The anti-aging market is predicted to be worth over $270 billion in the next few years. Many people are looking for anti-aging secrets and a lot of companies are ready to provide.
With so many options out there, it is hard for consumers to determine which ones are worth their time and money. Which remedies are effective?
One way to sift through all of these products is to understand what causes aging and which parts of your face you need to target to reverse or slow those effects. Another is to determine which products and procedures will actually work with your aging skin.
Read on to find everything you need to know about some anti-aging secrets that produce real results!
Understanding Aging
A number of factors contribute to the aging of our skin. Genetics will play a key role in the age at which your skin begins to age, as well as the areas most affected. Certain habits, such as smoking cigarettes and drinking too little water, will also contribute to aging skin.
Aging is inevitable. Studies have found that after the age of 20, your skin loses approximately 1% of collagen each year.
Believe it or not, the number one cause of aging is sun exposure. You’ll notice that the areas of your skin that are typically covered by clothing remain more elastic and smooth than, for example, your face and hands. Sun exposure can also lead to an uneven skin tone.
Sun Exposure and Wrinkles
UV radiation breaks down your skin’s natural collagen and elastin fibers in the deeper level of your skin referred to as the dermis. Without collagen and elastin fibers, your skin loses both firmness and flexibility. Over time, this will cause your skin to sag, which creates wrinkles.
In addition, lower collagen levels make it harder for your skin to bounce back. Areas of repetitive movement such as the creases around your cheeks that form when you smile become more noticeable. Mornings after a late night of drinking or distressed sleep have a more pronounced effect on your skin, leaving it sallow and loose.
Sun Exposure and Skin Tone
Sun exposure can alter your skin tone by increasing the production of melanin. Laying out in the sun may have once left you with an even, all-over tan. As you age, you will begin to notice what we call age or liver spots.
Age spots occur in areas where melanin has clumped together. They are not raised, although they may feel slightly different than surrounding skin. They are tan, black, or brown in appearance and look almost like large freckles.
Preventative Anti-Aging Secrets
If you’re worried about future aging, there are a few things that you can do to encourage healthy, youthful skin.
First and foremost, incorporate sunblock into your regular beauty routine. Many facial lotions have sunblock in them and you’ll want to find something with SPF 30 or higher. On days that you forget sunblock, stick to shaded areas or avoid going out between 10 am and 2 pm, when the sun tends to be brightest.
If you love having tanned skin, consider using tanning lotion. Even tanning beds, contrary to popular belief, are damaging your skin much the same way that a long soak in the sun is. Find a product that will allow you to achieve that golden tone without the UV rays.
Go beyond the cleansers and creams and think about food as part of your skincare routine. Foods that are high in sugar and carbs produce insulin in the body which leads to inflammation. Inflammation creates enzymes that also break down or slow the production of collagen in the skin.
Drink more water and fewer beverages that lead to dehydration, such as caffeine and alcohol. When your body is dehydrated, it is unable to provide a sufficient amount of water to your skin. This leaves skin looking sallow and washed out.
Finally, be mindful of your cleansing routine. Don’t use products that create a burning sensation or that cause unpleasant reactions such as dryness. Exfoliating cleansers should not be used every time you wash your face, which you will want to do every morning and night.
Natural Anti-Aging Secrets
There are too many over-the-counter anti-aging products to cover, but the best ones will contain an array of natural ingredients. It is advisable to stay away altogether from products with an alcohol base, as alcohol strips the skin of its natural oils and will cause dryness and flaking. Read on to find out which natural ingredients you do want to see in your anti-aging products.
Aloe
We tend to apply aloe vera to the skin to reduce the pain associated with burns. However, taking supplements that contain aloe vera can help boost collagen and promote elasticity. The sterols in aloe vera will also enable your skin to retain more moisture.
Natural Oils
Believe it or not, two of the best anti-aging skin secrets may be in your pantry right now. What are they? Olive oil and coconut oil!
Olive oil can be found in high-quality moisturizers. It contains antioxidants as well as Vitamin A and E, which all help to protect your skin from free radicals.
Coconut oil contains emollient, which will smooth and soften all skin types. Coconut oil is particularly great for people who suffer from dryness and flakiness.
