammation in the body. Among these are those that contain white flour and refined sugar. Even the consumption of too many dairy products can lead to inflammation.
Inflammation is the body’s natural response to an invasion from bacteria, a virus or other toxins. When an invasion is noticed, the white blood cells go on the attack. With healing complete, inflammation should disappear. However, when the body’s system is unbalanced through a variety of things like eating an unhealthy diet, then the inflammation never truly goes away.
Chronic inflammation is a risk factor for many serious illnesses, and it also may have a detrimental effect on your body’s largest organ, the skin. The inflammation may be caused by food, stress, lack of sleep or other factors, and it all may make your skin look much older than it is.
4. Not Using the Correct Skin Care Products
Good skin care products are formulated for specific skin types or to have certain effects on a specific type of skin. If your skin is dry and sensitive but you use products that are designed to control the amount of oil that your skin produces, then you likely are stripping your skin of essential hydration. Dehydrated skin may be dry, peeling, itchy, red and tight. All of this distress can lead to the signs of premature aging like lines, wrinkles and rough patches. That is very important to use organic, natural skin care products that do not contain any additional chemicals. Always look for cruelty-free skincare so you know that company is compassion to the environment.
5. Genetics
Don’t forget that your genes can play a huge role in what type of skin you have and how it ages. If your close relatives have oily skin that is prone to breakouts, then you’re more likely to have these problems too. The same is true if your family has dry, sensitive skin that easily becomes inflamed.
While you cannot change your genetics, you can treat your skin for these conditions so that they do less damage. This minimizes the effects of premature aging so that you can look like your true age or perhaps even younger.
How to Treat Aging Skin
If you don’t think that your skin is yet showing the signs of premature aging, then now is the perfect time to take preventative action. However, even if you’re concerned that lines, wrinkles and dark spots are making you look older than you are, it’s not too late to take action. Science and the right skin care products can perform a miracle for your skin.
1. Correct Skincare with Anti-Aging Ingredients
The skin care products that you routinely use can go a long way toward protecting your skin from damage while also reversing some of the signs of premature aging. Look for skin care products that contain one or more of the following ingredients:
Retinol
When you regularly use products containing retinol, then your skin will be stimulated to produce more collagen. This is beneficial because collagen is the skin’s main building block. Unfortunately, the skin produces less collagen on its own as the body ages. Retinol counteracts this effect by increasing collagen production. It also may produce new blood vessels in the skin, leading to a healthier color. Age spots and rough patches also may be softened. A compound based on Vitamin A, many products contain retinol to help you achieve younger-looking skin.
Vitamin C
Not only is vitamin C a powerful antioxidant but also it stimulates the production of essential collagen. Skin that has been damaged by the sun may be rejuvenated when vitamin C-containing products are regularly used. Vitamin C further may mitigate the damaging effects of free radicals, unstable molecules that decimate the skin’s supply of collagen.
Hyaluronic Acid
This is hands-down one of the best ingredients that you can put on your skin to reverse the signs of aging. The body naturally produces hyaluronic acid, especially when the body is young, but that production decreases with age.
Accordingly, it’s vital to nourish and hydrate dry skin with a hyaluronic acid treatment.
The skin is naturally adept at holding in water when it is young. As the years go by, the skin begins to lose this ability. This results in a loss of elasticity and firmness, and wrinkles begin to appear more frequently. Luckily, a product that is rich in hyaluronic acid can help by improving your skin’s ability to retain moisture. The result is fewer lines and wrinkles, enhanced suppleness and a healthy glow.
Peptides
Think of peptides as tiny bits of protein, whose main job is to stimulate the production of collagen. Research suggests that peptides have incredible anti-aging qualities. Some scientists have even described an effect like Botox in that dynamic wrinkles tend to become far less pronounced when peptides are regularly used as part of a skincare routine. If you want to see fewer lines and wrinkles, then a peptide-containing product may be the way to go.
Antioxidants
Is your skin looking dull? Perhaps it’s inflamed or irritated. Or, maybe you’re just seeing the signs of premature aging. In any of these scenarios, antioxidants can help you. Antioxidants include substances like vitamin E, vitamin C, vitamin A, green tea and more. These ingredients may protect the surface of the skin so that it can resist environmental damage. At the same time, they reverse the effects of premature aging by making fine lines and wrinkles look less pronounced. You’ll also see a more even skin tone and notice that your skin looks brighter when you regularly use products that contain antioxidants.
Ceramides
Ceramides are fats, which are sometimes called lipids, that naturally occur in the skin’s outer layers. This substance effectively holds together skin cells while also forming alayer that helps to prevent moisture loss. Like collagen, the body produces fewer ceramides with age. This makes it vital to use skincare products containing ceramides. They improve the skin’s ability to retain moisture, resulting in fewer lines and wrinkles.
AHAs
Alpha hydroxy acids, or AHAs, can do amazing things for your skin. Often found in facial masks and exfoliating products, AHAs are derived from both plant and animal sources. For example, glycolic acid comes from sugar cane while hydroxy acrylic acid is derived from animal sources.
Regardless of which AHA you choose, they generally are effective for promoting collagen production and healthy blood flow. AHAs may lighten skin discolorations from scars or acne or make surface lines and wrinkles less noticeable. Then even help your skin to better absorb other healthy skincare products.
2. Sunscreen
It follows that because the sun is the single most damaging factor for premature aging that wearing sunscreen every day is the most critical thing you can do to protect your skin. Even on overcast, rainy days, UV rays can still penetrate your skin and cause damage. Using sunscreen every day prevents the rays from actually causing the harm that leads to lines, wrinkles and spots, so put it on before you even leave the house.
At a minimum, a sunscreen-containing product should be used daily on the face, neck, and décolletage. Ideally, your hands would receive similar protection, as damaged skin on your hands can make you look far older than your true age.
5. Facial Treatments
A good skin care routine is essential for maintaining healthy looking skin. The best person to recommend a home skin care routine is an experienced facialist.
By making a habit of scheduling a regular facial appointment, you can address different issues and receive advice that is \customized to your skin care needs.
Be good to yourself and schedule your appointment soon.
To your health!
