There’s an expression that says “there’s no use closing the gate after the horse has bolted”. Similarly, there’s not much point beginning an anti aging skin care regime in your sixties. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t, but you’ll naturally achieve better results the earlier you start. These days, the environment we live in is so harsh with a far greater concentration of pollutants in the atmosphere than our mothers and grandmothers had to deal with. We spend time in the sun, not necessarily soaking up the rays – which, of course, is not a good idea without sunscreen – but even walking to the bus stop or driving with our arm out the driver’s window. The older we become, the less efficient our skin is at renewing itself by producing cells over and over to repair damage.
Anti aging skin care is as much, if not more, about prevention than it is about what you put on your skin after the fact. Avoiding direct sunlight is one of the most important pieces of advice you can heed because the sun and its damaging UV rays is the single most significant contributing factor to aging skin. Using sunscreen goes a long way to protecting your skin from the sun but if you also wear a hat, keep your skin covered when possible and avoid going out in the sunniest periods of the day, you will do yourself a big favor. Even three minutes in the sun is enough to burn during the hottest part of the day in summer. You may not notice it or feel it, but the damage is being done beneath the visible layers. Use a sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 15. A broad spectrum product means your skin is safe from the UVB rays that cause burning and the UVA rays that result in wrinkles over time.
Another anti aging skin care buzzword is “antioxidants”. When your skin is subjected to pollutants, toxins and sun exposure, your body creates free radicals. These are simply molecules that degenerate elastin and collagen which are vital to keeping your skin supple and elastic. Wrinkles are caused when elastin and collagen fibers begin to disconnect. Antioxidants attack these free radicals, thereby stimulating new collagen production and protecting what you already have. Antioxidants are found in many foods but particularly in white or green tea and there are also synthetic versions which are added to skin care products.
You will probably have heard of AHA’s – Alpha Hydroxy Acids – in anti aging skin care products. These acids include lactic acid, found in milk and glycolic acid, present in sugar. They act to exfoliate the skin and shed the dead cells that prevent the skin’s natural glow. AHA’s are found in many products these days and are sometimes combined with a Vitamin A derivative known as Retin-A that helps the skin to absorb these acids more efficiently.
Aside from wrinkles, you may experience skin discoloration and blotchiness as you get older. This is a side effect of aging but can be prevented in advance if you are vigilant. Again, sunscreen is a powerful tool in maintaining youthful-looking skin so never underestimate its value in your skin care regime. The alternative is developing blotches, patches, spots and variations in pigmentation. The anti aging skin care procedures used to deal with those sound like things that would happen in a science fiction movie, although these procedures are now commonplace around the world. Chemical peels, microdermabrasion and IPL (Intense Pulsed Light) are to discolored skin what botox is to wrinkles and frown lines. They are expensive, non-permanent, sometimes painful and better off not needed.
When it all boils down to it, it’s really your responsibility to provide your own anti aging skin care the best way you know how, and from the earliest age you can.