Facial cleansers and serums that contain essential oils are also great for your skin. For example, rosemary oil can prevent damage caused by free radicals while rose oil can help with skin cell turnover. Test products containing essential oils on a small patch of your arm or hand first to make sure that you aren’t allergic to it.
Zinc
Zinc is a mineral that contains anti-inflammatory properties. Many people use it to treat acne, but it can also help to reduce the deepness of wrinkles and even scars.
Use topical products containing zinc and consider taking supplements that will give your internal system a dose of zinc, as well. Zinc will boost your immune system and can also impede the DNA alteration caused by free radicals that speed up the aging process.
Collagen
Because collagen is your body’s natural defense against aging, what better ingredient could there be in supplemental skincare products? As we mentioned earlier, your skin produces less collagen over time for a myriad of reasons. Fortunately, you can get some of that collagen back.
There are two ways to boost your collagen production. The first is to take a collagen supplement orally. The second is to use creams (especially overnight creams) that contain collagen.
Surgical Anti-Aging Treatments
Here’s the biggest anti-aging secret: some things are not reversible. At least, it’s not as quick and easy as you may hope.
Natural and over-the-counter products will be able to slow the aging process and smooth out some of your surface-level signs of aging. However, your biggest problems are occurring well under the surface, and even the most expensive creams aren’t going to seep into that level and undo all of the damage.
Fortunately, there are plenty of facial treatments you can get from a dermatologist or plastic surgeon that will produce almost immediate results. Plus, surgeons can target specific areas in ways that products cannot. That means they can tackle the parts of your skin that are causing you to look the oldest.
Facelifts
Facelift surgeries have come a long way in the past few years. We are now able to provide facelifts that are far less invasive and produce gorgeous, natural-looking results.
Between the loss of elasticity, weight fluctuation, and gravity, the skin begins to loosen around the jawline and neck. Jawlines become hidden beneath puffy, loose jowls and folds develop around the neck.
With a facelift, a few small incisions allow surgeons to remove some of that excess skin and pull sagging skin up and back to reveal the natural jawline and smooth out wrinkles around the neck and lower half of the face.
It is important to note that facelifts do not involve the upper portion of the face. If your aging is concentrated around, for example, the eyes, you will need an alternative or additional procedure.
Eyelid Lifts
The skin around our eyes is a primary candidate for aging. Bags get puffier, darker, and deeper. The crease above the upper eyelid caves in more, creating a sunken look.
Depending on your problem areas, you can get a lower eyelid lift, and upper eyelid lift, or both.
Both treatments involve small, discreet incisions near the lashline. Lower eyelid lifts target bags under the eye. If necessary, enlarged fat pads in this area can be reduced to lessen the puffy appearance.
Upper eyelid lifts can reduce wrinkles and create firmness around both the upper and lower eyelid. This may be enough to tackle under-eye damage but will work better to target creases and wrinkles than bags.
For some patients, these procedures can enhance vision. As our eyelids become heavier, they may rest across our line of vision, obstructing our ability to see clearly. Tightening the skin and pulling it away from the eyeball will give you a more alert appearance in addition to improving your eyesight!
Lip Advancement
One thing many of us are unprepared for is the thinning of our lips as we age. Lip fillers are a great way to bring back some of the fullness we had in our youth.
However, some people may find that lip fillers aren’t enough to get the job done. This is especially true for patients who have always had thinner lips. The issue is that the red or pinkness of your lips aren’t visible enough for fillers to make much of a difference.
Lip advancement is a procedure that allows surgeons to bring your lips up and out so that even when your mouth is in a resting position, your lips are visible. Having a full lip can change the entire structural appearance of your face!
Let Us Help You Rewind the Clock
Plenty of anti-aging secrets can be found in natural ingredients. However, home and over-the-counter remedies tend to work in the prevention stages and may not affect advanced signs of aging.
Cosmetic surgeries are available that will give you a younger, wrinkle-free appearance with minimal invasion or recovery time. If you are in or near Atlanta, we’d love to help you rewind the clock on your skin!
Contact us today to find out more about available options, appointment times, and pricing.
